A Deliberate Touch

I have a friend who says to me “I’m observant when I’m observing”. The first time she said that to me I thought she had lost her mind and was talking gibberish! But there is lots of truth in that statement. One time I was considering replacing my winter jacket and I looked up the Canada Goose brand as people say it’s one of the best out there. Shortly after I noticed so many people wearing the jacket and I wondered if maybe the company just had a massive sale and everyone got one. But people likely always had these jackets on – but because I wasn’t looking out for them, I never noticed them. Similarly, have you ever observed people waiting on a bus or train? Almost everyone looks in the direction from whence the bus will come from. Although I do it myself, I have always found it silly. Why do we look out as if by looking out we will make the bus get there faster? But we look out anyway because we are waiting in expectation and we want to ensure we are ready to board as soon as the bus comes; we don’t want to miss it. But to someone who is not waiting for a bus, tens of buses may pass by them but they won’t even notice.

Have you been to church and you notice an individual having a really powerful encounter with God? Or have you visited different churches and sensed that the move of the Holy Spirit is more powerfully evident in one church and not the other? I have noticed that – and I asked God why that is. I actually wasn’t even really expecting a response – it was more of thinking out loud… but I was pleasantly surprised when I sensed this response. I believe that one of the main contributing factors is EXPECTATION. Some people (individuals or congregations) attend church with an expectant heart that God will show up and meet with them in a meaningful way. And so they seek Him, they look out for Him, their hearts are open to Him, their eyes are focused on Him, they go to the altar to wait on Him – and the moment they sense His presence they latch on to Him and ask for more of His presence. I imagine that on their way to church, these individuals ready their hearts to meet with God – which means they pray, they repent and make their hearts right with God, and they invite Him to meet with them. Why then wouldn’t God respond to such preparedness and expectation? Why wouldn’t the Holy Spirit show up in a mighty way and satiate those who hunger and thirst after Him? In John 7:37, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. In Matthew 5:6, He said Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

God is not a respecter of persons. He has no favourites. He is available to ALL of us in EQUAL measure. But the question is, how badly do we want Him? I always say that when it comes to enjoying a deep relationship/intimacy with God, WE are on the driver’s seat; WE control the faucet (which the dictionary describes as a device by which a flow of liquid from a pipe can be controlled). There is always water in the pipes – but we choose how much water we get by how much we open the faucet – it can be none, it can be a trickle, or it can be a gush. How much of our lives are we opening up to God? Does He have carte blanche (unrestricted access), or have we erected barriers telling Him you can’t touch this or that area of my life?

So in matters of relationship with God, or for situations we want His intervention on, can I say this to us? Let us not be passive. Let us BE EXPECTANT. Let us press in. Let us pursue Him relentlessly. Let us look out for Him with grateful and expectant hearts. Like Jacob, let us wrestle with God all night long until He blesses us. Let us not be faint-hearted or be easily discouraged. Let us have stubborn faith. As Jesus told us in Luke 11:9, “And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you.” And James 1:6 reminds us that when we ask, we must believe and not doubt.

Let us remember the story of the woman with the issue of blood. Throngs upon throngs of people crowded Jesus and touched Him – yet only her touch was purposeful and expectant. And although she didn’t even touch His body but merely the hem of His robe, it is only to her that His power flowed. It is her touch that He singled out. It is her who captured His attention. Jesus asked “who touched me?” Peter responded “Master, this whole crowd is pressing up against you.” But Jesus said “Someone deliberately touched me, for I felt healing power go out from me.” (Luke 8:43-48 – NLT)

What are you trusting God for? What is your “12-year-issue-of-blood” equivalent? Don’t be passive. Be active. Be expectant. Be deliberate in your touch. Be persistent in your pursuit of relationship and intimacy with God.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, please help and teach me to press in and to be deliberate and active in my relationship with You. In Jesus name I pray, amen.

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