Time with God Is a Vital Necessity

Knowing God Intimately: Being as Close to Him As You Want to Be
by Joyce Meyer

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We may have to deal sternly with our flesh to resist the spirit of passivity that tries to keep us from growing in the knowledge of God. A commitment to spend time with God is as serious as any commitment that we could ever make.

God's Word says, “Seek My face [inquire for and require My presence as your vital need]. My heart says to You, Your face (Your presence), Lord, will I seek, inquire for, and require [of necessity and on the authority of Your Word]” (Psalm 27:8). God promises, “Then you will seek Me, inquire for, and require Me [as a vital necessity] and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:13). I love that Scripture-it tells us we are to require God as a vital necessity in life.

My uncle, who is now home with the Lord, had a pacemaker in his heart that had to be charged every so many days. One Saturday Dave and I invited my aunt and uncle out for a nice steak dinner, but they couldn't go because my uncle had to charge his pacemaker that day.

At first I didn't understand why my aunt said they couldn't go. I said, “Well, he can charge his pacemaker tomorrow!”

She said, “Joyce, he won't be here tomorrow if he doesn't charge his pacemaker today.”

If my uncle didn't take time to recharge his pacemaker, his heart would stop beating. It was a vital necessity for him to keep his appointment with his lifeline to that machine. If we looked at our time with God as the opportunity to recharge the pacemaker of our heart, it would be important enough for us to make sure that we took time to do it. If we would even keep our appointment with God as we keep other appointments, we would be in good shape. But things come up, and all of a sudden we're off doing something else.

If I needed dialysis due to kidney disease and had to be at the hospital twice a week for treatment at 8:00 A.M., I certainly would not accept an invitation to do anything else, no matter how appealing it might seem. I would know that my life depended upon keeping my appointment. That is the way we should view our time with God. The quality of our life is greatly affected by the time we spend with God, and it should have a place of priority in our schedule.

Perhaps because God is ever available we think we can spend time with Him later, so we choose to respond to what seems urgent, instead of giving God a place of priority in our lives. But if we spent more priority time with God, we wouldn't have so many emergencies that rob us of our time. We are to redeem time through prayer.

When you sit in the presence of God, even if you don't feel like you are learning anything new, you are still sowing good seed into your life that will produce a good harvest. With persistence, you will get to the point where you understand more of the Word, where you are having great fellowship with God, where you are talking to Him, and He is talking to you. You will sense His presence and begin to see changes in your life that will amaze you. Don't spend your time chasing blessings. Chase God, and the blessings will chase you.

The blessings of God are released to us according to our level of maturity in Him. Third John 1:2 KJV says, “Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.”

Maturity is demonstrated through our daily lifestyle, through the way we treat our family and friends. True spirituality is not only evident on Sunday mornings at church, but throughout the week as we do what God tells us to do whether we feel like it or not. Our maturity will be tested by people capable of bringing out the worst that is still in us.

When you spend time with God, everybody else knows it. You become calmer, you're easier to get along with, and you don't lose control of your emotions as quickly. Your patience increases, and your heart soon understands what God likes and what offends Him. As with any friend, the more time you spend with God, the more like Him you become.

Spending time with God causes you to be sensitive to the love He wants to demonstrate to you and to others through you. Your conscience alerts you to His presence when you're talking to someone in a wrong way. Your heart grieves when He grieves, and you quickly pray, “Oh God, I'm sorry. Please forgive me.” Desire fills your heart to apologize to the person you have offended. You soon discover that saying, “I'm sorry; I didn't mean to hurt your feelings,” isn't so difficult after all.

The desires of your heart and the way you treat others reveal more about you and your relationship with God than any other outward sign. Moses enjoyed a deep level of intimacy with God, and he desired for God to bless His people. When God told Moses that he had favor in God's eyes (see Exodus 33:12), Moses understood that meant he could ask for whatever his heart desired. (What would you have asked for if you had been in Moses' place?)

Moses said to God, “If I have found favor in Your sight, show me now Your way, that I may know You [progressively become more deeply and intimately acquainted with You, perceiving and recognizing and understanding more strongly and clearly] and that I may find favor in Your sight. And [Lord, do] consider that this nation is Your people” (Exodus 33:13). Moses had already seen God perform history's most magnificent miracles, yet he wanted to learn more of God's ways so that he could continue to find favor with the Lord. And he remembered to ask God to bless the people He had put in his care.

Staying at the same level of intimacy with God can't satisfy us. Three obvious distractions that keep us from spending time with God are our desire for entertainment, our work, and the demands of other people. All of these are unavoidable-and even necessary-so we have to make a quality decision to want more of God than anything else and to learn balance in taking time to seek Him.

It is awful to want to be somewhere, but not be able to find a way to get there. I want to help you get to where you want to be. People read books and go to seminars to learn how to live successful lives, get promotions, and enjoy better relationships. God has answers to every need; all we have to do is cooperate with Him. God is not going to tell you to do something that is beyond your ability-all He wants is your willingness, and then He will do the work.

Copyright © 2003 by Joyce Meyer

About the Author

JOYCE MEYER has been teaching the Word of God since 1976 and in full-time ministry since 1980. She is the bestselling author of more than fifty inspirational books, including How to Hear from God, Knowing God Intimately, and Battlefield of the Mind. She has also released thousands of teaching cassettes and a complete video library. Joyce's Enjoying Everyday Life radio and television programs are broadcast around the world, and she travels extensively conducting conferences.