INTIMACY WITH GOD JOURNAL
OCTOBER 2009
In This Issue:
Opening – The Hush of Autumn
Comforting Silence - Do you know how to ‘be still and know God’?
Words of Love - A prayer
A Word of the Lord - Majestic splendor
Words Aptly Spoken- Learn about your divine destiny through Linda’s newest book. It’s the story of IWG’s prophetic prayer journey across Iowa. It’s a powerful tool for other states as well.
Mike & Linda Schreurs
The Hush of Autumn
As I’ve sat on our screened in porch listening to the sounds of summer subside, I sense a bit of sadness knowing the silence of things becoming dormant is soon to be upon us. Autumn comes, winter nears. Transition takes place for the umpteenth time on our fragile planet.
I desperately want to capture the waning daylight hours that are still filled with some semblance of warmth. But ahh… the beauty of the colorful bursts of glory on all the trees at this time of year! That’s a bonus that reduces my sadness into thankfulness
and appreciation for all the Lord has done, is doing and is about to do for me, for you, for all those who love, honor and obey Christ Jesus in every area of our lives.
Therein is the comfort and joy! To walk with Him through all the changing seasons of our lives, when we’re young, and when we’re old - seasons come and go. To be sure, heartaches and testings travel through our lives in various degrees in one form or another. But there are also joys beyond measure!
Children are born. Children grow up. They have children. They all live their own lives. And how have we weathered all the changing seasons of our lives? Are we the better or worse for it? Are we creating godly, lasting memories for the next generation? I pray it is so.
Solomon who has been noted in scripture as one of the wisest, richest men on earth, after having tried everything in life, much to his chagrin, finally concludes in Ecclesiastes 12:13-14, “The conclusion, when all has been heard, is, fear God and keep His commandments, because this applies to every person. For God will bring every act to judgment, everything which is hidden, whether it is good or evil.”
The circle of life continues. Let’s concentrate on the good, the godly, the holy. Let us fix our hearts upon our Most High God. May a comforting holy hush be upon our hearts in these months of Autumn splendor!
Linda Schreurs
COMFORTING SILENCE
I’ve always loved the amazing comfort in encountering times of silence before the Lord. I’m talking about real honest-to- goodness silence where I speak no words at all in His holy Presence, not even words of intercession, tongues, praise or worship. I speak nothing, nothing at all. My heart, my soul, my spirit within, gravitates to Him in spiritual ecstasy where human words are not needed. I listen in awe simply because of Who He is - the magnificent ‘I AM who I AM’ God Almighty. Wow!
Beloved friends, there is a place of holiness and astounding spectacles of God it literally takes your breath away and you can not speak if you wanted to! There’s nothing like the presence of the Lord. Moses states it plainly in Exodus 33:15, “If Thy presence does not go with us, do not lead us up from here.” Simply being in His Presence is glory in and of itself. His Presence is eternal and we begin to know those depths of glory when we’re born again in the Spirit.
A wow moment
Have you ever had your breath taken away in an instant of overwhelming joy… perhaps in seeing your newborn child for the first time, seeing a magnificent mountain view, or upon seeing the ocean for the first time? You gasp because it’s a ‘wow moment’ that has transpired in your life. You never forget those incredible times because they leave a lasting mark upon your soul.
I’m sure many of you, perhaps as a child, put your head outside a car window that was traveling down the road. It takes your breath away! So you close your mouth. You cannot speak, and it’s wild fun while it lasts!
Spiritually, I’ve often called this place in the Lord a ‘wordless realm’ of glory. You literally DRINK IN the Spirit. You inhale His Divine Breath in ways unexplainable by human language. No wonder Jesus says in John 4:23, “An hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshippers.” Your heart enters a place of worship where your spirit is joined to the Holy Spirit and worship is found in simple adoration of that intimate, spiritual communion of silent awe and wonder. We need to learn how to ‘be still and KNOW our God.’ (Ps. 46:10)
Indeed words are fine and necessary in expressing our love to the Father, Son and Holy Spirit all the days of our lives. Nevertheless, there is a realm of spectacular beauty beyond human expression. It can only be experienced through the Spirit.
Lost art
Listening seems to be a lost art these days. But many of the mystics of old dwelt in that holy place of awe and reverence before the Lord. Saintly souls such as Brother Lawrence, Madame Guyon, Katherine Kuhlman and many others, entered a place in the Spirit where they could not utter one sound from their lips or heart because it could cause the Holy Dove to take flight. It’s an extremely sacred place with splashes of silent splendor as a crashing sea wave upon the rocks! One begins to ascend the mountain of the Lord in ways not previously comprehended or experienced. It’s a whole new realm that we can climb, going higher and higher each time. Talk about ascending the mountain of the Lord! (Ps. 24)
Oh to soar with the Holy Dove!
In those glorious moments of silence, my heart begins to soar with that of the Holy Spirit as my flesh is set aside and I enter into a realm of the heavens simply gazing into the Face of God. I’d liken it to an old couple married many, many years, who sit in their lawn chairs on a beautiful, sandy beach. All they’re doing is just holding hands watching the grand spectacle of a fiery sunset together. They know each other so well words aren’t necessary. Often they can discern what the other is thinking without even asking. It’s so precious.
And that’s my experience with my beloved King of glory! I know many of you know what I’m talking about. But perhaps, some do not. I’m taking this opportunity to encourage you to learn to know the Lord in this way. It strengthens your soul like nothing else.
To know Him is to love Him
I’ll for sure date myself now, but there’s an old 60’s song that says, “To know, know, know him, is to love, love, love him – and I do, and I do and I do!” It’s true. To know and love the Lord in the intimacy of silence is to love Him deeper still. Oh, to simply lie upon His bosom listening to the sound of His every heartbeat as did John the Beloved! (John 13:23) It’s not surprising the Lord entrusted to him the final book of the Bible – Revelation.
There needs to be a desire within each one of us to find that place of deeper revelation.
Do you long for this? Do you long for deeper insights and understanding? Do you long to see the glory of the Lord that takes your breath away? Is there a cry in your heart to access a place of utterly profound motionlessness where you know the heartbeat of God? Do you seek His Breath in ways you’ve not known before? Have you tried entering into silence to experience those things?
I’ve often read John 14:9 with an unsettled heart because one of the Lord’s own apostles did not know the Lord in this manner. Jesus admonishes His chosen servant saying, “Have I been so long with you, and yet you have not come to know Me, Philip?”
Go deeper
Beloved friends, during these somewhat silent months of autumn and winter as much of nature lies dormant, begin to let the supernatural flow of God into your life in a new and incredible way. Begin to make it your insatiable pursuit to go deeper in your walk with your Beloved King of glory. Get to know Him more intimately in the splendor of His holiness through the wordless realm of the spirit. Therein is communication beyond the norms. We don’t always have to use our tongue. We don’t always have to be praying ‘in tongues’ to get there. We don’t always have to be filling up space and air. John 3:6 says, “That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.”
Intimacy with God comes by way of the Holy Spirit. We must understand that we don’t need to be talking all the time. Yes, constant communiqués with the Lord are wonderful, and yet, there are times of holy intimacy where words simply are not needed! In fact, the reverential, holy fear of God will cause you to hold your tongue as your heart is arrested in awe and wonder. It’s as if the Holy Spirit takes your breath away as when you behold something of great magnitude! Do you know this realm? If not, begin to seek for it, as it will take you into greater depths of the Lord’s heart beyond anything you thought possible.
Enoch
An aspect of our Christianity is to learn how to just ‘be’ with the Lord. Personally, I’ve often received profound insights and revelations in those quiet, tender moments.
One of my constant prayers is to become like Enoch who walked so close to the Lord, he was just taken! He was taken up into glory! He’s still in glory! He’s in the Presence of the Lord continually, just as he was when he walked the earth. Have you ever thought of the close relationship Enoch had with God? It’s one of the most profound noted in the Word of God. (Gen. 5:21-24)
Here’s a man who had no scriptures to read, no church to attend, no worship team to lead him into an encounter with God. All he basically had was his ‘walk with God.’ I think he must have learned a little bit from Adam and Eve, who used to listen to the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day. (Gen. 3:8)
I think this kind of walk with God went beyond mere words. It had to be much deeper than any human language. It had to be spirit to spirit.
Worship in spirit
Psalm 46:10 prompts us to ‘be still and know God.’ But do we ever become completely and totally still? Do we ever truly quiet our soul? Did you know there is a realm in the Spirit where your praise and worship can enter a wordless realm? It truly ascends! Of course it means we worship with our hearts, but that can also mean in the quietness of our heart.
Like the couple on the beach, sometimes words just might break the beauty of the moment! I’m sure you’ve felt that in a room with a group of people at various times in your life. Someone interrupts a special moment and you’re thinking, “Oh, if they had just kept quiet!” Well then – let’s try that in our devotional times as well. “Be silent, all flesh, before the Lord; for He is aroused from His holy habitation.” (Zech. 2:13; Habkk. 2:20)
Again, looking to Ecclesiastes, Solomon writes in chapter 3:7b, there is “a time to be silent.” Do we forget about that verse? I’m always amazed that I’ve not heard very many, if any, sermons on that topic. We must take into account how much our lives might change if we just melted our souls into those holy words. We need to know how to use silence in both the natural realm and in the spiritual realm. I’m not talking about the world’s concept of evil silence where one gives someone the ‘silent treatment’ in an attempt to cause hurt. That’s wicked silence and ought to be repented of.
Let us realize there is a holy silence that ushers into our very being a power, an authority, an anointing and a glory beyond anything we’ve previously known. It causes the soul to be set in the victory mode, knowing all is well in the Kingdom of God, Who ever reigns within our hearts. (1 Chron. 16:29; Ps. 29:2)
I want to encourage you to pursue your Divine Beloved in the splendor of silent adoration and in the beauty of His holiness. It will change your life!
WORDS OF LOVE
A prayer after silent adoration
By Linda Schreurs
Jesus, who is Holiness, the Perfection of holiness, is Perfection Itself and all that He is, is holiness eternal. His glory is ever present and always existed.
Jesus, what magnificent radiance You are! All that is beautiful is in You. A human mind cannot fully comprehend the Eternal, Self-Existent, One and Only, Lord of lords and King of kings. To commune with Thee is pure ecstasy! To know Thee in the tender depths of my heart is to know glory beyond measure. Oh, to know Thee is the greatest thing in my life!
I am but a little grain of sand in the scheme of all created things. And yet, loved by Thee faithfully and eternally as my heart bows low, and lower still.
There are no joys, no pleasures in human existence that compares with You. My soul longs for Thee more and more! You captivate my being like no other!
Ahhh…angels know of these things, for they sing of Your glory and majesty eternally, never tiring of seeing more and more revelations of Your splendor of holiness. Day and night they cry, ‘Holy! Holy! Holy!’
I am in awe, and my heart explodes with deeper passion and love for Thee, O Lord. To know this kind of joy can never end comforts my soul exceedingly. I love Thee, O, how I love Thee! Most holy is Thy Name, the Name above all Names!
Oh, how I love to sit in Your Presence and drink You in! It’s pure and holy spiritual ecstasy untold and incomprehensible!
A WORD OF THE LORD
Received by Linda Schreurs on 7-30-09
After a time of silence and awe before the Lord, I heard Him say: “There is a vast array of majestic splendor beyond description. It’s coming!”
Then He gave me the following thought of how there were hundreds of years of silence between the Old and New Testaments. He quickened to me that our silent times of seemingly no answer to prayers, or our silent years with no miracles, signs or wonders, are about to be over. He gave me the promise that the astounding is about to break loose and it will usher in the holy, reverential fear of the Lord. It will be likened to when Elijah called down fire from heaven and the people cried out, ‘The Lord, He is God! The Lord, He is God!’ (I Kings 18:36-39)
Saints, pray these things into fruition!