that is, how do you *love* God? and alternatively — if i can love a girl at a particularly high level — (e.g infatuation, constantly thinking about her, always think about her, have my heart break when she is sad, constant anticipation to talk/spend time with her) — then how much more do I need to love my Lord! And logically — to Love Him more, i’d have to first love Him to that ‘high degree’ (in my thinking, romantic love is the ‘ultimate’ expression level of human:human love, albeit its different for each person, each culture, and even denomination)

As such — with that particular challenge, my year began as a search, yearning — and seeking to go DEEPER into God, to KNOW HIM.

And I guess in that knowing Him he revealed himself in varying different ways… constant conversation, guiding, tongues, intercession, sanctification, spiritual fruits, renewed thirst to spiritual things etc..

Very experiential/emotionally tied things (in a sense). Some would say I was on a “spiritual high” for a very long time — I’d argue, the Christian Life is very exciting and experiential, active…

despite that — something God has been showing me in the last while is just in how we experience God.

1. “Don’t let your previous spiritual experiences define how you experience God, rather let it enhance it” - Raineer(roughly quoted)

- often times we experience God a certain way (particularly charismatic and/or more emotional/ vivid ways), we hold on to that because it is God blatantly revealing Himself to us. However when that fades or changes — its easy to fall into the trap of restricting God to that certain experience/atmosphere; thus hindering a person to experience God more fully and freely or at all (if one’s expectations exceed sensitivity)

2. The Source to experiencing God is beyond merely the experiencing, rather its the heart — to genuinely know God. (x’ref to CC sermon w/ the kids who went on the roof to get ‘visions’). God is not in the experiences themselves. Rather the experiences are within, flow out of — seeking and being in God.

- For myself, He’s been showing me this through the past few months and that is, we often trust/depend on God via ‘emotions, spiritual manifestations, answer to prayer, inspiration etc..’ in short we depend on God in a way like this:
I –> %experience –> God.

There are 3 components.

Often times, when you’ve come so deep in that %experience, He will withdraw your sensitivity to His presence from you, and that experience

leaving you with
I –> nothing ??? God.

Thus your ‘medium’ in which you experience God is removed, dry.. and in very essence you find emptyness in those experiences before — This is because God wants us to grow deep in Him, the experiences lead us in Faith — but the emptyness tests our faith… because God wants your faith to be like this:

I –> God.

NOT
I –> %experience.

Because then you have idolatry, you begin worshipping the experience, and in very essence emotionalism.

Similar Biblical Example of this –
Elijah confronting Jezebel’s prophets — He massively experiences God’s power/presence in the like raining down of fire etc..

Yet later there’s that massive earthquake, fire, wind where he’s hiding and he can’t find God in all those things which are similar if not even greater than the raining down of fire?

and instead of experiencing God that same way — God reveals himself in emptyness, silence.

so yes.. thats my bit of ranting :p what do you think?
*cheers*
thanks for doing worship coordinator for CC