Week 4 – Growing Intimacy
Day 1 Intimacy Was Important for Jesus
Being an everyday disciple of Jesus is not just about learning and obedience, it also involves intimacy. True disciples have a close and deep relationship with Jesus in which they receive God’s love and give God their love in return. The grace and power of Jesus flow in them and through them. They are far more than followers of Jesus, they are also friends and lovers.
This Plan offers more than a daily reflection on Scripture. It is designed to forge everyday disciples who are aware of God’s presence and hear God’s voice throughout the day. Please try to build into your routine the lunchtime meditations and evening reflections as well as the morning devotions.
MORNING
Scripture: Luke 5:15-16; Luke 6:12
5:15 Yet the news about him spread all the more, so that crowds of people came to hear him and to be healed of their sicknesses. 16 But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.
6:12 One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God.
Devotion
This was a busy time in Jesus’ ministry. His reputation as a teacher and healer was growing and the crowds were flocking to Him. Jesus must have been both excited and exhausted with the demands and opportunities. He had so much to offer and His time was so short. Yet Jesus kept disappearing. He consistently deserted his fans and headed off alone into deserts and up mountains because He knew that His ministry was deeply reliant on intimacy with his Father. Without a strong and loving relationship with His Dad, the power and impact of His ministry would soon dry up. He knew the real power lay in His prayer life and His dependence on His Father. Now, if God’s Son needed to allocate precious time in a crowded schedule to be alone with His Father, then clearly, we will need to do the same. I’m not sure how you’re going to manage this with all the demands on your time. I just know that Jesus showed us that intimacy is vital and that he intentionally carved out spiritual retreats in isolated places and whole nights of prayer. For Jesus, this prayerful intimacy was not an optional extra whenever He could find the time. Cultivating His intimate relationship with His Father lay at the heart of His life and ministry. He depended on it and so do we.
Prayer
I read about Your example, Jesus, and frankly, I feel inadequate. It’s not so much my laziness (although that is a factor), but often I put doing good things before my intimacy with You. I really do want to kindle a deep and close relationship with You, so please encourage me and help me to carve out the space that will allow this to happen. Help me to find my lonely deserts and high mountains.
Today’s Bible Focus
“Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.”
LUNCHTIME (or when you can make a moment during the day)
1. Meditate for a short time on today’s Bible Focus. Let it seep into your heart.
2. Look and see what is happening around you from God’s perspective and listen to see whether God is whispering anything to you.
3. Pray for any not-yet Christians God has placed on your heart.
EVENING
1. Remember: Repeat today’s Bible Focus.
2. Reflect: Reflect on the day and thank God for what he has said and done.
3. Repent: Check where you have neglected or disobeyed God during the day and ask for forgiveness and freedom.
4. Release: Name any concerns or fears on your mind and release them to Jesus.
Day 2 The Signs of Disconnection
MORNING
Scripture: James 4:2-4, 8.
2 You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God. 3 When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures. 4 You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God…
8 Come near to God and he will come near to you.
Devotion
James is describing a very sad state of affairs in the church. It is unlikely that the Christians were actually killing each other (4:2). Most likely, James uses the term in the same way that Jesus did when he equated anger and murder (Matt. 5:21-22). The church members were at each other’s throats – fighting and quarrelling over their priorities and desires. It was a mess. But then this is what can be expected when we leave God out of the equation. Once we try to live for God without any intimacy with Him and dependence on Him, we inevitably end up pursuing our own agendas and the agendas of the world around us. We lose touch with God’s heart and passions and power, and instead have to fight for what we want, sometimes even arrogantly presuming we are fighting for God. James doesn’t see this Christian infighting as a form of dysfunctional faith but as actual enmity against God (4:4). He describes the solution in 4:8, “Come near to God and He will come near to you.” Prayerful intimacy with God protects us from joining forces with the world. Prayerful intimacy with God corrects our motives. Prayerful intimacy with God aligns our hearts with His.
Prayer
It’s easy for me to believe that my agenda is Your agenda, Lord. It’s easy for me to think that I’m fighting for You when really I’m fighting for myself and my ideas and desires. Please come close to me as I meekly draw close to You. Forgive me, humble me, soften me, purify me, and align my heart with Yours. I need Your presence filling my life.
Today’s Bible Focus
“Come near to God and He will come near to you.”
LUNCHTIME (or when you can make a moment during the day)
1. Meditate for a short time on today’s Bible Focus. Let it seep into your heart.
2. Look and see what is happening around you from God’s perspective and listen to see whether God is whispering anything to you.
3. Pray for any not-yet Christians God has placed on your heart.
EVENING
1. Remember: Repeat today’s Bible Focus.
2. Reflect: Reflect on the day and thank God for what he has said and done.
3. Repent: Check where you have neglected or disobeyed God during the day and ask for forgiveness and freedom.
4. Release: Name any concerns or fears on your mind and release them to Jesus.
Day 3 Knowing God’s Love
MORNING
Scripture: Ephesians 3:17b-19
17 And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, 18 may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, 19 and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
Devotion
Nothing in Christianity is clearer than the love of God. God has created us in love. He has chosen us in love. He has saved us in love. He recreates us in love. He will live forever with us in love. We just can’t get away from the extraordinary love of God. And yet in this Scripture, Paul is praying that the Ephesians will grasp and really know the love of God. What? Surely God’s love is obvious. Paul’s prayer goes to show that moving our appreciation of God’s love from our head (understanding that God loves us) to our heart (really believing that God loves us) is a difficult and often unnatural journey. It’s challenging and uncommon because we have little experience of this depth of unconditional love. It’s just so unbelievable that our holy God will continue to love us whatever happens. But it’s true. Part of our journey as everyday disciples of Jesus is grasping how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ. This appreciation of God’s love grows through our increasing intimacy, and of course, through lots of prayers like the prayer Paul prayed here. As our relationship with Jesus deepens, so our appreciation of His love will expand until we are “filled to the measure of all the fullness of God” (3:19).
Prayer
I pray that being rooted and established in love, I may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that I may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
Today’s Bible Focus
“Grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ.”
LUNCHTIME (or when you can make a moment during the day)
1. Meditate for a short time on today’s Bible Focus. Let it seep into your heart.
2. Look and see what is happening around you from God’s perspective and listen to see whether God is whispering anything to you.
3. Pray for any not-yet Christians God has placed on your heart.
EVENING
1. Remember: Repeat today’s Bible Focus.
2. Reflect: Reflect on the day and thank God for what he has said and done.
3. Repent: Check where you have neglected or disobeyed God during the day and ask for forgiveness and freedom.
4. Release: Name any concerns or fears on your mind and release them to Jesus.
Day 4 Constantly Praying
MORNING
Scripture: Ephesians 6:18
18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.
Devotion
When Paul writes “with this in mind,” he is referring to the huge spiritual struggle that every disciple needs to prepare for (see 6:10-17). He has just been advising the Ephesians how to defend themselves against the devil’s schemes. We need to be constantly alert to all that Satan is throwing at us, and the best way to stay sharp is to be constantly praying. This certainly means consistently praying for personal protection, but it goes further. There are lots of needs around us and our hearts and prayers go out to all those who are under pressure. We keep talking to God about everything that’s happening. One of the reasons why some Christians see few answers to their prayers is because they only ask for God’s help when they face a huge problem that no-one can solve. That’s not the way God wants it. He longs to be included in everything. He wants to work in the big and little challenges. He wants to be involved in all our lives. He wants an intimate relationship based on constant communication. He wants us to always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people on all occasions with all kinds of prayer (6:18).
Prayer
Lord, I’m aware of the spiritual pressure that I am under. Please strengthen me and protect me from temptation. I also want to talk to you about my Christian brothers and sisters that are worrying or wavering or weakening or wandering away from You. Please guide my prayers through Your Spirit and listen to all my small talk. I thank You that we are in this struggle together.
Today’s Bible Focus
“Pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.”
LUNCHTIME (or when you can make a moment during the day)
1. Meditate for a short time on today’s Bible Focus. Let it seep into your heart.
2. Look and see what is happening around you from God’s perspective and listen to see whether God is whispering anything to you.
3. Pray for any not-yet Christians God has placed on your heart.
EVENING
1. Remember: Repeat today’s Bible Focus.
2. Reflect: Reflect on the day and thank God for what he has said and done.
3. Repent: Check where you have neglected or disobeyed God during the day and ask for forgiveness and freedom.
4. Release: Name any concerns or fears on your mind and release them to Jesus.
Day 5 The Extra Help We Need
MORNING
Scripture: Romans 8:26-27
26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. 27 And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.
Devotion
Some of us find intimacy with God easy, but most of us don’t. Maybe it’s because we are programmed to do things ourselves rather than rest in God. May it’s because we have never been able to trust people enough to let them close. Maybe it’s because we feel that we don’t measure up to God’s expectations. God knows our weaknesses (as well as our strengths) and has given us his Spirit living in us to help us. One way the Spirit assists us is by praying on our behalf. So even when you don’t pray because you’re overwhelmed, or you have nothing left to say, or you just haven’t made prayer a priority, the Spirit within you is praying on your behalf. And he nails it every time. He knows what you need and he knows what God wants, so he keeps on crying out for you when you can’t or don’t pray. This is not an excuse to shirk prayer, but it does show how far God will go to build intimacy with you. He loves to hear and answer your cries even when His Spirit in you is doing the heavy lifting. He wants to hear. He wants to help. He wants to answer. He wants to be needed.
Prayer
Thanks for praying for me Holy Spirit even when I’m saying nothing to You. I don’t deserve Your help, but I am deeply appreciative of it. I want to join You more in Your praise and prayer. I want to groan with You when needed. I want my prayers to align more and more with God’s will like Your prayers do. Together we are making a strong prayer team.
Today’s Bible Focus
“The Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.”
LUNCHTIME (or when you can make a moment during the day)
1. Meditate for a short time on today’s Bible Focus. Let it seep into your heart.
2. Look and see what is happening around you from God’s perspective and listen to see whether God is whispering anything to you.
3. Pray for any not-yet Christians God has placed on your heart.
EVENING
1. Remember: Repeat today’s Bible Focus.
2. Reflect: Reflect on the day and thank God for what he has said and done.
3. Repent: Check where you have neglected or disobeyed God during the day and ask for forgiveness and freedom.
4. Release: Name any concerns or fears on your mind and release them to Jesus.
Day 6 Intimacy is Not All Roses
MORNING
Scripture: Hebrews 12:10-11
10 They [our fathers] disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. 11 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.
Devotion
I’m presently helping to train a young puppy. Willow loves everyone and is very enthusiastic about life. Her excitement and affection are charming and contagious. But she has so much to learn about controlling her instincts and living safely and well. Willow doesn’t really appreciate my training role and so we’re getting there very slowly. If only she could see that it’s for her good. This Scripture talks about the key discipline role of both earthly fathers and our heavenly Father in the growth of their children. Earthly fathers don’t always get it right, but God is spot on in His discipline of His disciples. He knows exactly what we need to become children that look like their Dad. Every struggle he allows us to go through has a very specific objective. The problem is that God’s discipline means some short-term pain for us, and like Willow, we find this unpleasant. It’s easy to think that if God really loved us, He would make life all sunshine and roses for His disciples. Such an idea, of course, is complete fiction. God is preparing us for an eternity with Him. Because He loves us so much, He is intent on shaping our heart and forging our character. Whatever pain you are enduring now, be sure that God loves you deeply and is carefully and fondly working the best for you through the struggle.
Prayer
I love it when I’m really close to You and everything is working out well in my life. I know that my long-term future will be like this permanently. But in the short-term, help me to trust Your love through the struggles and seemingly unanswered prayers. Keep producing a harvest of righteousness and peace in me no matter what it may cost me. Prune and discipline me. May my pain draw me closer to You and make me more like You.
Today’s Bible Focus
“God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in His holiness.”
LUNCHTIME (or when you can make a moment during the day)
1. Meditate for a short time on today’s Bible Focus. Let it seep into your heart.
2. Look and see what is happening around you from God’s perspective and listen to see whether God is whispering anything to you.
3. Pray for any not-yet Christians God has placed on your heart.
EVENING
1. Remember: Repeat today’s Bible Focus.
2. Reflect: Reflect on the day and thank God for what he has said and done.
3. Repent: Check where you have neglected or disobeyed God during the day and ask for forgiveness and freedom.
4. Release: Name any concerns or fears on your mind and release them to Jesus.