relationship with God

Last night I got a text towards the end of the regular weekly meeting for the S4-S6 students.

This was Robin, a fine young man who grew up in the church and now, in his mid twenties, is through in the west. Except last night he was back through here, at the home of his Mum and Dad. Could I call round to the house, he wanted to speak to me.

I know them all well, and it's always a joy to call by: so I rushed on round once the meeting was done and, here, the guy had just gone and got himself engaged. He was there with his girl - sorry (there's a change of status now!) his fiance.

Although they'd only just arrived and broken the news to the family, well, there was already a bit of a party going on (if you knew the family, you'd understand!). And no wonder! She's a lovely girl and .. well, what more do you need in order to celebrate?!

I was thrilled to bits - and all the more when they asked if I'd be the one to marry them! Right chuffed I was.

What was really striking, though, was learning that the very night he'd gone and bought the ring (a solitaire diamond - see, I did look closely!), his mother had woken in the middle of the night with one clear thought - Robin's engaged! I mean really clear.

She knew (before she actually knew, if you get the drift!)

Then today the mother of another friend died. She was up in her nineties (her mother, that is) and a lovely, firm believer in the Lord (her daughter is too) - so she was ready to leave this life and wanted only to be able somehow to live on to the end in her own little home on the western isles. (I mean you would, too, if this was the sort of view you had!)

Her daughter's been there the last few weeks - and that, not least, ensured that her mother's desire was fulfilled.

A very striking instance of an honouring of the fifth of the commandments of the Lord. Honour your father and mother. Well, she's done just that this last long while in regard to her mother up north. A lovely thing to see. And very humbling, too.

It's plainly important to God himself since it's the first commandment with a promise attached.

But again she knew.

That's why she stayed up there, away from her husband and home. She simply knew, with a clarity within her heart, that these were her mother's last days. The Lord let her know.

He does that. He lets his people know what he's about to do.

So a marriage, then a death. And in the afternoon, I was off to see another friend among God's people here, to talk with her about, effectively, her work. Marriage, death, and our working lives. The whole spectrum of life.

It's time for her 'appraisal'. And because, as friends, we've had the chance in months gone by to talk through what it means for her to serve the Lord within the context of her daily work, she said it would be good to have the chance to think through what she might be saying when she meets with her employers face to face.

(She has quite a senior post herself and therefore has at least some small potential to be influencing the way the place is run).

It was good to spend the time with her (and because it was unfinished, I'll be back again tomorrow for part 2!) and talk the whole thing through. But what, again, was striking in it all was simply this - she'd heard God speaking very plainly to her heart on Sunday morning as she listened to the message that I brought.

Like a bolt, it was, she said. Right between the eyes. That clear, that strong, that personal and plain. She knew just what she had to do - and did so straightaway: she came and asked if I would work it through with her. Because the Lord had told her to.

A consistent pattern through all of these? Definitely.

Three major areas of life. Marriage or relationships: death and bereavement: vocation and our daily work.

And in each area, in three very different ways, the Lord revealing to his people in advance what is to be.

A clear, specific dream. A slowly growing burden on the heart. A message as his word is being preached.

The sovereign Lord does nothing without revealing his plans to his servants the prophets. I didn't make that up! It's there in Scripture (Amos.3.7). That's how God works and acts. And how he relates to his people.

I was pondering the Scriptures this morning again. Thinking ahead to this coming Sunday morning. Thinking about just how believers are described.

And finding this, that God "has called you into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ our Lord." That's the heart of it all. He's called us into 'fellowship'.

It's a relationship. As simple as that. And basic to that relationship is simply this - he loves to share his heart. So he 'speaks' with us: lets us in on all that's going on: prepares us for the things we'll have to face: directs our paths and helps to orchestrate our sometimes muddled lives.

Amazing when you think of it!

And all he wants by way of our response is that we learn ourselves to share our hearts with him. (I think we get the better side of the deal!)

All that tied in pretty well with where I'm at with the couple who I see each week to talk things through about the Lord. We've been thinking about this relationship with the Lord and how he 'speaks'.

Last week had been helpful, since they'd found first-hand just how the Lord can kind of 'speak'. So we talked tonight about reading the Bible.

Not so much about the reason why - though we touched on that because they could see that plainly Jesus had a balance in his life whereby he took 'time out' and found the time and space to 'listen in' to all his Father had to say.

And they could see that when this Jesus said, 'Follow me', he largely meant just that - you want to live a life like mine? Well, see the pattern in my life? Adopt that pattern yourself. Simple.

So we talked about reading the Bible, we talked about learning to pray. We talked about relationship: how the Lord reveals his heart and how, in prayer, we simply share our hearts with him.

We talked about the way the Lord is always asking questions, and what those questions are. How he starts off by asking 'Where are you?' How it's good to let him know. How he sometimes asks, 'What do you want me to do for you?' (an amazing question!): and how it's good to let him know just what it is exactly that we'd really wish he'd do.

Pour out your hearts to the Lord, said the song-writer, David, long ago. Because that's what the Lord does with you.

Relationship with God. It is just the most wonderful thing!

And I think this couple are starting to see it, starting to try it and starting to find that it's something they wouldn't wish ever to miss!