6. Jesus is able to connect with me in spite of my limitations.
(Before looking at the questions below, take a few minutes to think about this statement. Invite Jesus to speak to you about what He would like you to notice.)
Do you ever feel like your relationship with Jesus is your responsibility to make happen?
Do you have experiences of Jesus “interrupting” you or surprising you with His presence, His voice, or His blessings?
If the only requirement for you to have a relationship with Jesus was your sincere desire, would that change how you felt about it?
What are some things that could help you increase and deepen your desire for a relationship with Jesus?
While we are learning new ways of connecting with Jesus and receiving His healing for our weaknesses and limitations, we may be tempted to think that “it is all up to me” to make this relationship with Him happen. At times we may feel hopeless of ever having a healthy spirituality and a vibrant relationship with Jesus. We must take heart, though, for Jesus knows our weaknesses; He knows that “we are dust” (Psalm 103) and He can and does make up for the limitations in our spirituality.
Most, people can point to an instance where Jesus “surprised” them. It may have been at a crisis moment, a special celebration, the birth of a child, the death of a loved one, or the arrival of good news. Whatever the situation, we may have felt an unusual closeness to Jesus, a sense of His presence.
These moments can be an important part of our spirituality especially if we notice them, and even mark them in some way. Later, as we look back over time, we see that Jesus was much more active in our lives than we at first realized. Spiritual surprises happen when, even though we may not be looking for Jesus, there is something in us that makes us open and receptive to an encounter with Him.
Our openness is often increased in times of stress or excitement, but our desire to connect more with Jesus can itself lead to greater and more frequent moments of awareness. Our desires are one of the most important thing about us and our most effective means for encountering Jesus.
We may not know all of the ways that we have been created to walk with God, but if we simply focus on our desire for this, even make it a prayer, we may find that the Spirit teaches us about ourselves, shows us ways that we naturally connect with Him, and guides us into a deeper relationship with Jesus. It is helpful to explore and experiment with new ways of connecting with Jesus, but our openness and our desire for connection are always even more important.