Talking.  Listening.  Sharing.  Hearing.  It’s all a part of communication.

When Mark and I were dating, two of the three years of our courtship were spent separated.  I lived in Washington.  He lived in California.  This was waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay before cell phones and email.  So what did we do?  We talked once a week on the phone and wrote each other letters practically every day.  It’s how we had to communicate when we were apart. We shared about what was going on in each of our worlds, asked about the other’s daily happenings.  It helped us to stay on the same page and feel connected despite the distance.  We had to be deliberate about if if we wanted the relationship to work.  Things couldn’t be left unsaid.  We talked about EVERYTHING from the weather to our deepest passions and fears.

If that communication hadn’t happened, the relationship would have withered.  Talking was essential.  It was our most powerful tool to staying close and becoming the best of friends.

A relationship with God is so similar.  Communication is vital.  What does that look like when we live in a completely different realm from Him?  He is in heaven.  We are, for now, here on earth.  How do we lessen that space?  Prayer.  Talking to God about everything.  The mundane and the amazing.  The good things and the bad and everything in between.  And not only talking, but listening.  Sometimes it’s in that still small voice deep in our hearts that we hear or sense when God is telling us something.  He also speaks to us through the bible – His love letter to us.  Just as Mark and I used letters to communicate our love for each other, God has done that for us by sharing the greatest love story every told – His “gave My life for you” love.

That type of communication strengthens our relationship with Him.  And like any healthy, vital, important friendship, it also changes us.  When we pour ourselves into a relationship it makes us less selfish.  It gives us new perspective.  It grows and stretches us.  It makes us better.  It prepares us to more effectively impact our world and the individuals in it.

Like I said earlier, when Mark and I communicated long distance it helped put us on the same page.  I heard his thoughts and he heard mine.  We processed together.  I began to understand his thinking and anticipate it in any given situation.  That is exactly what my goal is in talking with God.  I want to hear His thoughts.  I want to be so on the same page with Him that my thoughts become similar and in sync with His.  I want us to be a team.

That’s when my prayers start to become powerful and effective.  Not because of my words or the way I phrase them.  But because my heart and mind have been grown and matured to share the heart and mind of God.  I AM CHANGED regardless of how my prayers are answered because I begin to look at the outcome as Jesus would.  I start to see God’s hand at work all around me and want to join Him in it.  Instead of worrying, I look forward to the answer with anticipation.  Communication with Jesus has built my trust in the Friend that I know has my back and is “working all things for my good”.  The destination of an answer becomes less important than the journey of the Friendship that takes me there.

Eventually, the long distance dating relationship led to Mark’s and my marriage.  The distance was removed and we could enjoy a face to face relationship.  What we had been working toward and waiting for all of those years.

Amazingly, the same will be true with Jesus.  One day, the distance will be gone and we will see Him face to face.  The waiting will be over.  And the friendship that we have established and nurtured through communication will culminate in the most precious “first sight” meeting that has ever existed.  To truly hear His voice.  To see His face.  To feel His arms wrapped around us to welcome us home.

Today’s a good day to talk with Him.  He’s been waiting for your call…

Philippians 4:6-7 – Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Ephesians 6:18 – And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.

1 Thess. 5:17 – Pray continually;

Psalm 145:18-19 – The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. He fulfills the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them.

James 4:8 – Come near to God and he will come near to you.