Thursday, June 18
An “ldeal’ Relationship
HOW-TO
Key Text: Ps. 139:23, 24
If you had an ideal relation-
ship, would you not naturally
value and preserve it? For a rela-
tionship to be of value, both sides
would have to give their part.
Just as both sides have to spend
time and work together to develop
a healthy relationship, we have to
fulfill our part in developing a re-
lationship with God.
What is our part in this relation-
ship?
1. Making God our number-one
priority. Once we acknowledge
Jesus Christ as our Saviour and
desire His saving power, we must
place Him above any other rela-
tionship or material possession
(see Matt. 6:33). If our closest
friend or relative needed our help,
we would naturally be right there
to do all we could. Just as our
most valued relationships here on
earth take precedence over those
less valued, our relationship with
God, being an eternal relation-
ship, must be our number-one
priority.
2. Seeking God’s guidance.
David acknowledged God’s all-
knowing wisdom and ability and
yearned for His guidance. It was
through this great desire of
David’s to know God and what
His will was for his life that God
was able to use David and guide
him through day by day. “Teach
me to do your will, for you are my
God” (Ps. 143:10, NIV; see also
Ps. 143:6; 139:23, 24; Strophe 4 of
“Logos”).
3. Communing daily with God.
Just as a personal relationship
takes continual communication,
our communion with God needs to
be continuous. If God is truly our
number-one priority, we will look
to Him daily. Looking to Him
through study and prayer each
day will allow Him to direct our
lives. If we will only give Him the
opportunity, He will give us direc-
tion and insight (see Ps. 143:5-8).
4. Putting it into practice. The
most ideal relationship we could
ever expect to have here on earth
will fall far short of the relation-
ship that is possible between our
heavenly Father and us. By ac-
knowledging our need for Christ
and asking for His guidance each
day, we can begin to develop a rela-
tionship with Him. With Christ as
our example, we should surrender
to Him our plans daily for His guid-
ance and direction, just as Jesus
prayed, “Not my will, but thine be
done” (Luke 22:42). If we will only
look to God for everything we do,
say, and think, He will direct our
lives and bring us closer to Him.
Nothing can “separate us from the
love of God” (Rom. 8:39).
REACT
How will an ideal relationship
with God affect earthly relation-
ships?
by Jim Warman and Warner McClure
Jim Warman, a carpenter, and Warner McClure, a computer scientist,
are members of the Stoneham, Massachusetts, Seventh-day Adventist
Church.
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