God Wants To Be Known
I've been thinking a lot about obscurity this week. Scrolling through Instagram, I realized again just how much we all desire to be known. We post countless TikTok videos in hopes of going viral, we spend hours upon hours trying to choose the right filter for our photos. We want to be known by the world and admired. Deep down, if we’re being honest, we’d admit that we all struggle with this. As I spent time with God, I started to think about what the word "know" really meant, so of course, I went straight to Google. I found that to "know" means to "be aware of through observation, inquiry, or information." Another definition stated that to "know" means to "have developed a relationship with (someone) through meeting and spending time with them; be familiar or friendly with." As I pondered the second definition, I thought about how much I desired to be known in this way. Oftentimes, I feel like people make assumptions about who I am, instead of truly getting to know me. I’d always find myself thinking, “If only they took the time to really know who I am, they’d see what I have to offer.” Have you ever felt that way? If so, I know what that’s like. However, the more time that I sat thinking about my desire to be known for who I truly am, the Holy Spirit began to speak to me about God’s desire to be known by us. He revealed to me that just as much as we want to be known for who we really are, God wants to be known. He wants us to know Him, and this comes through spending time with Him, reading His Word, and making room for Him in our lives.
As I thought more about God wanting to be known by us, the Holy Spirit led me to read John 10:14-15 (HCSB), which says, "I am the good Shepherd. I know My sheep and they know Me, as the Father knows Me, and I know the Father." I read that verse multiple times, and kept looking at the word “know”. Jesus was telling His disciples that he knew His sheep (meaning, His people), but the thing that stood out to me is that He said, His sheep also knew Him. When He speaks about knowing His sheep and them knowing Him, it wasn’t just knowing Him as an acquaintance, or someone that they see every week. They knew Him personally; there was an intimacy that they had with Him, a familiarity that could only come through constant communion with Him. When I realized that this is what God meant when He said He wants to be known, I prayed a simple prayer, “Jesus, help me to truly know You.”
Being a Christian is more than just talking about Jesus, or reading our Bibles once in a while. It's more than just going to church. It's about truly knowing God. Knowing His character, making room for Him in our lives and spending time with Him. I know that some of you may struggle in this area, for many reasons. You may feel like drawing close to God is challenging, especially in this day and age, or, you may just not know how to begin. I want to share two simple steps that I implement into my daily life that helps me draw closer to Jesus and develop intimacy with Him.
Be consistent with your Bible reading. Now, I know that this is a challenge for many people. But, spending time in God’s word is one of the best ways that you can come to know Jesus. My mother once told me that when you’re spending time reading the Bible, you’re actually spending time with Jesus, because He is the Word. Learn to be consistent with your Bible reading. Commit to reading a verse a day and ask God to help you remember it as you go throughout your day and apply it to your life. Trust me, the more time that you spend in the word, the more you will learn about God, and the more you will come to know Him.
Make it a practice of talking to God. I talk to God, a lot. And, I do mean a lot. Prayer isn’t always about kneeling down and talking to God. You can literally talk to Him wherever you are. I talk to God in class (probably more than I should), when I’m driving, when I go for walks throughout the day, when I’m running errands, when I’m fixing my hair. Literally, all the time. If you want to draw closer to God, I encourage you to just talk to Him. It may feel a bit weird at first, but once you make it a daily practice, it becomes easier. Talk to Him about anything in your life, nothing is too small or too big. God is always listening. I promise you, the more that you talk to God, the closer you will feel to Him and the more real He becomes to you.
I can tell you many more practices that you can implement in your life, but these two have literally transformed my life and my relationship with Jesus. I encourage you to be intentional about practicing them, and as you do, remember that God wants to be known by you. This means that He’s not sitting in heaven waiting for you to make a mistake or fall short, He desires for you to know Him and He will help you! I can tell you that the best thing about my life is to know God and be known by Him.
Let’s resolve to truly know God today.