For years, my favorite claim to fame (.. my only claim to fame) was meeting an Olympic athlete at a summer VBS program. The whole theme was Olympics; red, white and blue everything. Which was perfect, because one day I was going to compete in the worldwide Olympics myself. As a gymnast. Despite the fact that I had never taken a gymnastic class in my life. But I practiced much in my yard, and surely VBS was a sign from God.
So wrapping up the week, that Olympic athlete made her debut and signed autographs for each of us students. And in my little spiral-bound notebook, adorned with sparkly flag stickers and gel pen doodles, she wrote: stay close to Jesus.
I think most of us are pretty familiar with the words of John 3:16, that whoever believes in (Jesus) will not perish but have eternal life. And generally, we tend to think of eternal life as heaven. And that’s certainly part of it. But the gift of the gospel isn’t simply a ticket to heaven. Jesus defines eternal life before his crucifixion as he’s praying to his Father, “And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent” [2]. The gift of eternal life is that we can know God.
Do we grasp the weight of this?
It’s so natural for us to undervalue a relationship with the Lord. The noise and realities of the world tend to echo louder than the voice of the Spirit. But a relationship is what we have been saved into. We have peace with God through Christ [1]. We are made right before him, our offenses covered and access to the throne. Permanently.
And in the same way that a relationship with a person takes time, and a relationship with a person goes through different seasons and circumstances, our relationship with God is a journey with ongoing experiences and conversation and time together. God wants us to know him. He wants us to spend time with him. Forever.
It is in and through this relationship that God positions us to obey his greatest commandment, to love him. But we can’t ever love someone we don’t actually know.
Stay close to Jesus. This is what we were created for.
Let him lead. Let him guide. Sit with him. Talk to him. Weep with him. Delight in him. Let him fix and purpose the things you already have your own plan for. And watch as he restores the things you never imagined possible. Fight to make time for him, and get to know him, deeper and deeper, as friend, counselor, comforter and shepherd. Get to know everything about him like your life depends upon it. Because it does. He is the only source of life.
The Lord is in it with us for the long haul. While God is certainly able and willing to bring healing and transformation instantaneously to some situations, it seems like most things just take time. Not because God is unwilling or weak, but because he is relational. He wants us to walk with him, to bring our burdens to him, to hear our questions and our fears. He wants to display his glory in our lives, and sometimes, I think he just wants to show us, firsthand, the things we struggle to believe on paper.
Which is what we see at the cross. That God doesn’t just tell us he loves us with words, but he shows he loves us with action. While we were still sinners, he died for us.
God is not going to give up on us. He doesn’t tire of us, he doesn’t lose interest in us, and he will never abandon the ones he died to save. God doesn’t make mistakes.
He saved us into his eternal kingdom, on purpose, because he wants us to know him forever.
It’s been some 20 years since that camp week, and I never did make it to the Olympics. Nor did I even pass the single gymnastics class I tried. I guess VBS wasn’t quite prophesying the future I imagined. But while I have long forgotten the name of that Olympic athlete, the much greater gift of that camp week was her simple encouragement that still applies to each of us today. May we all spend our lives learning the rhythms and patterns of walking with the Lord, of learning to love him and letting that love pour out around us. Forever, may we stay close to Jesus.
[1] Romans 5:1
[2] John 17:3
“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” – Jesus, Matthew 11:28-30 MSG
Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. – Deuteronomy 6:4-6
Sing: Nothing Else + The Heart of Worship
Consider: What are the things that most stir your affections for the Lord? How often do you spend time doing those things? Spend a moment in prayer, praising Jesus for his finished work on the cross, for being a relational God and for welcoming us permanently into that relationship. Ask him to show you ways you can go deeper with him.
Study: Deuteronomy 6:4-9
Additional resource: Hinds’ Feet on High Places, this story is a beautiful allegory about our journey with the Lord
Related: Eyes to See
The Sale of the Gospel
God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. – Psalm 46:1
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