God Chat Blog 11- Created for Joyful connection

Do you ever wonder, “I’ve heard that God can talk with us, but does He really? “ Sometimes you may have all the lingo down, go to church, call yourself a God follower of some kind, and still be skeptical. What is this all about anyway? Is this real or am I just making it up? Sometimes it’s hard to tell.

Made In His Image

It might surprise you that God’s purpose in creating man was so that He could enjoy us and interact with us. In Genesis it states that God made us in His image and in His likeness. To be created in the very image of God, from the very breath of God, is something that is almost incomprehensible. Have you ever stopped to chat with God about this? Since we know we can ask God any question we may have, what are some questions you may have about what it means to be made in His image?

Take a very deep breath and quiet yourself. Ask God what He wants you to know about this verse. Read the following verse and allow God to highlight for you His impressions. Then read it a second time and write down the words that stand out for you along with any questions or thoughts you may have. God wants to hear those!

Genesis 1: 26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”27 God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. 28 God blessed them; and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). (Ge 1:26–28). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.

Be sure to not filter (you can use the filter checks later- see Filter checks in resources). Simply write below what comes up for you without questioning, what you notice, and what you’re drawn to be curious about, below:

What stood out for me was the idea of being created in community with another person, male and female, along with the concept of reigning over the rest of His creation. As I meditated on that, God revealed to me that He is so relational that He couldn’t really create us separate and alone, with nobody to be with and nothing to do. He Himself is relational, and the Bible states that He is a trinity composed of Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Notice it says, “Let Us make man in Our image” (verse 26). God is a plural being, He exists within relational union. Being made in His image means that we too are intrinsically relational. It’s part of our God design.

But what’s more amazing is that we are made in the image of God, yet we cannot actually see God. So it is more than just physical image, it’s being made into His image from a “whole being” sense. God made us to commune with Him, to laugh with Him, and to understand Him.

Made for Intimacy with God

Being made in God’s image also serves another purpose. Going back to Adam and Even, God knew that man needed a helpmate suitable for him, and that to interact with the animals wasn’t enough. The animals didn’t satisfy the deeper need that Adam had for personal companionship, someone who could understand him and relate to him. So He made Adam a helpmate, a companion, and He called her Eve. In the same way, although God doesn’t “need” our companionship, He delights to have communion with us in an intimate more personal way than He does with any other being. We alone can have that special closeness with Him that no other part of creation can enjoy.

We are created to fully enjoy God and be enjoyed by Him. It is our divine privelege. (Habakuk 3:18, Ecclesiastes 6:6)

Although mankind has fallen from the days of intimate communion with Him in the Garden of Eden, this has not changed God’s intention toward us, nor has it fully stamped out God’s “image” in each one of us (Genesis 9:6, 1 Corinthians 11:7, James 3:9). His image is still there, although marred, you can see it in every human being.

When God sent Jesus to die on the cross, it was not only to pay the penalty for our sins, save us from hell, or even to demonstrate His mercy and love toward us, although that would be more than we deserve. Yet the scriptures tell us the central reason for Jesus’ death on the cross was for the purpose of restoring that spirit to Spirit union with Him, the close connection He had with Adam.

1 Peter 3:18: For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit; (Italics mine).

Does that help you understand how badly God wants this connection with you? He sent His own Son to die so that He might bring us into closeness with Himself. Jesus’ death ensured that we too would be able to commune with Him within our spirits because He is now alive in the Spirit and sits at God’s right hand, waiting for us to start God chatting with Him. His death and resurrection restored the back and forth connection between God and mankind by removing all the blockages. This assures we will forever have God within easy access, no appointments or animal sacrifices needed.

So how do we get closer?

Now of course, that is the million dollar question: In fact that is the purpose for this website. First we have to ask ourselves, “Do I truly desire this close connection with God?” Jesus desired it enough to die for it. The Father desired it enough to send His Son into a world that He knew would kill Him.

How much do you desire it? (Hint: I think you do, or you wouldn’t be reading this blog). This is where it all starts, even though there are other things involved.

Here’s the thing. Most of us as believers want this closeness. But like anything else, intimacy has a price. It costs time, it keeps us from other things we would like to be doing, and sometimes as it was for me in the beginning, intimacy with God can be frightening, depending on your upbringing. Others simply need more tools to get them started in the right direction.

So what do we need to do, you might ask, that you are not already doing? Nothing really. God loves you right where you are today. He’s already done all the work to ensure that you are able to have a connection with Him. It is there for the taking.

However, there could be a few barriers we can address, and most of those come in the form of lies we believe. These lies may or may not include lies about God and getting closer to Him, our own capacity for that closeness, our worthiness to be closer, our own issues with intimacy in general, and how much we believe that God really loves us or desires this kind of closeness with us. So take a few moments and go through the exercise below:

photo by David Beale Unsplash

Exercise:

Quiet and thank God for something about Him that you enjoy that makes you feel special and wanted. If you can’t think of anything, thank Him for something that truly makes you smile. It can be anything. (“Enter His gates with Thanksgiving” Psalm 100:4a.)

Surrender your agenda and ask God to fill you with His love for you, and incline your ear to listen.

Ask God, “What do you enjoy about me?” “What brings you the most pleasure in our relationship?”

( Note: If you are not sensing anything it’s okay. You aren’t doing anything “wrong”. Simple return to the first part of this exercise and focus on the gratitude. This will build your relational connectors in your brain. Gratitude IS connecting.)

Write what you sense below:

Then ask, “What lie have I been believing that has hindered my enjoyment of you, or my awareness of your joy for me?” You can look at the list above (in the paragraph above the most recent picture), if that helps, or just listen to what He puts on your heart. Write what you sense below, without filtering. You can check against the filter checks later (see resources).

When I did this exercise I was thinking I would hear something like, “I enjoy it when you are obedient.” But what I heard surprised me. I sensed God saying to my heart that He enjoys it most when I smile and when I laugh! That was a surprise not because I do not see God that way, but because it never dawned on me that if I smile and laugh it makes Him happy too. It’s two-way joy. When I asked Him about the lie I was believing I got the impression that it was about believing that joy was not sustainable, that we can’t always stay in joy, and that we don’t get things done as well, when we are joyful.

Well that is certainly a task driven message if I’ve ever heard one! The worst part is that I hadn’t even realized I was believing it!

The brain science actually shows that our brains are the most efficient when we are in high joy. We also need periods of rest and quiet to balance joy and activity, but that when we are in high joy, we are the most productive because we are built to be relational.

(Note: Remember if you are having a hard time with any of these exercises, just take a few weeks off and build your joy and connection capacity by focusing on gratitude. Try to do it as often as possible. If you want to reset your brain and how it processes, do this three times per day for about five minutes each time, for 30 days in a row. Notice how your joy increases. - Taken from Jim Wilder, www.joystartshere.com, “resetting the vagus nerve”- see resources).

I thought of a time when I was a teenager making a rhubarb pie from scratch from our garden, and being my first time, I got very frustrated with the whole experience. I was not in joy about what seemed to be a “project” at best. But then I remembered why I was making the pie. My father came into the room and reminded me that it was my mother’s favorite, and that she would love it. I thought about all the pies she had made for me and I was grateful. Suddenly the entire task became easier and I was joyful again and able to finish my pie with some exciting creative touches at that.

Photo by Lucy Heath on Unsplash

Joy is actually very contagious, even with God. He wants to be included in what’s enjoyable in our lives, just as we do when someone starts laughing hysterically about something, and we ask immediately, “What is so funny?”   We want to be let in on the joy! Or we may just break into laughter without knowing why. We feel and share the joy before we understand it sometimes. It’s because we are made in God’s image, and He simply built us for joy.  Joy is a “happy to be with you” feeling, where all the relational connectors light up in your brain, and the brain of the one you are with. Joy is a shared dopamine/oxytocin party (those are the feel-good hormones). It’s exciting and uplifting to be with those that enjoy us. We all need to experience this daily, and without this, we can fall into depression and anxiety. Let God be your joy giver as you learn to chat with Him and realize how much He simply enjoys you!

How do you feel when you look at the picture below.  A picture is worth a thousand words.  Notice if it makes you smile.  Exactly.  And you have no idea what she is so excited about, but it still brings joy to your heart.   

Before we end, ask yourself these questions:

Your take away for this God Chat: What do you want to intentionally focus on as you go through your week? The following questions may prompt you to think about something or you may already know.

How do you want to invite God to share your joy this week? What will you do when you have a fun, joyful moment?

What part of His character would you like Him to reveal to you, or what would you like to know more about His character?

What do you want to ask Him concerning your desire to be intimate with Him, your joy in being glad to be with Him?

The one thing I’m going to focus on over the next few weeks:

Enjoy God Chatting this week and spread the Joy. Be contagious. See you next time.

Denice MacKenzie