Mark 3:13-21
Have you ever had a child tap you on the shoulder and say, “I want to tell you a secret”? What do you do? You lean in. You listen intently because that little one, at that moment, is the most important person in the world. You are treasuring what that child has to say by being with them.
Maybe it’s visiting an elderly person. They have lived a full life and are content that they will soon be with Jesus. Yet in their last moments on earth, they long to impart further wisdom. So, you lean in and listen intently. You are uniting with that person, being with them.
Listening intently can also happen in nature. A walk on the beach, meandering through a meadow, hiking a mountain pass… While there, you lean into the experience, listening intently for God to reveal Himself through His creation. You are experiencing God in His creation by being with Him.
“Being with” requires leaning in. It means tuning out the noise around us and becoming fully focused on who we are with. That little child, elderly saint, or sacred piece of nature is not asking you to do something – they just want you to be with them—to lean in.
Mark 3:14 says, “He appointed twelve that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach.” Being with Jesus does not eliminate God’s command for us to go out and proclaim His truth, but being with Jesus is a precursor to doing for Jesus.
Author Skye Jethani says, “Life with God entails treasuring, uniting, and experiencing… the call to dwell or abide is an ongoing state of being, not an invitation to chat once in a while.” Being with God means leaning in; being close enough to hear his voice, receiving whatever he has for you, whenever he has it, and through whatever method he determines to deliver it.
Revelation 21:3 says, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people and God himself will be with them as their God.” Jesus longs to be with you—do you long to be with Him? Jethani goes on to say, “It is only when we grasp God’s unyielding desire to be with us that we begin to see the ultimate purpose of the cross.” This was exactly Jesus’ intention as He spent time with His disciples. Had Jesus not spent time with them, they would have had no basis for doing anything for Him.
Treasuring who God is and what He has done for us allows us to be united with Him, through experiencing Him—not only for eternity, but also and absolutely for today. Your God is inviting you into a personal and intimate relationship with Him. Will you decide to lean in?
Lynette Fuson
Care & Counseling Director