This sermon is on returning to the basic disciplines of faith, as described in Romans 12:1-2, including:
- Bring yourselves to God
- Stop being conformed by this world
- Be Transformed
Also discussed are Time Alone with God (TAG), and the possibility and pitfalls of exploring a ‘conversational’ relationship with God. More good details below.
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[powerpress]http://www.wholereason.com/wp-content/uploads/powerpress/Back_On_Track.mp3[/powerpress]
Time Alone with God (TAG)
We are transformed by exposing ourselves to God, through prayer, bible study, and and TAG:
- Time
- Alone
- with God
Note that two out of three of the above, though beneficial, are incomplete:
- Time Alone – without God, this is more like Buddhist awareness meditation. Helpful, but not relationship with the Divine occurs
- Time with God – time in (a good) Church is time with God, but not alone. It’s like the difference between going on a double date with your spouse, vs. going out to spend time alone with your spouse.
- Alone with God – time alone with someone is great, but if it’s only for short, infrequent amounts of time, no deep relationship can form. Regular, extended periods of time are what makes for depth of relationship.
Conversational Relationship with God?
In the last section, I discuss whether or not we should expect to have a ‘conversational relationship’ with God, including such topics as
- Being uncertain if we are hearing God properly
- Growing in our ability to hear and understand God through our bad thinking
- Times of silence, and the dark night of the soul
Scriptures on this subject include John 17:3, Hebrews 8:11, 1 John 2:27, 1 Corinthians 12:12, and Hebrews 5:14.