Another week has come and gone. I know I am a little late in getting a new post up. Currently I am listening to a song by Hillsong United called "To Know Your Name". I encourage you to go to Youtube and search this song and listen. It is so powerful!

On Monday nights we have what we call Monday Night Live. This is a time when we have an emcee, our band plays, and we have a speaker. Anyone can come. This is one of the ways we outreach to people we meet or work with. I wanted to share what our speaker talked about this last Monday.

First here is the question: Do you just know God or do you EXPERIENCE him?

Good question right? I think so many of us know him more than experiencing him on the intimate level the Lord desires. I know I was one of these. I was more about following the do's and don't's of the Christian walk and was missing out on so so much.

"The church of North America has become so success oriented," writes Eugene Nida, "that we go from seminar to seminar on how to use God, but few are sitting in quiet holiness asking, 'How can God use me?'"

God made me and you so we would need him. God does not need me to speak to his lost children. He needs me to enjoy him. We are to learn from God, not be God.

John 15 talks about how we are merely branches. Branches. Branches are nothing fancy. God is the gardner and Jesus is the vine. As branches we are cut so we may be pruned and bear fruit. Even when we do not see the fruit, God is committed to lifting us up so we do not break. Our speaker used this illustration: Branches in the winter become brittle and if you are not careful when you pick up these branches they will just crumble. God does not let us crumble. When he prunes us, he picks us up with two mighty hands and gently lifts us up. Awesome right! Think about those times when you are in the dead, miserably cold winter and how beautiful it is to have the Lord bring light and warmth to your brittleness! God does not need me but he wants me!

In experiencing God, the Lord just asks that we participate in the dance he has already created. Christ is already here whether we acknowledge him or not. We are here to watch the beauty he is unfolding. God asks us to be his dance partner. We do not know where he is leading us but we know he is moving, so we follow. We follow in his grace and experience the most intimate dance man has ever seen.