My husband bought a brand new truck. It was the fulfillment of every man’s fantasy, a ‘man’ vehicle; leather interior, shiny chrome trim, loaded inside and out! After every outing, he’d shut the doors tenderly, carefully brushing off leaves, bug butts and road dust. However, as time went on, the ‘shiny new’ wore off and it became nothing more than ‘the truck.’
When we first get saved, we are SO excited! We keep our Bibles by the bedside and read every night, pouring over the scriptures, soaking it up like a sponge. We can’t get enough, say enough or do enough for the Lord! As time goes on, the ‘shiny new’ wears off and going to church and reading our Bible are done with less enthusiasm until it’s all simply ‘God stuff’. We’re still ‘Christians,’ but our first love has quieted.
God created us for relationship with Him. He gave His son, Jesus, to die on the cross so we could have relationship with Him. Then, God sent His Holy Spirit so we could know Him intimately, know His thoughts. There are many false Gods that people worship, but our God is the only God who wants us to have a relationship!
Satan will do ANYthing to discourage us from having that most personal relationship. The tool satan seems to have the most success with is simply; busyness! We mark times and dates on our calendar for everything but God.
After God has gone to such incredible lengths and paid such a huge price to have intimacy with me, shouldn’t I at least be as faithful to plan time with Him as I would be to keep a dentist appointment or an appointment for a hair cut? Today, I determine that I will keep my relationship with my Lord, ‘shiny new’.
Revelation 2:3-5 (NIV) You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary. Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lamp stand from its place.