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Why Greater Intimacy with God?
My desire in life is that all Christians really know God. Knowing God is a process. It is a spiritual progression of growth towards the divine. It is inexhaustible and never ending. In fact, while we live on the earth, it is never fully attainable. Yet, in seeking to know God more fully, we become more of who Christ created us to be, we have a greater understand our pilgrimage on the earth, we adopt more of the fruits of God’s spirit, and we begin to possess a sense of joy and fulfillment deep in our heart.

I’ve been a Christian for over 20 years now. My salvation began at the age of 20. I didn’t grow up in a Christian home and rarely attended church. I was a child of the world, fully indoctrinated in the ways of sin and polluted by the world’s concepts and principles. Giving my life to Jesus truly transformed me into a new person and sent me down a new path of discovery.

From the day of my salvation I was an avid church goer. I never missed a Sunday Service, attended mid-week bible study, participated in outreach meetings, taught Sunday School, was a member of the Young Women’s Group, and hosted small group meetings. I could go on and on, but to limit space, let’s just say I was deeply involved in every facet of the church at one time or another. I made many friends, enjoyed ongoing fellowship with the saints, and loved being a part of a large extended family.

Yet, about 12 years into my high profile church existence a longing began in my heart. In the deepest crevices of my soul, something was missing. I began to find fault with the church and blame my discontentment on my surroundings. It wasn't anything the pastor was or wasn’t doing or the church wasn’t offering. The messages become mundane and lost their excitement. So I went on a journey to find the perfect church or environment that would restore that missing piece. Several years past and I never found it. Going to church became routine for me. I went because I had always gone, except the enthusiasm wasn’t there any more. Each week to me was like sitting through Algebra class. I couldn’t wait until it was over and questioned why I was even there.

But it was also during this time that transformation and change began. As I spent less time in church, I spent more time with God. I spent more time in silence. I spent more time listening. It was also a time characterized by pain and aloneness, sometimes loneliness, a somewhat desert and barren experience. It was during this time that God’s voice became clearer to me. Then one day, many years ago, He said as I stood in a crowded room, “Rhonda, what are you doing here, this is not the life I chose for you.” And within 2 months of that calling my life changed forever.