The Missing Peace

Prayer As Intimacy with God

Three Angels Broadcasting Network

Program transcript

Participants: Jason Bradley (Host), Dr Nadine Joseph-Collins

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Series Code: TMP

Program Code: TMP000002A


00:34 Hello, and welcome to The Missing Peace.
00:36 My name is Jason Bradley.
00:37 Our primary host for this program
00:39 is Dr. Nadine Joseph-Collins.
00:41 Dr. Nadine hails from the island of Saint Lucia,
00:44 and prayer is her passion.
00:46 She has been empowering
00:48 the prayer lives of people around the globe.
00:50 Dr. Nadine is an author, speaker,
00:52 and an affiliate of SanareLife Ministries
00:55 where she works alongside her husband Nyse Collins.
00:59 Dr. Nadine is going to share information
01:01 to make our prayer lives go wow.
01:04 What are gonna talk about today, Nadine?
01:06 Today, we are going to talk about prayer
01:08 as intimacy with God.
01:10 Hmm, prayer as intimacy with God.
01:14 If you're interested in somebody
01:16 on a personal level,
01:17 I'm sure you would not want to be
01:19 the acquaintance forever, right?
01:21 No.
01:22 And if you're interested in having that person
01:24 in your life for a lifetime,
01:25 you'd want to take that relationship to another level?
01:28 Absolutely.
01:30 The thing is, when we're talking about
01:32 our prayer lives,
01:33 we're looking at our relationship with God.
01:35 Many of us are contented just to probably be His acquaintance
01:40 or to just be His friend, maybe even His close friend,
01:44 but God desires to have an intimate relationship
01:48 with each of us.
01:50 Now the thing is when we speak about
01:54 taking the relationship to the next level
01:56 or we talk about intimacy,
01:58 it's usually associated
02:00 with some negative connotations, right?
02:04 We usually look at it in ways
02:07 relating to just things like sex,
02:09 and I believe that's just
02:10 because of our distorted thinking.
02:12 But apart from, let's say marriage
02:14 in the context of intimacy,
02:16 it's usually just about familiarity,
02:20 togetherness, friendliness, warmth, and affection.
02:23 That's actually the definition you'll get if you google it.
02:26 So you will get something that probably looks like,
02:28 something in the context of marriage,
02:30 but you will get this kind of thing
02:32 that just means that you are really familiar with
02:35 or very friendly with somebody.
02:37 So this is what intimacy is really about,
02:40 that kind of exclusivity.
02:43 And God is looking for that type of relationship
02:46 with each of us.
02:47 He doesn't just want the friendship part.
02:48 He just wants us to take that relationship to another level
02:51 because when you are intimate with someone,
02:54 there are a lot of benefits that come with it.
02:56 Or you guys probably would relate on a different level.
03:00 So yes, friendships are probably good,
03:02 I've been hearing.
03:03 You know, the relationships that we have
03:05 with our intimate partners and so on
03:07 are different to the relationships
03:09 we have with our friends,
03:11 and if you just say, our acquaintances.
03:13 And that's really what we want to talk about today,
03:15 prayer as intimacy with God.
03:19 the Bible says,
03:22 "What God has joined together, let no man separate."
03:26 And when I look at that text, it reminds me of intimacy.
03:30 It kind of gives the picture
03:33 of two people glued together so close,
03:36 that the Bible says, "Let no man separate."
03:40 So if that's the context of intimacy,
03:42 it means that God wants us to be with Him that close
03:47 that nothing can separate us, right?
03:49 Yeah.
03:50 And one of the songs I think that really highlighted
03:52 that sort of intimacy is, "Nothing Between."
03:55 You know that song,
03:57 "Nothing Between My Soul and The Savior"?
03:59 I've heard it before,
04:00 but I'm not familiar with the words.
04:02 The words are powerful.
04:03 It says, "Naught of this world's delusive dream,
04:07 I have denounced all sinful pleasure.
04:10 Jesus is mine, there's nothing between."
04:14 One of the other verses said,
04:15 "Nothing between my soul and the Savior
04:17 so that His blessed face may be seen.
04:20 Nothing prevented the least of His favor,
04:23 keep that way clear.
04:24 Let nothing between."
04:26 And it goes on for about three more verses.
04:29 But some of the things that it highlights
04:32 is that you do not want anything to come
04:33 between you and God,
04:35 not worldly pleasures, not habits of life,
04:38 even though they seem harmless.
04:40 Wow, those are beautiful words. Yes.
04:42 And the other three verses continue to say,
04:45 "not pride, not self, not friends,
04:49 not the hard trials of life,
04:53 even though the whole world is against you,
04:55 you do not want to let anything get in between you and God."
04:59 Yes.
05:01 And it's like, the other words
05:04 actually would give the indication
05:06 that you would do anything to see the face of God,
05:09 the face of that love, right, because He's your all.
05:13 Even though it cost you tribulation,
05:15 you resolve,
05:17 it says in one of the verses,
05:19 "you resolve, there's nothing between
05:23 because you will watch with prayer
05:24 and much self-denial."
05:26 That's a lot of intimacy in just one song.
05:28 Absolutely.
05:29 You know, something that I love that Ellen White says
05:31 and I don't remember where it's from,
05:34 but I remember her saying that,
05:35 "When we get to heaven,
05:36 we'll say that heaven was cheap enough."
05:39 Wow. It was cheap enough.
05:41 You know, there's nothing that we should be holding on to
05:43 here on this earth
05:45 that will prevent us from going to heaven.
05:49 And seeing Jesus face to face. Exactly.
05:51 And so this song, "Nothing Between,"
05:53 really highlights that, that whole point of prayer
05:57 as intimacy with God.
05:58 Because if we take that approach,
06:00 we realize nothing is really worth that.
06:02 And this song was a song of...
06:04 the favorite song of one of my deceased aunts.
06:07 And my grandmother also loved that song.
06:09 And one of the things she used to say frequently,
06:11 and I didn't understand it until now
06:13 that I am continuing to grow in Christ,
06:15 she used to say she felt like she was His only child.
06:19 Like, you know, it was just Him and her.
06:22 And another friend of mine Debbie,
06:24 we used to be prayer partners.
06:27 When we pray, she would say to God,
06:28 "Lord, draw me close to You.
06:30 Closer than You would allow any human being to get to You."
06:35 And so that, at the time,
06:37 I didn't realize was really intimacy she was talking about,
06:39 you know, because that sort of closeness,
06:41 that glue that we spoke about there in Mark,
06:43 it's like, nothing will separate you from God.
06:46 Yes.
06:47 And so that has become one of my resolutions
06:50 that I will not allow anybody, any situation
06:52 to come between me and my God
06:54 because you want to be so close to Him
06:57 that nothing can really separate you from Him.
06:59 Absolutely.
07:01 And, you know, folks have been very ambitious.
07:05 And one of my friends, some time when he was preaching
07:07 and when I did some research online,
07:08 I found that other people use a phrase intimacy
07:12 is really saying, "Into me see."
07:16 So in to me you see.
07:18 And even in an article I read in the Huffington Post,
07:22 it was really speaking about that into me see,
07:25 referring to intimacy saying that,
07:27 "When you are intimate with someone,
07:29 you are literally opening yourself to be vulnerable,
07:32 you are allowing that person to see all of your weaknesses,
07:36 you are letting go of all of your defenses
07:38 and that really is what intimacy is."
07:41 Now if we look at that
07:42 in context of our relationship with God,
07:44 it's really about just opening up ourselves to Him.
07:47 Yes.
07:48 It's really about just sharing with Him.
07:50 Yes, He knows.
07:52 But the fact that you actually take time
07:54 to share these things with Him,
07:55 it means that you are desiring that time with Him,
07:59 you are desiring your relationship.
08:00 You want Him to see that you are allowing yourselves
08:03 to be vulnerable in His presence.
08:06 And so if our intimacy with human beings
08:08 gives that connotation,
08:10 how much more important it is for us to be able
08:12 to open up ourselves to God
08:14 who can really attend on to all of these things
08:17 that are actually bothering us sometimes?
08:19 Absolutely.
08:20 You know, one thing that I think
08:22 truly shows God's intimacy
08:25 is the fact that Jesus died for each and every one of us.
08:28 The fact that He sacrificed His life
08:31 and spared no expense to save you, to save me,
08:36 to save, you know, He wants...
08:38 the end game is for us to be saved...
08:41 And to be face to face with Him.
08:43 I think that is the ultimate example of love and intimacy
08:47 and how, I believe, it's in Revelation
08:49 how it talks about
08:51 how Christ is coming back for a purified bride.
08:54 Yes, exactly.
08:55 Because He really wants that intimacy with us,
08:57 and I think, in our prayer lives,
08:59 he's saying, "I want you to see into Me."
09:04 So in our relationships on earth
09:06 we say into me you see.
09:07 But God is saying, "I want you to see into Me.
09:11 That's how intimate I want to get with you
09:13 because I already know you,
09:15 but I want you to get to know Me."
09:17 You see, and so He's really pushing the button there
09:19 because He wants us to recognize
09:22 that our prayer lives is really about
09:25 having that intimate relationship with Him.
09:29 In The Privilege of Prayer chapter 11, Ellen White says,
09:32 "Through nature and revelation, through His providence
09:36 and by the influence of His Spirit,
09:38 God speaks to us."
09:40 But these things are not enough.
09:42 She says, "We need also to pour out our hearts to Him.
09:46 In order to have a spiritual life and energy,
09:49 we must actually have intercourse
09:51 with our Heavenly Father."
09:54 That blew me away when I read it
09:56 because every time you hear that word intercourse,
09:59 it's always in the context of something else.
10:02 But she's saying that
10:03 yes, He's going to reveal Himself to us through nature,
10:07 yes, the Spirit will influence us,
10:08 yes, God will speak to us,
10:10 but these things are not enough.
10:11 We need to pour ourselves out to Him.
10:13 But also in order to have
10:15 spiritual energy and our spiritual life,
10:18 we must have intercourse with our Heavenly Father.
10:20 She's not saying that we're actually literally having
10:23 the S-E-X with God.
10:24 She's saying that we need to be so intimate with God
10:28 that we pour out our hearts to Him,
10:30 and we receive from Him so much
10:33 that we are revived spiritually.
10:35 You know, 'cause she's taking about
10:37 the spiritual life and energy
10:39 and that only comes from having
10:41 that deep sort of relationship with God.
10:44 So it shows here, He really wants to me personal.
10:48 It's really about a personal thing.
10:50 Your relationship with Him
10:52 is not dependent upon somebody else.
10:54 Nobody else can be that personal
10:56 with God for you but you.
10:58 Yeah. You see?
10:59 Which is amazing because you start thinking about
11:01 how many people there are in the world,
11:04 but yeah, God takes time for each one of us.
11:06 We're going to get there.
11:08 Yes, it's like we're the only ones
11:10 that He's talking to.
11:12 Yes.
11:13 And, you know, we're going to get to that
11:14 and I remember having a conversation with my mom.
11:17 She's not a devout Christian or anything.
11:19 But I believe through prayer,
11:21 you know, I've been praying for and I...
11:22 we reached a point where I was able to have
11:24 a really deep conversation with her about her and God.
11:27 And I was sharing with her, while I was reading a book,
11:30 I read some of what I was reading in the book.
11:32 Telling her, you know, God wants to do
11:33 more for you, mommy, and so on.
11:36 And she said the most innocent or childlike thing
11:40 I had not thought about it, she said to me,
11:42 "My girl, God has so many of us to take care of.
11:46 He has so many people to answer to their prayers
11:49 and to bless and to heal,
11:51 and so whatever He does for me, I'm fine with it."
11:55 And I thought to myself, "Wow," and I was saying to her
11:58 and I realize I couldn't push it on her.
12:00 My idea is that He wants to do for you personally.
12:05 There's nobody that really that's going to come
12:07 between the two of you,
12:08 or take your place, or whatever the case may be,
12:10 but in her own childlike faith,
12:12 she's seen that he has 7.5 billion children,
12:16 I'm one of them and I'm going to just stand in line,
12:18 and, you know, just take what I can get, and so on.
12:23 But the thing is to take our relationship
12:24 to the next level with God,
12:26 we will have to look at,
12:28 you know, getting to the point of understanding
12:31 that we are really the only persons in God's eyes.
12:35 And I want to share something
12:37 really that something that's really new to me
12:40 in understanding the intimacy part of it is that God...
12:45 one of the first things that God created was time.
12:49 One of the first gifts that He has given us
12:51 was actually time
12:53 because He gave us the Sabbath,
12:54 He gave us morning and evening, He gave us time.
12:57 The first thing that He did
12:58 when He redeemed the children of Israel
13:00 was also to give them time back.
13:03 So intimacy spends on the currency of time.
13:08 That's deep.
13:10 The only way we can maintain
13:11 an intimate relationship with anybody
13:15 is if we spend quality time with them.
13:17 Absolutely.
13:19 And the only way we can maintain
13:20 an intimate relationship with God
13:22 is if we spend time with God.
13:24 Absolutely.
13:26 And the only way we end up trusting somebody
13:29 is if we spend time with them.
13:31 Exactly.
13:32 And sadly, the enemy has crowded our space
13:35 to eat away at our time.
13:40 All the distractions, the entertainment.
13:43 Yes, everything.
13:45 And because the lack of spending time,
13:49 quality time with our loved ones,
13:51 with our spouses, with our friends,
13:54 eating away at our relationships,
13:56 destroying our relationships,
13:58 it's also doing the same thing in our relationship with God
14:02 because many of us don't realize
14:04 that if we do not invest time in getting to know God,
14:08 if we're not investing time in getting to know His voice,
14:11 knowing the voice of His Spirit,
14:13 if we do not spend enough time with Him, to grow in Him,
14:19 we are actually damaging our own selves
14:22 and destroying our relationship with Him,
14:24 just as if it was another relationship
14:27 that we would have had.
14:28 So God desires intimacy with each of us so much
14:33 that we will go to the point
14:35 that you mentioned earlier that He died.
14:37 Yes.
14:38 If He had to die for 1 out of 1.7 billion people,
14:42 He would have done it.
14:44 That is love.
14:45 That speaks to the fact that He really wants to have
14:49 that deep personal relationship with each of us.
14:53 And the good thing about it
14:55 is that we do not have to worry about competing with anyone
14:58 for His time.
15:00 We don't have to compete if anyone for His attention,
15:03 for His love, for answers to our prayers,
15:05 and anything like that.
15:07 Out of the 7.5 billion people in the world,
15:10 He deals with each of us as if we were the only one.
15:14 Let me ask you this question.
15:15 What would you say to somebody who might say,
15:19 "Well, I don't love God or I don't think I love God"?
15:24 The thing is, whether you love Him or not, He loves you.
15:27 He is that relentless lover. He died for you.
15:29 He has demonstrated already by His sacrifice on the cross
15:33 that you mean everything to Him.
15:35 So even though you do not acknowledge that love,
15:37 even though you do not think that you love Him back,
15:40 He loves you.
15:41 And love awakens love and that's the thing,
15:45 it's like when you really look at Christ's life
15:48 and you look at the things that he went through,
15:51 even being perfect sinless
15:54 and He went through life
15:56 and they still just persecuted and mistreated Him
15:58 the whole way through,
16:00 and He took all that for us.
16:02 How can you not love Him?
16:04 You see the thing is it's easier for us to see
16:06 because we are oriented to understanding Him.
16:09 And so for other people,
16:11 they do not understand that sacrifice.
16:12 And I get to understand more
16:15 that we cannot even fault them for it
16:16 because they just don't understand the type of love
16:19 that God has for them.
16:21 Our goal is to pray that one day
16:24 they could be awakened to understand,
16:25 "Hey, this person did such a sacrifice for you."
16:28 Absolutely.
16:29 And I think that too, we need to pray
16:32 that the Holy Spirit will fill us and help us
16:36 to give an accurate representation of Christ
16:38 and reflect Christ love to other people
16:41 because sometimes, you know, even us, as Christians,
16:45 we can misrepresent God.
16:48 You know, we cannot show the love
16:51 that He pours out and instills in us.
16:54 We need to reflect His true character
16:57 to all those that we come in contact with
16:59 so they can see God in us.
17:01 And the only way we could actually reflect Him
17:05 is if we spend time with Him.
17:07 We may be going to church that doesn't mean
17:10 that we have a personal relationship with Him.
17:12 Because the Bible says,
17:14 "By beholding, we become changed."
17:15 And if we are beholding Jesus,
17:18 if we are in that deep relationship with Him,
17:20 if we are in that intimate relationship with Him,
17:22 naturally, when others interact with us, they will see Him
17:26 because we would be so filled with Him,
17:28 we would have been so much like Him.
17:30 You know, they say, "Show me your friends
17:31 and I'll tell you who you are."
17:33 So if He is our friend and if we are more than friends
17:36 and we are intimate,
17:37 it means that we are becoming more and more alike.
17:39 So when people see you, they see Jesus
17:42 because you are reflecting Him
17:43 because you are spending so much time in His presence.
17:46 Remember Moses?
17:47 When he came from spending time with God,
17:49 when he came down,
17:51 the people couldn't even see his face.
17:53 Because the glory of God was shining so much.
17:57 Yes. You know?
17:58 And I'm glad that you brought up by beholding,
17:59 you become changed
18:01 because that also works on the opposite way as well.
18:06 By beholding we become changed,
18:08 and if you're beholding the wrong things,
18:10 you're going to put out poison.
18:12 Right, so now we stick to the intimacy.
18:15 So Moses was intimate with Him as well,
18:17 that's why the glory of God could have been
18:19 emanating from Him.
18:21 You see, and the point I want us to stress on here
18:23 is the fact that we do not have to contend
18:25 with anybody else for God's attention
18:29 because many lovers and spouses and even children
18:32 and even parents sometimes feel neglected,
18:35 feel abandoned,
18:36 feel that they have to contend
18:38 with other people in their lives
18:41 for the attention of a loved one.
18:43 But with God, that's not the case.
18:44 And I sometimes share with folks
18:47 that He is the only man
18:48 that I don't mind sharing with the world
18:51 because I know that my time with Him
18:54 does not affect your time with Him.
18:57 In fact, for God,
18:59 you are first in line on your line all the time.
19:03 That's beautiful. Say that, say that again.
19:05 You are first in line, on your line, all the time.
19:10 It means you do not have to take a number.
19:12 You know, you go to a doctor's office,
19:14 you have to take a number and sit to wait for your turn.
19:17 With Him, you are first in line, on your line,
19:19 all the time.
19:21 So it doesn't matter what time you call on God,
19:23 He will answer you
19:25 because you are His most prized possession,
19:28 you are the apple of His eye.
19:30 I say if He had a fridge, your face would be on it.
19:34 You know, we put these little pictures,
19:36 magnet pictures on it.
19:38 If you had a picture frame,
19:40 your face would be in that picture frame.
19:42 If He had a wallet, when he opened that wallet,
19:46 your face would be what would be on the inside.
19:48 Nice.
19:50 And if He had a tattoo on His hands,
19:52 it would be your face.
19:54 The image of your face would be on His hand
19:58 because He wants to let you know that you are my priority.
20:00 "I love you. I carry you everywhere I go."
20:03 If he had a locket, when He opens that locket,
20:05 your picture would be on the inside.
20:07 Now just imagine for each of us,
20:09 God is that personal.
20:11 Wow.
20:13 Because He wants us to really understand
20:15 that He wants to be intimate with us,
20:17 He wants to be that close with us,
20:19 He desires intimacy for us so much
20:21 that His entire world revolves around us.
20:24 I'm sure if you met a guy or even a girl
20:26 who had the person that they love,
20:30 whether the girl or the guy picture in the locket,
20:33 in the wallet, in their purse, on the fridge.
20:35 We'd say, "You're obsessed,"
20:37 when He is obsessed about us, each of us, personally.
20:41 So we don't have to contend or compete with anybody
20:45 for His attention
20:46 and His ability to listen to my prayers,
20:49 His ability to answer my prayers
20:51 does not prevent Him from answering your prayers
20:54 or listening to you when you call.
20:55 Very true.
20:57 And so that's the reason why we do not need to be jealous.
21:00 We do not need to be angry.
21:02 We do not need to feel slighted
21:03 when we see God blessing other people
21:06 because God blessing them or God answering their prayers
21:09 is no indication of what God will do in your life.
21:13 And so the truth is
21:14 if we really have to examine ourselves on a deeper level,
21:17 if we are not getting answers to our prayers,
21:20 if we are not feeling like we are the apple of God's eye,
21:22 we need to check ourselves
21:24 because for each of us
21:26 He has made the very same sacrifice,
21:27 and for each of us He is there available just the same.
21:31 And so the problem is really with us recognizing
21:34 that we need to really put ourselves in line,
21:37 we need to really access Him
21:39 or take advantage of the access that He has given us
21:42 to have that sort of intimate relationship with Him.
21:46 Yeah, absolutely.
21:47 I mean, there's people on this earth
21:49 that people would be like,
21:50 "Oh, If I could talk to some famous rich person,"
21:56 they would go talk to them.
21:58 But we have access to the Creator of the universe.
22:01 Yes. And in Romans 8:35, 38-39, he assures us of that.
22:07 There's a text that says,
22:10 "Nothing shall separate us from the love of God."
22:11 I love that text so much
22:13 because it demonstrates that closeness or intimacy.
22:15 It says, "Who shall separate us, shall tribulation,
22:19 shall distress, persecution, famine, nakedness,
22:23 danger or sword?"
22:24 He says, "For I am sure not death,
22:28 nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present,
22:32 nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth."
22:35 You hear all of that stuff, "Not anything else in creation
22:40 will be able to separate us from the love of God."
22:45 Could you imagine that?
22:46 I added to that one more. Okay.
22:49 I added not even sin.
22:52 Not even sin.
22:54 It's reassuring to know that nothing can separate us
22:57 from God's love.
22:58 Amen.
22:59 You see the thing is, you know, one of the greatest examples
23:02 of intimacy in the Bible, in my opinion,
23:07 is found in Elijah's story in 1 Kings verse 19.
23:12 You see that experience to me reveals
23:15 what an intimate relationship with God actually works like.
23:18 You remember that story?
23:20 When Elijah was in that cave because he was running away?
23:24 He was trying to hide himself and God...
23:27 in fact, he was there frustrated, he was alone.
23:30 I don't know for how long he was in the cave
23:33 but he decided he was going to live there,
23:35 and God visited Elijah.
23:40 Now for God to visit you,
23:44 that means that you guys have a relationship.
23:48 You guys have to at least be friends.
23:50 And God says to Elijah, "What are you doing here?"
23:57 Elijah begins to complain to God.
23:59 He says to God. "You know what?
24:02 All of the prophets were killed and I'm the only one left
24:05 and now they want to kill me too."
24:07 So he's telling God that's why he was here.
24:09 God says to Elijah, "You know something?
24:11 I want you to go to the mouth of the cave so you can see Me
24:15 pass by, being obedient."
24:19 Now hear what, being obedient.
24:20 We spoke about obedience as a response to pray.
24:24 So being obedient, Elijah got up
24:28 and began to walk to the mouth of the cave.
24:30 But the Bible says that before he could reach it,
24:33 he heard thunder.
24:35 Before he could reach it,
24:36 he began to hear the wind hitting on the mountainside.
24:39 Before he could reach it,
24:41 then shattering rocks began to fall.
24:43 So you could imagine Elijah walk in there,
24:46 the earth began to quake, so now this cave is shaking,
24:50 rocks are falling, lightning, thunder,
24:53 everything is happening
24:54 while he is trying to get to the mouth of the cave
24:57 where God said, "I want you to meet Me there."
25:02 He heard a lot of wind.
25:04 All of these things are happening,
25:05 but God said I want you to meet Me there.
25:08 I just want to put in something quickly.
25:09 There are many times when God actually
25:11 instructs us to do things
25:13 but we get so many obstacles.
25:16 We have the thunder, we have the lightning,
25:18 we have the shaking, we have the earthquake,
25:20 we have the strong winds
25:22 and we believe that we're in the wrong direction
25:24 because we are getting these obstacles,
25:26 but not when in Elijah's story, God says, "Meet me there."
25:30 But all of these things are happening
25:32 while he's on his way to do what God has asked him to do.
25:36 It takes a lot of faith.
25:37 So when Elijah was walking to the cave and he got finally,
25:42 you can imagine him trying to stabilize himself,
25:45 finally reached the mouth of the cave,
25:47 the Bible says, in a gentle voice...
25:51 "In a gentle voice God asked Elijah,"
25:54 the very same question.
25:56 "What are you doing here?"
25:59 Elijah goes again and repeats the entire story to God.
26:04 He says, "They killed all the prophets
26:07 and I'm the only one left."
26:09 He repeated the same story.
26:11 And the Bible says, "In a whisper, in a whisper,
26:16 God spoke to Elijah and Elijah heard."
26:20 Now just imagine all of that going on,
26:22 but God whispers to Elijah and Elijah heard.
26:26 It means that God and Elijah had to be in close proximity
26:30 because you'd have never heard of somebody
26:33 whispering a secret from across a room.
26:36 So in order for you to hear the whisper,
26:38 you need to be pretty close
26:40 and that usually comes with intimacy.
26:43 And so I really want to just leave a verse
26:46 today that God really wants us to be intimate with Him.
26:50 He wants us to be so close to Him
26:52 that nothing can come between us and Him.
26:55 And that is what intimacy does.
26:56 He wants to answer even before we call
26:59 because He is so anxious to please us.
27:01 And God wants us to embrace the thought
27:04 that He really desires to be that close to us.
27:08 He doesn't want a long-distance relationship with us.
27:11 So we can say a prayer.
27:12 Father, thank you for having that desire
27:16 to be so close to us.
27:17 Thank you for wanting to be a greater part of our lives
27:20 and not just being content to hang on the sidelines.
27:24 Thank you for pursuing each of us
27:26 as if we were the only ones
27:27 that exist on the face of the earth.
27:29 What love, what persistence, what intimacy,
27:33 may we respond to your love.
27:34 Oh, Father, we pray in the name of Jesus.
27:36 Amen. Amen.
27:38 Thank you so much for that information
27:40 on intimacy as it relates to prayer.
27:45 We pray that you were blessed by today's program.
27:48 Don't let anything come in between you and God.
27:51 Be sure to tune in next time
27:53 when Dr. Nadine shares more information
27:56 to supply The Missing Peace.


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Revised 2018-02-07