Know Him Intimately

By Persistent

I am slowly learning that if I want to grow in my relationship with the Lord, that just as in any other relationship, I need to be intentional.  Being intentional means consciously choosing to act and one way to do that is setting goals for yourself.  Setting spiritual goals is not something I've ever done before and so I figured if I wanted to be successful I needed to start out slowly.  Really slowly--I started with two goals and quickly found that one would be better. 

Back in January I decided that my one major spiritual goal for this year was to read through the entire Bible...something I've attempted several other times and have never gotten past Leviticus (anyone else with me?)  This year I found a good reading schedule that I could check off each day (I'm a list maker--add things that I've already done to my list just so I can check it off--kind of list maker)  and it only requires me to read 3-4 chapters a day.  I have actually stuck with it and while there are days that I don't get to read, there are others that I am able to read a couple of days ahead.  So I'm proud to say that I am currently on schedule! 

Leviticus through Deuteronomy almost found me derailed, again.  But I stuck it out and am finding a lot of really interesting things in the Old Testament that I'm sure I've read before but within the context of the entire book/OT stand out a lot more.  With every chapter I check off I'm finding that I understand God less and less.  His ways definitely aren't my ways.  An example of what I'm talking about can be found in 2 Kings 10.  Jehu, who is the commander of the army and anointed to be king of Israel, goes on what seems to me to be a violent killing spree--having the 70 sons of Ahab beheaded and all other friends and family associated with Ahab killed also.  He has Ahab's wife Jezebel thrown out of the window and killed.  He tricks the prophets of Baal into gathering at their temple, has them surrounded and killed as well.  And then the God who tells the Hebrews in Exodus not to murder, commends Jehu for carrying out His judgment against Ahab and promises that Jehu's family will sit on the throne for four generations. 

Now don't get me wrong, in theory, I think I get it--all the evil had to be wiped out or like yeast it spreads and get bigger and bigger.  But what about this one...in 1 Kings 20:35 a prophet tells a bystander to strike and wound him.  After refusing, the prophet tells him that because he failed to obey God's command that a lion would attack and kill him and it does!  Seems a bit harsh to me, don't you think?  Makes me want to look over my shoulder; I've failed to obey God in a lot bigger ways than that. 

How do you, personally, reconcile instances in scripture like this where the fair and just God we think we know has even infants and children wiped out? 

I'm not sure I have yet but it has me hungering to read more and see what happens next.  I'm confident that I will succeed in completing my goal this year and can see myself reading through again next year, when I'd like to read it in chronological order.  I also would like to pick back up the second goal I dropped and memorize a couple of new scriptures each month.  I'm never going to better know and understand the character of God if I don't dig into and read His Word. 

Do you have any spiritual goals for this year?  This week?  I think ultimately my aspiration isn't just to know about Him, but to know Him intimately.