The Difference Between Reading It and Experiencing It
There’s a reason Paul says we grasp the love of God together
On Sunday I was on a call with a group of people, most of whom had never met each other. About fifty minutes in, a woman typed something into the chat.
She wrote that what she wanted more than anything was to hear from God. But she was also afraid of it. She said maybe she needed to see more of how God is safe, and that her past doesn’t keep the Father from loving her totally.
Then she wrote this: “It’s hard to accept for me.”
She has read the Bible. She has sat in churches. She has heard that God loves her more times than she could count.
So we stopped. I asked everyone to take a breath, and I prayed a little, and then I asked a question:
Lord, what do you want her to know right now?
And then we listened.
A few seconds later she came off mute.
“I could feel His arms around me. And that He’s never hated me and never been disgusted with me. And He’s always delighted in me. That He looked at who I would be, not at my past. That I’m not garbage. That’s how I’ve felt, and that’s what my experiences taught me, but that’s never been from Him.”
And then she said the thing I haven’t stopped thinking about:
“I just experienced the love of God today. I didn’t just read it. I didn’t just hear it from a man of God in the pulpit. I experienced it. I want to hear it. I want to read it. But I needed to experience it.”
Paul says this is how it works
There’s a prayer in Ephesians that I think we read too quickly.
“I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge.” (Ephesians 3:17-19)
Two things are sitting right there.
First, it’s a love that surpasses knowledge. You can know it and still not know it. Which is exactly what my friend had been living for years.
And second, Paul doesn’t say you grasp it in your quiet time. He says you grasp it together with all the Lord’s holy people. The togetherness isn’t a nice extra. It’s how the grasping happens.
I think a lot of us have been quietly trying to do alone the one thing Scripture says is done together.
Jesus started the same way
When Jesus called the twelve, look at the order of it:
“He appointed twelve that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach.” (Mark 3:14)
Withness first. Sending second.
For about a year it was essentially, come follow me and watch. Then I’ll send you. Because it’s hard for us to do anything we’ve never seen done.
And we cannot give what we have not received.
An invitation
Here’s the thing, you were never meant to learn the voice of God by yourself.
And I want to be careful with that word learn, because most of us hear it and immediately start looking for the formula. The right method. The four steps. The posture, the time of day, the journal, the breathing, whatever it is that finally unlocks the thing.
I’ve done that. I’ve paid for that. And I can tell you that a method will get you to the door, but it won’t walk you through it.
It’s not that you’re missing a technique. It’s that this was designed to be experienced, and it was designed to be experienced with people.
You hear something. You bring it to people who love you. They confirm it, or they ask you a better question, or they just sit with you in it. And something settles in you that never could have settled alone.
“Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together.” (Hebrews 10:24-25)
That’s what we built The Receive Academy for. A daily call where we actually practice listening together. Coaching. Deep dives for the “I can’t hear God” questions. Courses. And a group of people who, when they say they’ll pray for you, stop and actually pray with you instead of sending a prayer-hands emoji.
We open it in cohorts, so you walk in alongside other people starting where you’re starting. And since we just got done with a Hearing God Challenge, the community is now open.
And guess what, if money is a reason you’re not coming in, reply to this email and tell me your situation. We’ll make space for you. This was never meant to be a room only some people can get into.
With love,
Tyson
p.s. - If you would like to experience a deeper connection with God, joining a community is key. If the people in your community aren’t as invested in listening and following God, then consider joining The Receive Academy. Doors are open for the next 7 days. We will have a welcome call on Monday August 3rd for anyone that is new. Hope to see you there!