Intimacy With God Must Mean Something More Than Following the Rules of Religion
What comes to mind when you hear the word intimacy? A mental picture I see is two people huddled close together having a personal conversation. Or even deeper, the word intimacy paints a picture of sexual interaction between two lovers. Intimacy is a word that conjures up feelings of closeness, nurture, love, and kindness. Intimacy is a scary word because it takes two people to find intimacy. To be involved in intimacy means we must be engaged. There cannot be one person intimate in a conversation as that defies the meaning of the word itself. In the same way you cannot have one person intimate in sexual interaction and not the other…that is not intimacy. Intimacy implies openness. It is an exchange. There is a giving over that occurs in intimacy. And the giving over is at the deepest levels we can possibly reach. That is what the Lord desires from us. There are several beautiful pictures of intimacy with our Lord but one that shows us what intimacy is not. The story is the one of a man and woman brought together into relationship through marriage but after 20 years there is no intimacy. Is this couple still talking? Absolutely. Is this couple still having sex? Maybe. But there is no closeness; no exchange of life; no love that continues to deepen. This shows a picture of relationship and the acts of relationship without the depth of intimacy; without the openness of all God has made us to be. Christian marriages are not failing at the same rate as non-believers because they don’t have enough teaching about the marriage relationship. Our marriages are failing because while we have been looking for rules to govern our relationships we’ve missed the deeper spiritual principle of intimacy that God declares from Genesis to Revelation; the heart condition that breeds intimacy with our spouse; our lover; our God-gift. The same is true of our spiritual life. If we want to live the abundant life then let us stay away from the rules of relationship that allow for a cordial, controlled, and safe interaction with God and plunge head first (and heart) into intimacy with God. I know that I have a relationship with God; but not necessarily intimacy. I want to move towards intimacy with God and forget about all the other stuff that religion tells me is important. I want to know Him better than I know all the fleshly things around me. This one thing I want—to be in His presence.
Other Betting Exchange Articles
The Dubious Immorality of Online Gambling The recent back-door legislation which outlawed online gambling in the USA has been championed as a moral cause. This is in direct opposition to a Gallup Poll taken earlier this year which found that 60 percent of adults believe gambling is morally acceptable.Chief sponsor Jim Leach (R-Iowa) has called it one of the most important pieces ...The Perfect Ski Vacation A lot of planning has gone into preparations for the perfect ski trip. You've targeted an adventure at Ski Apache in Southern New Mexico. Good choice! Ski Apache is one of those well kept ski secrets. 55 breathtaking trails and the largest lift capacity in New Mexico make for maximum skiing and a minimum of waiting.Nearby Ruidoso, New Mex ...Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (Movie Review) Jim Carrey's breakout role, Ace Ventura is one of the funniest films of the 1990s. Written by the former In Living Color writer himself, the film centers around an oddball kook of a lead character who investigates missing pets. If you enjoy Jim Carrey's brand of humor (and it's not for everyone), then you'll love Ace Ventura. A bit more mainstre ...Barter: It's Not Just for Doctors Anymore Time was, in the country, the local “doc” was as likely to get paid with a couple of chickens as a couple of dollars. Doctors these days won’t stand for that, of course, but while some people have moved completely away from barter and stayed there, others have embraced it wholeheartedly.Today I worked on a barter deal with a web designer ...Organize Your Way to Affiliate Marketing Profits Six months in affiliate marketing is a really a very short time. If this is true, how in the world in six months time did you find yourself dealing with so many different tasks on a daily basis? Maybe you are involved with many different affiliate programs? You may be managing several websites or sub-domains. Perhaps, you have multiple affiliate ...Viking Trekkies History weaves its influence into pop culture via many avenues ... One of the strangest is the Viking influence on Star Trek, especially The Next Generation.Ever since that series found the airwaves, I've often wondered if one or more of its writers were descended from peoples who endured raids from the North and then used this show to ex ...White Label Gaming – The Rich Man's Choice Let's face it. We all want to make that cold hard cash in bundles. Perhaps you started an Internet business—or will start one soon—to just get by or get rich. Unless you have your own product, it's to the affiliate program street for you. Is there a better alternative for the webmasters looking to get a taste of the action? Sure, those nice sign ...Films - Black Rain Nick, played by Michael Douglas, is a New York City cop riding his motorcycle on his way to work. He meets his police partner Charlie, played by Andy Garcia, at the station. They both been given the task by their superior to escort a Japanese assassin named Sato, played by Yusaku Matsuda, back to Osaka, Japan.The flight is smooth and pe ...BBC and Its Importance Today The case for statutory regulation of press standards is built on the premise that properly devised measures designed to promote press freedom and high standards in the press do not constitute pre-publication censorship. Allowing the public to have redressed after publication allows the publisher to decide in advance whether the material should b ...A Regular NBA Season After a break in the summer, basketball-training camps begin in October. During this time, coaches decide which players to add to the twelve person active roster. Following training camp there is a series of preseason exhibition games. The regular season for the NBA starts in the first week of November.Over the course of a regular season, ...The Tattoo That Pays You It all started with Forehead Goldie, a Utah woman named Karolyne Smith who agreed to have GoldenPalace.com permanently tattooed on her forehead for $10,000 in order to pay for her child to go to school. Since then, GoldenPalace.com, the online casino and poker room more famous for its publicity stunts than its games, has capitalized on what may ...Trading Software – Profit Machines or Losers? Thousands of people every day trade on the worlds stock markets, with the majority now using software to aid them, but does it help them make more money?This software is known as a ‘bot’, short for robot, but it is only ever as good as the user. If the user does not know how to trade successfully on his own in the first place then he is u ...Guide to Betting Horse Racing Anyone who says horse racing isn't exciting hasn't been to a good racetrack yet. Once you understand the terms and processes in racing horses, betting becomes an intoxicating event. While horse racing has been called the sports of kings, it doesn't take a pile of gold to play and win good money at it. Today, I am going to run over the basic term ...Online Sports Betting Betting on the results of sporting events has always been a popular hobby. Now with the Internetand online betting facilities, placing a bet has become easier than ever before.A wager can be placed in the usual manner like with a bookmaker or through the bet exchange, a new innovation on the Internet. Through this, individuals can place b ...Asian Gambling Basics Gambling became popular in China in the last phase of the imperial dynasty i.e. from 1644 to 1912. Canton, Macao, Shanghai and Hong Kong became the famous for their liquor and gambling. These areas inhabited foreigners, usually Americans, who were known to be rough. Moreover, majority of these inhabitants were males. Chinese natives indulged in ...Now is the Time for Online DVD Rental Is it a good time to get into online DVD rental? I wonder because there are so many out there. Companies seem to come out every day with a new online DVD rental program. However, the way I look at it, this is a great time to get in the game as a consumer. The competition to be the cheapest and most efficient online DVD company is fierce right no ...Hijinx with the Super Nanny Every time I think I have found the worst show on television, another comes up and hits me in the neck, in the same way a dart hits the outside of a dartboard… except without a dart. In this case, I am referring to my plan to write about Nickelodeon's "Hijinx," the show that lets parents play practical jokes on their kids, kind of like the old ...The Usual Suspects (DVD) Review Winner of two Academy Awards including Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Kevin Spacey), The Usual Suspects is not only one of the most intriguing films of the 1990s, but has built quite a cult following as well. With a parade of top-grade actors rounding out the cast, the film deploys a high level of suspense and attempts to keep its audience in ...An Iranian Foreign Film Fails To Promote Real Understanding Children of Heaven is an Iranian movie with subtitles about a boy who accidentally loses his sister’s worn out shoes after being sent to get them repaired, and must share his own worn out sneakers with her in a sort of relay while each attends school at different times during the day.He bargains with his sister not to tell his fathe ...A Guide to Common Soccer Betting Terms Accumulator. Sometimes called a parlay. A bet where the winnings from one bet are placed on the next bet. The winnings accumulate, giving a large theoretical return. In reality, not very profitable as it only takes one to lose and your whole bet loses.Arbitrage. A combination of bets which guarantees a theoretical risk free ...The Future of Online Gambling - Where Will it all End Up? The popularity of online gambling has sky rocketed over the past 5 years. The meteoric rise in online casinos and poker rooms has made many people very wealthy. The owners of cassava enterprises (888) Avi and Aaron Shaked recently floated their company on the London Stock exchange, their company is now valued in excess of £700 million. Ruth Para ...There's More to Poker than Texas Holdem! Texas holdem is taking over the world, but believe it or not there are many other poker games you can play. Most of them fall into one of three categories:- Stud Games (for example 7 card stud)- Draw Games (for example 5 card draw)- Shared Hand Games (for example Texas Holdem)There are also some other obscure games th ...Poker Versions - 5 Card Draw PLAYERS: 3 to 6 is ideal.CARDS: Five cards, all down. BETTING: Two rounds plus ante; betting tends to be relatively low.WHAT TO WATCH FOR: Keep a close eye on how many cards each player draws from the deck.WHAT WINS: Usually a high pair or better. Five-card draw, or draw poker, is one of the oldest poker games, and it is ...New Legislation Seeks to Halt Internet Wagering in the U.S. President Bush has signed into law new legislation seeking to halt online gambling by making it illegal to transfer funds for the purposes of internet gaming. The Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act gives teeth to the administration’s censure of online gaming sites in the absence of an outright ban.What the Act Does ...Baseball Trade Review: Carlos Beltran Deal The Carlos Beltran sweepstakes are over and the Houston Astros are the winners. After spending the offseason recruiting Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte, the Astros have found themselves mired back in the pack of a tough NL Central division race.Beltran brings a flashy glove to center field and some excitement and run production to the top ...Be a Sharp Gambler The gambling world is full of people who just throw down hard earned money without thinking about what they are doing. Are you one of those people who will just go with the flow? If so, you are most likely a losing gambler or you are not winning as much money as you could be. There are three main factors that make up every successful gambler ...Online and Offshore: Online Casinos Skirt American Laws Online casinos are popular and becoming more so. It is estimated that 160 million people will be playing in online casinos by the year, 2020. According to Will Gatten of www.sportscrew.com, by 2008, online poker revenues – that’s just poker, not the other games like blackjack, craps, and roulette - will exceed $275 billion dollars, with not a ...This IS Golf - Women's Golf The Korean women golfer Jeong Jang (JJ) chose the British Women’s Open Golf championship at Royal Birkdale, Southport, to win her first title. What’s more she led from start to finish to win by four clear shots. Birkdale is a typical British seaside links, undulating greens protected by deep bunker traps.Her final score of 16 under par wa ...The Dish: Not Here To Inject The Past That sound you hear coming from Milwaukee is Bud Selig patting himself on the back.Major League Baseball just passed the "toughest steroid policy in professional sports." Yippee. Pardon me while I turn handsprings. "It was an integrity issue," Selig said Thursday. "The integrity of the sport, the integrity of everybody involved, including ...Payment Methods Explained for Online Casinos Depositing funds into your online casino account is one of the most important aspects of playing at an online casino. With so many different options out there, how do you know which one is best? And which method is most suitable for you? This article will review each method in turn so that next time you deposit at an online casino you will be ch ...Internet Gambling Bill In the House of Representatives, there is a bill (H.R. 4777) that was introduced by Representative Bob Goodlatte, of Virginia. The bill, entitled “Internet Gambling Prohibition Act”, was introduced to the House of Representatives on February 16, 2006 and was sent to the Committee on the Judiciary on the same day. The bill is one that, if pas ...Texas Holdem Tournament Strategy - Poker Tournament Betting Basics Welcome to the third in my Texas Holdem Strategy Series, focusing on no limit Texas Holdem poker tournament play and associated strategies. In this article, we’ll build upon the poker tournament strategy fundamentals from last time, with some important poker betting strategy basics.Winning at Texas Holdem poker doesn't have to be a gambl ...A General Look at Alchemy Part 2 Physical AlchemyTransmutation of one substance into another such as base metals into gold, water into wine, etc., is the physical aspect of alchemy. It is often referred to as the "Greater Circulation." Much charlatanry and quackery became involved with this aspect and many people were cheated by rascals who claimed that they had in their ...Online Poker Betting: How Safe Is Your Money? Many people can become concerned when it comes to online gaming. This is especially true when money is involved over the internet. So when you combine these two elements, online gaming and money, people can become a bit nervous. Online poker betting is just such an arena where money, the challenge of a game and the internet meet.However, ...Discover Who You Are And Why You Are Here You are a Creative Worker:God carries on creative work through human beings. Human beings serve as instrument of transformation of thoughts and ideas from the spiritual state to the physical state. Our mind which is an aspect of the brain mechanism is a creative device which enables us to relate to spiritual as well as physical existence. ...
|
