Going One On One With God

GOING ONE ON ONE WITH GOD

By Pastor Jim May

How many of you love being in a crowd? I suppose the answer to that question would depend upon what we are calling a “crowd”. For some folks, a crowd consists of anything more than 2 people. For others, the more people there are, the happier they are. Some folks just love crowds. I suppose that this has been one of the limiting factors in my own personality. I’ve never felt comfortable in a crowd, unless I could find a few people to absorb the time and form a smaller group inside the crowd, then the crowds don’t bother me as much.

As a minister of the gospel, I’ve always desired to be different so that I could love a crowd, but the only time that is really true is when I’m in the church. The church is my comfort zone. I suppose that’s because the church to me is home, it’s my Father’s House.

I’ve never been comfortable around a lot of strangers and, as long as I walk this earth, I am a stranger to this world. I may know a lot of people and I can talk to just about anyone, anywhere and on any subject with some intelligence, but I really don’t have much in common with most people unless they are committed Christians. It doesn’t take long until the small talk is finished and I have to get on to more serious conversation. That’s when most people will walk away because they don’t want to get serious.

Being able to interact with people and enjoy being around people is a plus when it comes to ministry and witnessing the gospel message to them. It’s so very important that we love people and love to be around them, to let them know that we care.

But there are times when we need to be alone with God!

It’s in those times when we get along with God – One-on-one with our Heavenly Father – that we really begin to know who God is.

Worshipping together as a Body of Christ is wonderful and uplifting to all of us, but when we worship God, One-on-One, we can really worship, as we should. Praying together in a prayer meeting, or during the regular worship services, or around the altar is great, but my greatest times of prayer have always been when I was One-on-One with God; just He and I in a secret place.

Matthew 6:6, "But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly."

One of the reasons that One-on-One prayer is so effective is that we get just down, get real, and be ourselves with God. We don’t have to put on some kind of religious face or talk in religious terminology.

In the church, we are expected to pray in certain ways and to say certain things. And we surely can’t be completely honest with God in front of the church all the time when we are praying about some problem or trouble in our lives. Some of the prayers we need to pray are better said just between the Lord and us. We don’t want to give ammunition to some dear saint of God who loves to walk around with a loaded mouth. None of us are perfect, but some think that they are more perfect than others and it’s their duty to let the imperfections of other people be known to the whole church.

I feel that God would want us to stop and pray for a moment so join with me if you will in the following prayer. I don’t normally write these down, but this time I can sense the Holy Spirit saying, “write it down”.

Lord, help me to preach this message and not get into meddling. The Holy Ghost has something to say to us so don’t let my thoughts get in the way. Let the words that I say and the things that I write be totally inspired by the Holy Ghost. Let this message come from the heart of God and not the mind of man. Let these words be the words of God and not the words of mortal and corrupted flesh. Let the anointed Word of Almighty God come alive in us this night, and let it draw us back to place where we need to be in God. Let this message burn away the chaff of sin within us. Let it strengthen the weak, lift up the down trodden, encourage the disheartened, and build faith in the place of doubt. Let this message go forth as YOU would have it to go forth and let it accomplish that which you have intended for it to accomplish this night in the hearts of your people, those present in this service as well as those who may read in or hear over the Internet. AMEN