In Jeremiah, we read that we should boast in knowing and understanding God. But how exactly do we do that? keep reading for 3 keys that will help you know and understand God more!
As a mom, it can be easy to look around at all the other moms around me and see where I don’t measure up. There’s the cool mom the fun mom the crunchy mom the perfectly put-together mom. As I look around at the moms of my kid’s friends I start to wonder what I have to offer. As I do this I think to myself well maybe I’m the mom who bakes really well or maybe I’m the ministry mom. I go through the lists of my strengths and my skills and my job description to try to find something about me that stands out. I’m looking for something to boast in. I’m looking to say this is who I am and this is what I’m good at.
But as I was reading through my Bible the other day I came across these verses in Jeremiah Chapter 9:
“Thus says the Lord: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, 24 but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the Lord.”
(Jeremiah 9:23-24, ESV)
Boasting in our own skills and abilities comes naturally to us. We do it without thinking. But do any of us boast simply in knowing and understanding God? Now I’m not talking about going and getting a doctorate in theology just so you can boast about how much you “know” God. This verse is talking about having a real, intimate relationship with God.
A worldly example:
Before my husband and I were married we knew each other pretty well. That is to say, we knew what the other liked to do, and we had a decent idea of what foods the other enjoyed (even still I just learned after 8 years of marriage my husband doesn’t like pepperoni on his pizza – go figure!). But it took longer for us to understand each other. To not just know information about each other, but to really know why like or dislike certain things. Through our knowledge and understanding of each other is always growing, we understand what makes each other both thrive and struggle.
While this is a small and simple example, God wants us to grow in knowledge and understanding of Him. God wants an intimate relationship with each and every one of us.
In Scripture, marriage is representative of Christ and the Church (Christ being the groom and the Church being the bride). In recent years I would venture to say that the Western Church has been on a slow journey away from her groom and at times has been unfaithful to Him in various ways. But God is still faithful to His Church. He wants to restore His bride to what she ought to be. As Individual members of the Church, as we pursue the heart of God, He will bring us to a point of personal revival. He will renew an intimate relationship with Him that has been missing in the Western Church for years. So how do we do it? How do we pursue knowing and understanding God?
Knowing and Understanding God’s Voice
In 1 Kings 19:9-13, God tells Elijah to go up on a mountain and wait for him. God says he’s going to speak to Elijah on this mountain. On this mountain when Elijah is waiting to hear from God he sees these big signs and wonders. Elijah sees a strong wind, an earthquake, and fire but God was not speaking through these things. After the wind earthquake and fire passed by God spoke to Elijah in a whisper. God could have just told Elijah what he wanted to say but God wanted Elijah to learn to listen for his whisper, not just big signs and wonders.
Sometimes we can get so caught up with the big signs and wonders from God. We look for his big bellowing voice, shouting across the room while forgetting that God also whispers. God isn’t going to shout across the room what he wants to whisper to you in intimate places. In order to hear His whisper and Understand God’s voice, you have to move past the signs and wonders and step in closer to Him. His whispers can’t be heard when you’re standing on the opposite side of the room. Are you close enough to hear his whisper? Are you ready to move past the signs and wonders into the intimate spaces where you know His heart and He knows yours?
Knowing and Understanding God’s Heart
King David is considered to be a “man after God’s own heart” (1 Samuel 13:14, Acts 13:22). David was called a man after God’s own heart not because he had God’s heart, but because he pursued it. He wanted to be close to God. When God said something, David listened and he took delight in obeying God (Psalm 40:8). David humbly served God where he was while waiting for God to fulfill His promises (1 Samuel 24). And when he was confronted with sin, he turned to God and repented (2 Samuel 11-12, Psalm 51). David understood God’s heart because He pursued it.
If we want to be a mom (or dad) after God’s own heart this is what it looks like. Delight in God’s words (scripture) and obey what he says in scripture. Serve God where he has called you and be patient for Him to fulfill His promises. God expects to fulfill the promises He’s made. And since He expects to fulfill them, we can expect the same thing. But while we wait to see those promises fulfilled we can serve God right where we are (the kitchen sink, the job we have, etc).
When you see or are confronted with sin in your life, don’t hide it. Turn to God, bring that sin into the light, and repent. As believers, we should be people who run to repentance with open arms and open hands because we know the God of all creation opened his arms when He gave his life as the punishment for every one of our sins. For more on pursuing God daily check out this post: How to choose God daily)
Ask. Seek. Knock. Understanding God in Prayer
When I was a kid one of my favorite tricks to winning hide-and-seek was changing my hiding place. When someone came close to where I was hiding but didn’t find me I would move on to a place where I knew they had already looked. I was really good at hide-and-seek.
God isn’t playing some cosmic game of hide-and-seek (and he for sure is not cheating). He promises in scripture that if we look for Him we will find Him. We can downplay the role of prayer and make it seem like it’s not good enough. But at the end of the day prayer is powerful because in prayer we are seeking God. When we seek Him we will find Him. And when we find God we are on our way to understanding God. (for more on prayer check out these two links: Why you should pray for your kids, and My problem with prayer)
“Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the Lord…”
(Jeremiah 29:12-14a, ESV)
“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened.”
(Matthew 7:7-8, ESV)
While there’s nothing wrong with having an award-winning pie, a beautiful home, or knowing the best ways to keep kids entertained if you want to boast about anything, boast in knowing and understanding God. Step in closer to Him and listen for his whisper. Pursue his heart through scripture, obedience, and repentance. Look for Him through prayer and you will find Him. And in all of these things, you will find a personal and intimate revival in your heart that will affect your family, your community, and your world.
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