February is most commonly known as the month of love. One day a year men get a shot to go all out and make up for all the missed opportunities they had to plan the “perfect date” with that special someone. This month I want our focus to be on “Dating God”. Sounds kind of odd doesn’t it. Dating God? God chose the intimacy of marriage to be His perfect illustration of His love for His bride, the church. While it’s important to understand God as redeemer, creator, savior, father, etc. I think we are missing out on a greater intimacy that God desires when we begin to think of Him as we would our “significant others”. Most of us are familiar with the term “Not religion, Relationship”. It’s quoted often but rarely lived out. How often do we really live in relation to God in the same way we do to others. Consider how you relate to your spouse or girl/boyfriend (if you don’t have one currently think of how you’ve related to them in the past). You probably talk to them every day. Take time to just be with them with no agenda. You don’t care what other people think of you being married or dating that person. You do it because you love them whether others love them or accept them. Think about when you first were dating and you went on that HOTT (yes with two t’s) date. You did everything you could to impress the other person. Countless hours were spent in front of the mirror or behind the vacuum in your car or in the closet looking for the right thing to wear. God should be treated no different. In fact He should get our best, yes even better then what you give your spouse or girl/boyfriend. We should love in God in such a way where it doesn’t matter whether others accept Him or not or whether they want us to love Him. We should spend every day just being with Him, talking to Him, with no agenda in mind. I challenge you to take the time this month to cultivate that kind of intimacy with God. In the book of Revelation Jesus tells a church that has gone astray to return to their first love. That is my advice this month. Take more time developing an intimate relationship with God one that nothing else in this world could compete with.
-Terry Butler
