Let's get personal

Over the weekend I went to Kingsfest at Kings Dominion with some of our youth. I hadn't been in almost 10 years and I had a blast. I love roller coasters. I'm a thrill junkie. I'm that friend that has ridden 4 coasters before you've decided to ride one. But anyway. There were so many moments while I was there that I saw God in an awesome way.

Let's back up so this all makes sense. 10 years ago when I was at Kingsfest I was there with a friend and his 'youth.' He needed a female to supervise the girl that went so I was it. I got really close with this girl and formed a friendship over the 3 days. We stayed close. I would visit her and talk with her. One morning as she was on her way to school, she had an accident and ended up passing away. This wasn't very long after we went to Kingsfest, or so I don't remember. At her brothers wedding there were butterflies that flew around during the ceremony and they said that Angela was there.

During my day at the theme park this time I thought about the time I spent with Angela. How great it was. How much she impacted my life. While we were waiting for another band to come on stage a butterfly landed on my shoe and stayed there for the longest time. Then flew to my shoulder. I smiled and said thank you to God for that.

To many people, it was just a butterfly that was creeping around on my shoe (yes I wore shoes). But to me it was different and meant something. That's what is so great about God. He is personal. (Props to my friend Alice for dropping this wisdom on me last night.) If we believe that the Bible is from God we can see in Psalm 139:13 that God created each of us in our mothers womb. (Shout out to my CA for making this a staple in my life.) He created each of us differently. Not the same. Another example.

He speaks to me differently than he speaks to my husband. And he speaks to my best friend the same way as he does me. It's not because my best friend and I are exactly the same, we have differences. BUT he chooses to speak to us the same way so we can talk about it. We can have a different relationship because God speaks to us the same. (insert sarcastic giggle here Lacey)

God reveals himself differently to each person. I feel that is what makes our personal relationship so important. Because God created YOU for something completely different than me. He uses YOU differently than me. AND IT'S BEAUTIFUL! YOU can reach people that I cannot. And I can reach people that you can't. Even though God created us to be different and he has a relationship that is special with us, we also need to have that relationship with him.

We have to be willing to make that relationship flourish and grow. Just like someone we 'like like' when we are teenagers. We have to spend time with him. Do things with him! (YES! DO THINGS. You'd be surprised the things He will enjoy doing with you!) Go for a ride and listen to worship music. Go for a hike with him and thank him for the beautiful things that he created. Run on a track and leave your frustrations there. A friend of mine in college used to go to the beach and play tag with him with the waves.

We were created for a relationship with him. And he WANTS that relationship with us. It's our choice to choose to engage. I want to challenge you today to find a new way to interact with him. Do something different. Worship him through painting, or drawing. Close your eyes and just worship him. Spend a little more time in his word. Go outside your 'norm' and challenge yourself to grow in your PERSONAL relationship with God!