The Secret to Staying Close

This is Amy Thomas from the masculine journey podcast where we discover what it means to be a wholehearted man your chosen Truth Network podcast is starting in just seconds.

Enjoy it, share it, but most of all, thank you for listening and for choosing The Truth Podcast Network. This is the Truth Network encouraging prayer, God offers an open invitation for his people to talk with him at any time about anything, and encouraging prayer Dr. James Banks, author of the best-selling product and many other books on prayer provides weekly biblical insight help you learn to mom and now James today on encouraging prayer we get to talk about peace and love. So James, you know, I'm picturing BW with a big pizza man. I mean, what are we talking here still driving people from the group would not start up here, but not a 60 there's a peace that only he can give when you have his love at work in your heart and I know that concern like you so much church talker somebody works, but it's real so let's talk about staying close to living with him, moment by moment because that's how is peace and love comes right and I know you well enough to notice when your favorite topics and I mean literally being with Jesus.

Yet, it is because I have so much to learn and you know God is always helping me and showing me new thing this past week I came across a great quote from Matthew Henry, pastor and Bible scholar robbing about love, but when Matthew Henry lay dying he said, you have heard many man's dying words. These are mine life spent in communion with God blessed this life in the world. I love that because it's so true. Think about what Isaiah prayed in Isaiah 26 three you will keep in perfect peace all you who trust in him all whose thoughts are fixed on you and any he had trusted the Lord always, for the Lord God is the eternal rock person couldn't be more right of ministers being with Jesus in our hearts and our minds is the way to arrive at what you say to the believer who says that sounds pretty spiritual and that's just really hard to get down to earth to a person like me. I appreciate that because that's really smart look at Scripture. Sometimes you know it the simplest thing so much truth in them, and they can be right in front of us, but we can miss them. Think about Mark 314, Mark tells us that when Jesus called the disciples to himself. One of the reasons he did so was that they might be with him looking up. It's really interesting. He wants us to be with him. Then think about John 14 when he promised to go and prepare a place for them.

People think about abstract thinking about mansions all over the hilltop and whatever he goes on to say that you might be with me and I with you. You know it's all about being with him. He loves that. And, of course, in Matthew before he ascended into heaven, he said that he is with us always so being with Jesus is intended to be this natural thing for us. It starts here that's also where were going so I think sometimes we can make it harder than it needs to be clear, we need to set apart from me you can do what is nothing.

Let's talk about that there's more to being with Jesus then constantly have to push ourselves and generate effort as if it's some kind of make-believe. Yeah, I'm going to bring that up exactly right. And it makes me think of something that fate like diving into a pool of water was more about something, he stopped doing sort of resisting holding back then something he started doing he chose to trust God rested him also makes me think of the old commercial with the MST plunger standing on the side of the swimming pool and he drinks his team just falls back into the water, like write the ultimate refreshment word from our sponsor recently that I can make being with him overly difficult bike trying too hard and living in faith with Jesus and trusting God requires not so much a leap of faith sometimes is a loosening of our grip on things you don't not having to control everything in learning to just rest and trust. So true, and it also really helps us worry less because he's the only one who knows what is going to happen in the future may graphically glare recently but still James I'm thinking practically about this how we stay there being with Jesus more and more natural way without it being forced or pushed what it really is part of course once we've received human spirit dwells within us always and this is one of the things he's been showing me recently that the way to be with you moment by moment just have a heart of love for John Calvin had a personal symbol two hands holding a heart and enshrined around it were the words my heart. I offer to you Lord promptly and fairly. Don't miss the promptly part so that's the moment by moment part but what he saying is Lord. Here's my heart love you I love you know this is a scholarly highlight. Now you know it's not the kind of emotionalism. It's just simple childlike makes me think about what Jesus said when he was asked what's the greatest commandment. Any respondent love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and mind.

Right. Everything flows from that Romans 55 tells us God is poured out his love into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given us so his love already there within us. We just need to let it flow. Let ourselves go a little notice but I just love we love him we can pray without words just lift our hearts to him in a course we need to tell them we love him and and cultivate this in our hearts more by learning to praise him, but I think this is so much of what it means to be a little child with by fake children love so freely and so naturally they're not afraid to just come up you that I love you I love you parents and grandparents when they do that.

There's a reason for that robbing it of course were made in the image of God and he's all about love with words that God is love. You can imagine how he responds when we go to him the same way and I think that's the secret to staying close just love to stop something.

Thanks when we close today with a prayer that really we can do just wanted to connect implant but if you want me to. You must go for it. Let's let both part say Jesus help me to fall back and do you like that guy on the swimming pool and a swamp. And I know what Matthew Henry was saying that that's life, that's unbelievable.

I pray that for our listeners and that they too could just rest right thing. Yes, Lord, we love you we love you want to love you more. Thank you for your love in our hearts through your spirit. We love Jesus and hear more from Pastor James by visiting the website James Banks.org or by visiting these church in Durham, North Carolina. May God bless you and encourage you as you pray. This is the Truth Network