This is one of my favourite clip from the movie Avatar. When I saw this part, the first thing that came to mind was how well this illustrates our relationship with God. It was very obvious that the behaviour of that flying creature (apparently called 'Ikran') changed as soon as Jake made a 'connection'. The 'bond' initiates the flying relationship, and through that relationship, Jake was allowed to ride on. Although the first few mins of riding was very difficult, once he got over it they were flying together so gloriously. It's captivating.
So... this whole thing about 'connecting' and 'bonding' , it reminds me of our relationship with God. Before we knew who God really is, the world we grew up in paints all sorts of picture about God. Some paints a really really scary and angry God, who watches everything you do, and is ready to punish you anytime you sin. Some other paints God to be this 'genie' who you go to just to ask for this and that, and there's many more. Before we knew who God really is, He's a stranger, sometimes almost an enemy. Just like Ikran to Jake.
One day... He came into your life, and let you encounter Him, experienced His love, His forgiveness, His generousity, His mercy, and you experienced Him for who He really is... and that day the two of you BOND, and it changed your life forever. He's no longer that 'angry' God, He's no longer that distant 'genie in a bottle', He's no longer a myth, He became real to you. The day that you encountered Him for the first time was just unforgettable. You might have experienced a much deeper sense of peace, joy and happiness that you've never felt before, and it's like you're soaring like the eagle, above all your difficult circumstances, because for the first time, there's something bigger, much bigger, much more powerful and mighty, yet so full of love, whom you can trust with all your heart. That day you promised that you'll put Him first above all others, and you gave your life to Him.
So... this whole thing about 'connecting' and 'bonding' , it reminds me of our relationship with God. Before we knew who God really is, the world we grew up in paints all sorts of picture about God. Some paints a really really scary and angry God, who watches everything you do, and is ready to punish you anytime you sin. Some other paints God to be this 'genie' who you go to just to ask for this and that, and there's many more. Before we knew who God really is, He's a stranger, sometimes almost an enemy. Just like Ikran to Jake.
One day... He came into your life, and let you encounter Him, experienced His love, His forgiveness, His generousity, His mercy, and you experienced Him for who He really is... and that day the two of you BOND, and it changed your life forever. He's no longer that 'angry' God, He's no longer that distant 'genie in a bottle', He's no longer a myth, He became real to you. The day that you encountered Him for the first time was just unforgettable. You might have experienced a much deeper sense of peace, joy and happiness that you've never felt before, and it's like you're soaring like the eagle, above all your difficult circumstances, because for the first time, there's something bigger, much bigger, much more powerful and mighty, yet so full of love, whom you can trust with all your heart. That day you promised that you'll put Him first above all others, and you gave your life to Him.
But then daily life continues and you struggle to continue this BOND, this CONNECTION. You get distracted with the things of this world that lures you into going after wealth, power, popularity, and 'happiness'. You struggle and struggle to maintain that bond and eventually you feel like you've lost that connection. You're not flying anymore. You're just crawling your way through life, day by day, trying to fill the emptiness inside of you. You feel lost and hopeless. Or you might feel like somedays it's good and you're flying smoothly with God, but somedays it's just a huge big struggle and you give up.
This BOND, this CONNECTION, when it comes to our relationship with God is held together by no other than PRAYER.
Prayer is one way of us human beings connecting with God.
Connecting, bonding, building and having a relationship.
To be honest with you, I am not an expert in praying. But one thing I know for sure... whatever it is I've been doing, in one way or another ... it works, because God has listened and answered a lot of my prayers. It's not because I am good or holy or married to a pastor, or anything like that. It's purely because He is my God, my Father, we have a relationship, and he Loves me. That's it.
Connecting, bonding, building and having a relationship.
To be honest with you, I am not an expert in praying. But one thing I know for sure... whatever it is I've been doing, in one way or another ... it works, because God has listened and answered a lot of my prayers. It's not because I am good or holy or married to a pastor, or anything like that. It's purely because He is my God, my Father, we have a relationship, and he Loves me. That's it.
One time He healed me from a lymphoma tumour; Another time He restored my marriage; Another time He granted me my dream job; Another time He touched the heart of one of my close friends from atheism to becoming saved; When I was a teenager, He used to change my mother's mind so I was allowed to go out with my friends :p and many more....
So I've been studying and pondering this topic of prayer for quite sometime, and I just wanna share with you some of the things about prayer which I have learnt to know and believe, through the word of God and through experience.
I believe we have been created to have the need to pray and connect to God.
Psalm 139:13 "For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
We believe that we are 'designed' in such a way for a reason. Some of us are more emotional than others; some are more sporty and active than others; etc. We also learnt that God's created us with body, soul and spirit.
The body needs food, and so does our soul and spirit.
Whether you're a christian or not, whether you believe in God or not, you have been created with this soul, who just longs to 'connect' with a greater being, or something 'spiritual'. That's why you'd hear all these people doing meditation, or searching for a 'god' or doing what they call 'soul searching'. Some goes to the ends of the world, seeking for 'answers' to this 'deep longing' inside their heart. It's like they're just not satisfied, eventhough they might seem to have everything. So, believe it or not, God actually creates you with this NEED to connect to Him, spiritually. To allow your spirit, the Holy Spirit, that is inside of you, to CONNECT with Him.
The body needs food, and so does our soul and spirit.
Whether you're a christian or not, whether you believe in God or not, you have been created with this soul, who just longs to 'connect' with a greater being, or something 'spiritual'. That's why you'd hear all these people doing meditation, or searching for a 'god' or doing what they call 'soul searching'. Some goes to the ends of the world, seeking for 'answers' to this 'deep longing' inside their heart. It's like they're just not satisfied, eventhough they might seem to have everything. So, believe it or not, God actually creates you with this NEED to connect to Him, spiritually. To allow your spirit, the Holy Spirit, that is inside of you, to CONNECT with Him.
Psalm 42:1 "As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God."
If you deprive your soul from connecting to its creator, your soul will eventually 'pants' or starve for some sort of spiritual connection. This is where people are often misled into believing in the wrong supernatural forces which may lead to deaths or devil worshipping practives. Prayer is one of our NEEDs. You need to pray, for your own wellbeing.
But in the same way... God also longs to connect with you. He longs to hear from you. Just like when I havent seen Naomi the whole day, I enjoy hearing her stories, and seeing how she expressed herself in this cute way of talking like an adult. I'm hoping she'd continue to tell me everything when she's a teenager - sadly most (not all) teenagers hate their parents. I pray I'd be in the 2% of population of parents who aren't hated by their teenage daughter.
The question is HOW do we pray?
Surprisingly, it is actually a lot simpler than what a lot of people think.
Ok, so everyday you brain works, your mind works. you THINK, there are thoughts coming through your mind.
Everyday you have emotions running through you, in one day you might be HAPPY and/or ANGRY and/or SAD and many more. All your thoughts, dreams, and emotions, they ALREADY exists WITHIN God Himself. Everything! All of the existence of this earth and the universe, all that we see and don't, EVERYTHING exists within Him.
Psalm 139: 1-4 "You have searched me, LORD, and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue you, LORD, know it completely."
1 Chron 28:9 - "for the LORD searches every heart and understands every desire and every thought."
So, your emotions, thoughts, dreams and desires already exist within His knowledge, and believe it or not... to pray or to connect with God, is as simple as ACKNOWLEDGING His presence in your thoughts, in your mind, in your heart. Prayer is believing that right now, right here, as you're thinking this, or feeling that, God is here, and He is listening to you.
By doing this, you begin to direct your thoughts to Him. Share your feelings and emotions with Him. Tell Him what's bothering you. Thank Him for what makes you happy. Laugh with Him, cry with Him, and be angry with Him.
Very simple isnt it?
You see, when you kinda just met someone, you'd have the tendency to talk about 'surface' stuffs like the weather, current news, sports results, etc. But then, when you started forming a good relationship, or when you start to bond with the other person, then you start to talk about deeper level stuffs like feelings, emotions, ideas, etc. So f you have never ever prayed before, or you think you dont have a real relationship with God, then when you pray you might have the tendency to communicate on 'surface' level; but you know what.... it's a waste of time, honestly! Because God already knows you, who you are, what you've done, what you think, desire and feel, even before you even realise that he knows them! There is no point in hiding yourself from God.
Simply be aware of your thoughts and your emotions, and simply acknowledge and believe that God is right here, right now, listening and understanding your thoughts and emotions. SIMPLY ACKNOWLEDGE. "God I know that your are here right now... and no matter how silent and small this voice inside of me, I know that You know them very well", and when you do that, you're allowing your spirit to connect with God.
Romans 8:26-27 "We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us ... 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."
When Spirit starts to take over of your minds, your thoughts and your emotions, it starts to lead you in connecting with God.
But where do you start??? simply by ACKNOWLEDGING His presence right there and then, wherever you are.
The spirit then might lead you to pour your hearts out to God;
or he might lead you to hunger for the word of God, that you just want to open the Bible and seek for something that will just speak to you;
or he might lead you to simply worship and be lost in the presence of God through praise and worship songs;
or when you know that youve done something that's not pleasing in God's eyes, the spirit might lead you to repentance, where you confess and admit that you are wrong, humble yourself before him and seek for forgiveness.
or sometimes, the spirit might lead you to simply sit in silence and just be still, and know that He is God.
I dont know if you notice this... but when you first met someone, you know.. a girl or boy that you like, and you kinda try get to know them, you talk and talk and do stuffs together, like movies etc. and sometimes 'silence' becomes a very ackward moment. But you know that once you get to a stage, where you're very comfortable with someone, you can simply enjoy their company, even in silence.
But where do you start??? simply by ACKNOWLEDGING His presence right there and then, wherever you are.
The spirit then might lead you to pour your hearts out to God;
or he might lead you to hunger for the word of God, that you just want to open the Bible and seek for something that will just speak to you;
or he might lead you to simply worship and be lost in the presence of God through praise and worship songs;
or when you know that youve done something that's not pleasing in God's eyes, the spirit might lead you to repentance, where you confess and admit that you are wrong, humble yourself before him and seek for forgiveness.
or sometimes, the spirit might lead you to simply sit in silence and just be still, and know that He is God.
I dont know if you notice this... but when you first met someone, you know.. a girl or boy that you like, and you kinda try get to know them, you talk and talk and do stuffs together, like movies etc. and sometimes 'silence' becomes a very ackward moment. But you know that once you get to a stage, where you're very comfortable with someone, you can simply enjoy their company, even in silence.
So today you have the choice:
you know that your whole being, your thoughts, emotions, dreams and desires have existed in God, ALREADY.
GOD longs and waits and waits for you to SIMPLY ACKNOWLEDGE HIM.
Will you acknowledge Him? starting from this second, right now, or will you continue to IGNORE him?
The choice is yours.... and so is the consequence. If you want to fly, BOND with Him.
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