For many people, communication has become synonymous with talking. When we think of

What God Wants for Me: Part 3 Communicating with God Remain in Me, and I will remain in you.. John 15:5a (NLT) For many people, communication has become synonymous with talking. When we think of communicating with someone, we often think about using words to share an idea or opinion. While communication does involve these sorts of things, communicating, in its fullest sense, is much more than simply sharing words, much more than telling someone something. The English word communication has evolved from the Latin, communis and communicare. While this may not seem significant at first glance, what we learn from this word origin is that all of these words are closely related: communication, community, communion and common. In other words, communication has to do with oneness, union, sharing deeply, giving and receiving, being together, mutual participation, belonging and intimacy. More than what we say, communication has to do with how we relate; how we live in relationship to God (and each other). The hope of this section is that we would learn to live in greater harmony with the One who created us. That we would live in a more ongoing, intimate fellowship with God, giving Him all we are and receiving all He has for us. God s Intention: A Deep Intimacy One of the best pictures of true intimacy in the Bible is the relationship between God and man before sin entered the world. The Garden of Eden reveals to us God s intention. It gives us a glimpse of what God had in mind in terms of our closeness (communion) with Him. 1. Read Genesis 1:27-2:17. What words would you use to describe the relationship between God and Adam? 2. How do you think Adam experienced God? Read Genesis 3:1-10. Read vs. 8-10 two more times. 3. If a broken relationship involves fear, shame, isolation and hiding, what does true intimacy involve? 17

4. Are you convinced God wants to have an intimate relationship with you? Why or why not? 5. What do each of these verses contribute to your understanding of communicating with God? Psalm 37:3-4 Proverbs 3:5-6 2 Chronicles 16:9 John 8:31-32 King David had an intimate relationship with God. Psalm 63 is a great picture of what it looks like to communicate with God. 1 You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek You; I thirst for You, my whole being longs for You, in a dry and parched land where there is no water. 2 I have seen You in the sanctuary and beheld Your power and Your glory. 3 Because Your love is better than life, my lips will glorify You. 4 I will praise You as long as I live, and in Your name I will lift up my hands. 5 I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods; with singing lips my mouth will praise You. 6 On my bed I remember You; I think of You through the watches of the night. 7 Because You are my help, I sing in the shadow of Your wings. 8 I cling to You; Your right hand upholds me. Psalm 63:1-8 (NIV) 6. What is David experiencing as he communicates with God? 7. How is David s communication more than words? 18

1 I am the true vine, and My Father is the gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in Me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit He prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. 3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 4 Remain in Me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in Me. 5 I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in Me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing. 6 If you do not remain in Me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. 7 If you remain in Me and My words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 This is to My Father s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be My disciples. John 15:1-8 (NIV) 8. How does the picture of a vine and branches describe intimacy with God? 9. How is remaining in God similar to the idea of communicating with God? 10. What can we do on a daily basis to remain in God? What would it mean for you to communicate with God more intimately? Pause and spend a few minutes being absolutely honest with God. Be Yourself. Talk with Him about what you re learning and feeling... But when sin entered the human race, it rendered everyone spiritually dead and thereby alienated from God. Our spirits were no longer able to unite with the Lord in close communion. However, Jesus came to pay the penalty for sin with His death, and now all who trust Him as their Savior are spiritually reborn. Their connection with God has been reopened through Christ (Ephesians 2:1-5). 19

Communicating with God by Giving Ourselves and Our Resources Communicating with God may be best understood as an ongoing relationship of giving and receiving. It s an intimate union in which we find our life in Him; and He expresses His nature and character through us. How we live is a response to God. Everything we do communicates to God what we believe about Him. This might be easier to understand if we think about our relationships with each other. If a man tells a woman he loves her, for example, but then hurts her by the decisions he makes, he is, in reality, communicating that he doesn t love her. His actions are communicating what s in his heart toward her (or what s not in his heart). The same is true in our relationship with God. Our thoughts, our actions, how we spend our time, and what we do with our resources, continually communicate to God what we believe about Him. We are, in essence, saying things to God by how we live. 1 The earth is the Lord s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; 2 for He founded it on the seas and established it on the waters. Psalm 24:1-2 (NIV) 11. According to Psalm 24:1-2, who owns everything? 12. What are the implications of this truth for your life? God owns everything, we are His managers. The land is Mine and you are but aliens and My tenants (Leviticus 25:23). The silver is Mine and the gold is Mine, declares the Lord Almighty (Haggai 2:8). You are not your own; you were bought at a price (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). Remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you the ability to produce wealth (Deuteronomy 8:18). For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things... (Romans 11:36a). 13. Read 1 Corinthians 4:2. What does it mean to prove faithful? 14. What are some areas in which God expects you to be a faithful steward? Proverbs 3:9-10 Romans 12:6 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 Ephesians 5:15-17 20

15. What does it mean to you that God entrusts you with the responsibility of these things? 16. What changes could you make in your life to express greater faithfulness to God in these areas? 17. How important did Paul consider work, as expressed in 2 Thessalonians 3:7-9? 18. Read 2 Corinthians 9. What principles of giving can you discover in each of the following verses? vs. 6 vs. 7 vs. 8 vs. 12-13 19. How would your life be different if you gave freely from a spirit of love and gratitude, rather than being motivated by fear and guilt? 20. Write a statement explaining the truth of Mark 12:41-44. 21. What are you communicating to God by how you use your time, money and spiritual gifts? It is the very nature and being of God to delight in communicating Himself. God has no selfishness. God keeps nothing to Himself. God s nature is to be always giving. Andrew Murray, Absolute Surrender 21

Communicating with God by Giving Praise and Thanks Thankfulness grows in us as we remember what God has done in the PAST, when we stop and express gratitude for what we have in the PRESENT, and when we live in anticipation for how God will move in the FUTURE. Communicating praise and thanksgiving to God is good for the soul and gives us strength in the midst of the broken world in which we live. 22. Name at least 10 specific things David was thankful for in 1 Chronicles 16. 23. Write down at least 10 specific things you re thankful for. 24. What does it do inside of us when we are grateful? 25. What does it do for our relationship with God when we are grateful? 26. How does having a heart of thankfulness affect how we treat others? 27. What truths about thanksgiving can you discover in each of the following verses? Psalm 34:1-3 Philippians 4:4-7 Colossians 2:6-7 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 Revelation 11:16-17 28. What specific things will you do to make praise and thanksgiving become more a part of who you are? 22

Communicating with God in the Scriptures We ve already considered how the Bible is our source of truth and final authority (see By Faith pages 9-10). For this lesson we ll dive a little deeper into the idea that more than mere information, the Bible is God speaking to us. Rather than reading the Bible for knowledge or instruction (both of which are good), God invites us to read the Bible to deepen our relationship with Him. In fact, even as you are reading this, the God of the universe is inviting you to spend time with Him. The more we read, study, meditate upon and memorize Scripture, the more we hear God s voice, learn what s on His heart, and sense His direction in our lives. (For more on the subject of hearing God, make sure to check out the recommended resources on page 26). 13 But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on His own; He will speak only what He hears, and He will tell you what is yet to come. 14 He will glorify Me because it is from Me that He will receive what He will make known to you. 15 All that belongs to the Father is Mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from He what He will make known to you. John 16:13-15 (NIV) 29. What words or phrases from this passage indicate God s intention for a personal relationship? 30. What is required to be able to sense the Spirit guiding you? 31. What truths about hearing God can you discover in each of the following verses? 1 Kings 19:11-12 Job 37:5 Psalm 19:1-4 Romans 10:17 1 John 4:1 Revelation 3:22 There is not in the world a kind of life more sweet and delightful than that of a continual conversation with God. Those only can comprehend it who practice and experience it... Let us do it from a principle of love, and because God would have us. Brother Lawrence, Practicing the Presence of God 23

2 The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. 3 The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. 5 But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger s voice... 27 My sheep listen to My voice; I know them, and they follow Me. John 10:2-5, 27 (NIV) 32. Circle all the words in this passage that indicate God wants to speak to you. 33. What is the nature of God s voice as described in James 3:17? Scriptural meditation is the training ground for hearing God. In seeking to hear God, we are seeking to know Him... that is, to spiritually perceive who He is, and His ways and activities in the midst of our daily lives. Samuel C. Williamson, Hearing God in Conversation 1 How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, Nor stand in the path of sinners, Nor sit in the seat of scoffers! 2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord, And in His law he meditates day and night. 3 He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, Which yields its fruit in its season And its leaf does not wither; And in whatever he does, he prospers. 4 The wicked are not so, But they are like chaff which the wind drives away. 5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, Nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. 6 For the Lord knows the way of the righteous, But the way of the wicked will perish. Psalm 1 (NASB) 34. What is life like for a person who delights and meditates on God s word? 24

Communicating with God in Prayer Not only does God communicate in His Word, but He has also given believers His Holy Spirit who leads us into all truth (John 16:13). So when you pray, you are not alone. God s Spirit is present, bringing to mind truths from the Bible and interacting with us as we communicate with the Father. Prayer was not meant to be something we have to go do, or simply a time to say a few things to God, then go on about our daily work. Rather, prayer is meant to be the deepest, richest time of communion between creature and Creator. Prayer is expressing. Prayer is listening. Prayer is opening ourselves to a God who is always speaking, always doing something. (For more on the subject of prayer, make sure to check out the recommended resources on page 26). Why is it so important that you are with God and God alone on the mountain top? It s important because it s the place in which you can listen to the voice of the One who calls you the beloved. To pray is to listen to the One who calls you My beloved daughter, My beloved son, My beloved child. To pray is to let that voice speak to the center of your being, to your guts, and let that voice resound in your whole being. Henri Nouwen Read Luke 11:5-13. 35. How would you describe the attitude Jesus wants us to have when we pray? 36. What does this passage teach us about the heart of God toward us? 37. Do you view prayer more as a burdensome duty or as a gift of grace? Explain. 38. What steps can you take to cultivate the art of letting go, yielding easily to prayer as something that flows more naturally from within? 25

Hearing God in the Scriptures and in prayer is obviously a huge subject; far bigger than we can cover in a few pages. Here are recommended resources for further spiritual growth: Hearing God: Developing a Conversational Relationship with God, Dallas Willard Hearing God in Conversation, Samuel C. Williamson Hungry for God: Hearing God s Voice in the Ordinary and the Everyday, Margaret Feinberg Opening to God, Lectio Divina and Life as Prayer, David G. Benner Pray with Your Eyes Open, Richard Pratt Practicing the Presence of God, Brother Lawrence Walking with God: Talk to Him, Hear from Him. Really, John Eldredge Identifying Some Next Steps Consider for a moment your current life situation and the various roles you have. You may be a parent, single, young or old. You might be unemployed or at the height of your career. Think through where you are in life, and reflect, How does what I m learning apply to specific areas of my life? Then spend a few minutes in silence, asking God to put in your mind any next steps He wants you to take. Use this space to write your thoughts: Responding in Prayer Spend some time looking over the last few pages of things you ve been reading and writing. Ask God to help you hear what He is saying to you. Then use this space to write out a prayer to God. Tell Him what you re learning. Thank Him for who He is. Use words to tell Him what s in your heart. 26