Know Me

I remember a story my dad told once about being in seminary.  In one of his classes, a professor asked a question, ” How many of you would raise your hand and say that you ‘know’ God?”  Now, the correct answer, of course, was that, in the professor’s opinion, nobody could really “know” God.

So when my dad quietly raised his hand, everyone stared at him as if he had lost his mind, and his professor remarked that he must have an awful lot of pride to think that he actually knew God.  But he told me later on that He had felt as if not raising his hand would have been akin to betraying a friend.  He asserted that he absolutely did know God – that he had been invited to know Him.

And my dad was right.  Take a look at this:

Thus says the Lord, “Let not a wise man boast of his wisdom, and let not the mighty man boast of his might, let not a rich man boast of his riches; but let him who boasts boast of this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the Lord who exercises lovingkindness, justice and righteousness on earth; for I delight in these things,” declares the Lord.
~ Jeremiah 9:23-24

Did you get that?  God wants us to understand and know Him! And look what He has said first about Himself… I am LOVING and I am KIND. Know this about Me! He invites you to know Him – even to boast about it – to be that thing that brings you the most delight, that you are all about, your one great accomplishment in life – knowing and understanding God! He tore the veil, remember?? He invited us in! He said “you will seek Me and find me when you search for me with all your heart”!

Yes, you – whoever you are, whatever your doubts, your fears, your hesitations – the God Who created the universe, Who orders everything you see around you – He has ordered your life in such a way that you would come to this moment and hear His invitation:

Seek Me. Know Me. Try Me. Don’t dabble. Don’t scratch the surface. Go deep into Me. Really seek to understand Me.

Be all about Me. Boast of Me. Let me be that one thing that you are the most proud of – that you declare to the world around you. Be My friend.

Be My ambassador. Be the link between Me and a hurting, desperate, dying world. Be My child. Be like Me.

I will show you things you have never dreamed of. I will tell you secrets you could never have imagined. Come up close. I am personally inviting you to come, sit up next to Me, and learn all you can.I will grant you wisdom. I will give you discernment.

Please don’t be afraid. You are worthy. Don’t hang your head before Me – lift it up,  for the blood of My Son made you worthy to stand before Me and call Me Father. You have nothing to be ashamed of. You are safe in My presence. I look on you with lovingkindness, with longing, and with eyes that see only the beauty I created.

I long for you to learn of Me. I long for you to reach out and try to touch Me.

I am not playing games with you – I am within your reach. But you have to stop playing games with Me. This relationship – this friendship – it is serious and profound, it is life itself.

If you want to be whole, if you want to be free, if you want to make any difference at all in the world around you, you MUST know me. You must go deep. You must let go of this life you have built around you, let your own kingdom fall, and instead, pick up My mantle, place it on your shoulders, and walk daily and hourly in My presence.

It is the only way to what you are looking for. And I know what you are looking for… I placed the desire in you Myself, so that you would come looking for Me. And I am here, waiting to be found, and known, and understood. And boasted of.

I love you. I love you. I love you. You are Mine. I have chosen you. I have called you. Come. Don’t walk. Run. Run to Me. There is no better time than now.