Admire or Adore?

For as long as I can remember, church has always been a part of my life. Having parents that were pastors, I was born into it! I did not have a radical, life-changing moment that caused me to make a total turnaround in my life. And yet, everything changed in middle school/junior high. I had an experience with death that I could not escape. No, I did not have a terminal illness, nor did I seek to take my own life. However, my heart and mind were plagued with the possibility of it. It was absolutely frightening and crippling, causing physical effects in my body.

I asked for prayer; I sought counseling; I went to everybody that I thought could help... except for Jesus. Oh, I prayed... but there was something in me that stayed at a distance. I discovered something about my “walk” with Jesus. I found that I admired Him, but did I adore him? For me, admiration is a distance reverence... it is not personal. For the few in my life that I adored, they were quite close... I really knew them or it wouldn’t have been adoration.

Luke 9:23 gives us great insight on life with Jesus Christ in the captain’s seat. He tells us that we must take up our cross daily. This is one of my favorite verses. I have always thought of it with regard to forgiveness and the restoration that He gave through the Cross/Resurrection. And yet, the Cross and Resurrection represent something just as important... the restoration of relationship! What would it mean for you and me if we made it a priority not simply to go to Him daily for repentance, but to truly know and understand Him through relationship? I have a feeling that we wouldn’t simply admire Him for His goodness to us... we would adore Him a lot more...