Earlier this year I read the book of Job in the Old Testament, and reflecting on that season of my life, I can see a leap in both my spiritual growth and in my walk with God. One of my favorite things to do is to read some of my journal entries from my Quiet Times from Job because I continually prayed for two things: wisdom, and an intimate friendship with God like Job had.
     If you have never read the book of Job before, it is about a man named Job who was faithful to God in every way and had been blessed by God in every way (land, animals, children, etc.). Satan saw the faithfulness of Job and told God that if He took everything away from Job, Job would surely turn away from Him and never look back. God granted Satan the power to take away Job's earthly possessions because he trusted the faithfulness of Job and Job finds himself with nothing physical left to his name. Throughout the rest of the book, Job's friends try and convince him that God is angry at him or he must have sinned pretty badly for God to "punish" Job to that extreme. However, Job had a joy that was not determined by his situation and a satisfaction that was not placed in the earthly possessions that God had given Him and taken away. Job knew he was being tested and kept his eyes on the Lord, which God rewarded at the end of the Book.
     I want a joy like that. A joy that can look at a horrible predicament or spiritual valley and continue to praise God because He gives and has the authority to take away. A joy that other people see when they look at you and want whatever it is that you have. A joy that makes you go against what the world says should make you happy and be obedient to what God tells you is true. I think that is where having an "intimate friendship" (Job 29:4) with God comes into play. When I think of this, I can relate it to my relationship with Cody. I love spending time with Cody, whether that be talking to him about my day, listening to him talk about his, or going on dates on the weekends. I couldn't imagine talking to him for just 30 minutes a day and then forgetting about him until the next morning, and that is what we as Christians tend to do with Jesus. I want more than a 30 minute block of time each day with Jesus, I want an eternity with Jesus because He is the only one who can satisfy me completely. I love Cody, but he can't satisfy me in the life-altering way that the One who has created me and knows my heart fully can, and thats a wonderful thing!
     I pray that as you go throughout your week that you would join me in scratching "spending time with Christ" off of our to-do list and begin doing everything else as a result of your joy and satisfaction in Him! I also pray that we as Christians would not place our worth or satisfaction in the physical things of this world because they will always leave you wanting more. "Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things." -Colossians 3:2. Surrender to Him your all and watch as your faith, joy, and satisfaction grow exponentially!