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What could be the reasons why a seeking sinner may not be saved? What does it mean to come to the Lord? I am currently seeking the Lord, and even though God has shown me much of my depravity and sins, I struggle very much to "truly" Repent and "truly" believe. Pls. Pray to GOD for my Salvation and that I may truly be born again in CHRIST.

As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God. - Psalm 42:1 Julian of Norwich was a medieval follower of Christ. In a day of darkness where form so easily took over any sense of believers intimacy with Christ, she wrote a classic volume on knowing God's love. A quote from her writing says, "God, of thy goodness, give me Thyself; for Thou art enough for me." She came to the experience the wonderful way of seeking God alone for only Himself. She understood that in intimacy with God she found life and peace itself. This again is the heart and core of worship and the secret to a life of fullness and fruitfulness. The Heavenly Throne Room Recently when re-reading the book of Revelation, I saw again the wonderful picture of what our end goal is in Christian life. St. John recounts the majestic picture for us, "Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing at the center of the throne" (Revelation 5:6). The thought that struck me was that Christian life itself, its purpose, goal and meaning comes down to this one thing: "The wounded Lamb." This is the centerpiece of the heavenly throne room, the living Christ, the resurrected Christ. He is the one we see and the Throne of God where the heavenly Father sits. Oh, what glories are at His right hand. This, dear believer, is our goal and our ultimate purpose, to know this God, this "Lamb." To find our satisfaction in Him alone. The entirety of heaven revolves around His person and should not our earthly lives be the same? Fellowship With God God had always sought for fellowship with man and intimacy even when Adam and Eve sinned (Genesis 3:8). As Enoch walked with God (Genesis 5:22), we also should earnestly desire that inner life of communion with Him. We can always ask Him to increase that desire in us if we find it is lacking. The wonderful truth for us today is that God can be found and intimately known through His Son Jesus Christ. This abiding relationship can become a vibrant reality for us in every situation by the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit and the cleansing Blood of our Lord. Whether we find ourselves in a prison cell or in the most beautiful Church sanctuary, whether in a season of restfulness or a season of heaviness, He desires that we find Him in the midst of it all. God not only allows Himself to be found by us, He desires it. Yet it is altogether too easy to find ourselves filling life with times of christian songs, bible readings and even prayer, while missing true communion with Himself. God can be missed in these things when He is not sought for Himself, but only treated as a means to an end. We can sadly seek God to appease our guilty conscience alone, ask for temporal help and blessings, attend Church simply to check it off on our list of moral things to do. This is the picture of coming to a stream as the Psalmist portrays but then not being willing to drink of its goodness. A parched dry tongue, not willing to refresh itself in the very person of God who can only satisfy the longing of the soul. Practical Steps To Take Here are some practical ways to build and grow in our intimacy with Christ: 1. Remember it is Him and Him alone who we are to worship, when you come to a Church gathering bow your head slightly in reverence acknowledging God’s presence (Zechariah 2:13). Let your focus be on meeting God and not on going only to hear a sermon message about Him. 2. Throughout your day take times to quiet your heart and acknowledge the Lord. A moment of silence can be helpful (Psalm 46:10). One practice of the Early Church was to set aside times of the day for prayer. They followed what is called the hours of prayer which originated with the early Jewish believers. Some traditions vary but the times set apart to pray were 9am, noon and 3pm. Let this start to be a practice in your life of disciplined times to acknowledge the Lord you love dearly. 3. When taking Holy Communion (Lord’s Supper), understand that this is part of the heavenly worship of the slain Lamb and we are partaking in a holy way of worshipping God just like in Revelation 5 before the throne of God. Allow times of Holy Communion to be meaningful and build intimacy with you and the risen Lord. 4. From Martin Luther’s Small Catechism it says, “In the morning, when you rise, you shall make the sign of the holy cross, and you shall say: In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Then, kneeling or standing, you shall say the Apostles’ Creed and the Lord’s Prayer.” The Church has always had traditions and practiced that helped us put our mind on heavenly things, re-center and focus on the Lord. The sign of the cross being a gesture you make by touching with your fore-finger and thumb, your forehead, then stomach, then left shoulder and finally right. You make a tracing of the cross over your body. What this says is, “I am not mine but the Lord’s, my body soul and spirit belong to Him.” It also reminds us “I am crucified with Christ.” This is one other helpful practice that believers have done throughout history to remind themselves of what really matters in life, the cross of Christ and our identifying with it. 5. Find some simple choruses that are very worshipful and meaningful. Think back to when you first knew the Lord and those songs that you sang over and over again in intimate worship. Bring your mind back to that place where time did not exist when you would worship the Lord and love to spend time with Him. Recapture these moments for the Lord has not changed (Malachi 3:6) but we have. Return to the first love you had—-He is waiting for you. And if you are not certain where to begin, begin especially by asking Him to draw you back to that place of first love. Returning Back to Intimacy Christian life always begins this way, when we see the great sacrifice of the cross of Christ, the wounded Lamb. We fall on our faces in worship in thankfulness for His love towards us. Daily we cannot help but praise and thank God, not because we have to but because of experiencing His love and person. But as life passes by, days become weeks and months become years, and amidst the cares of this life we are prone to wander from that place of intimacy, of worship, of seeking God alone. Perhaps this is a reminder for you; perhaps today God is calling to you saying, "My son, my daughter, come back to Me. Spend time with Me. I have longed for your fellowship and adoration. There you will find rest.” Then again our eyes will brim with tears and our hearts will fill with renewed love for the One that we will eternally be praising around the very throne of God.

I’ve read many books that were classified as christian literature. Some were really good while others made me wonder if they should have been published. Of the books I wondered about, I don’t make the comment to be harsh, critical or judgemental. Rather, I wonder if they were really something God intended to be shared to that extent. I also wondered if I should have read them. Let me explain. I’ve read books about hearing from God and growing in faith and so on and so forth. These are great topics and many Christians have ongoing questions and desires for knowledge in these areas. I do and that is why I read them. However, at one point I kind of kept hearing myself asking this same question. Did I try to take a short cut by reading this? If so then what did I miss by not working it out with God? The simple fact is that these books, we assume, were inspired by the author's journey with God. A journey for knowledge or victory in various areas of their lives. So on one hand reading their accounts is not a bad thing for us to do. On the other hand, maybe we should have sought God for his direction in our particular journey. I’ve done that recently and found that the revelation I received just seems deeper. I get the sense that the things God showed me will “last” or “stick” longer. Maybe it’s like eating fast food versus a home cooked meal. It’s not that fast food is always wrong because sometimes it serves a purpose when we don’t have time to cook. Ever notice that a home cooked meal seams to stick around longer? By that I mean you don’t feel hungry again so soon after eating it. So maybe at the very least we should seek God on our own along with or supplemental to reading a book and also read the Bible. Not just focus on some one else's journey but focus on both? That way we can see God working in our own lives, in his own custom made way for us. Won’t our love and knowledge of God increase more this way?