No matter who you are, or what you’ve been through – you can have a personal relationship with God, the Father. Dr. Charles Stanley shares how it’s possible – and what God’s purpose is for those who receive His Son, Jesus. In Touch Ministries, 2012. For more messages from Charles Stanley, including this week’s broadcast, go to www.intouch.org/watch

back in 1977 when God was opening so

many doors for this television ministry

we didn’t really have a name that I

thought would work in my office at the

time was a living Bible called in touch

and I just knew it was the right name

for what God was calling us to do I

wanted to get as many people as possible

in touch with Jesus Christ into a saving

relationship with him so here we are 35

years later with the same goal the lead

people worldwide into a growing

relationship with Jesus

nothing is higher all richer or purer

than the intimacy he wants us to enjoy

with him and throughout my life I’ve met

many people who are emotionally bruised

battered and even crippled by their

interactions with others if we haven’t

experienced unconditional love in their

earthly relationships a healthy

connection to God can feel very

unattainable but it is possible no

matter who you are or what you’ve been

through you can know the intimacy of God

the Father

here’s today’s email which gives us a

small picture of what many people

struggle with it reads you refer to the

need for personal relationship with

Jesus I have no way to associate with

that in my experience love is the means

of getting something you want from

someone and in my case it’s me getting

the work done so how can I understand

the personal intimate relationship with

God well for most people they probably

feel the same way because to them

intimacy is some far removed idea and so

when you start talking about a closeness

a deep personal confidential

relationship with Jesus Christ it’s

almost foreign motivated by genuine love

for one another and oftentimes we don’t

find that but listen God’s goal for

every single believer is this intimate

relationship for example in proverbs

chapter 3 in verse 2

– he says he is intimate with the

upright now watch this

that doesn’t mean that God plays

favorites it means that he develops this

intimate relationship with those who are

willing to walk righteously before him

remember that God is holy and he’s

always the one who’s taking the

initiative to build this relationship

God’s purpose is twofold first of all he

wants to reveal himself to us and

secondly he wants to accomplish his work

through us intimacy with God involves

depth in our relationship not just

coming and going when you feel like

praying or reading the Bible when you

get in trouble it goes far beyond all

that and far beyond being saved it

involves reading the Word of God it

involves prayer it involves sharing your

faith it involves a sense of openness

and oneness with God absolutely honest

about everything and this doesn’t just

happen

it requires time you have to give God

time and this is what most people not

willing to do it requires listening to

him not doing all the talking it

requires sharing ourselves with him and

also with others and it requires an

openness what’s really going on inside

of me you can’t fool God

it requires an honesty about every

aspect of your life a genuine trust in

him and an understanding of what he’s up

to in your life and most of all an

acceptance of God as the way he is

accepting yourself the way you are and

then watching God through his wonderful

work it involves forgiveness and love

you see an intimate relationship with

Jesus Christ is far more than you just

said right here in your case you said

it’s just getting the work done what

we’re talking about is not getting work

done we’re talking about an intimate

personal quiet since they’re awesome

indescribable relationship with Almighty

God in which listen this happens in life

in which God is the center of that life

growing an intimacy is a person who is

seeking the will of

the purpose of God and the plans of God

you see intimacy is all about him it’s

not all about us but we’re thankful

you’ve joined us today for this

broadcast of in touch a personal

intimate relationship with God is his

highest priority for your life and it

determines the very impact of your life