And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.

“But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ...” (Philippians 3:7-8)

Sometimes we make it so complicated. We look to all the things we think we have to do as Christians.
We have our shoulds... and the don'ts.  And all the stuff we make it about really doesn't matter in the light of knowing Christ.

My Bible commentary notes, “The Christian is strong or weak depending upon how closely he has cultivated the knowledge of God. Paul was anything but an advocate of the once-done, automatic school of Christianity. He devoted his whole life to the art of knowing Christ.” [1]

It IS all about knowing Christ.

Greg Boyd writes, “I've become absolutely convinced that remaining aware of God's presence is the single most important task in the life of every follower of Jesus.” [2]

Do we believe this? Do we make knowing Christ our highest priority? What gets in the way of this?

Sometimes our lists of sins just keep us distanced from God. We hold onto our sin and distance ourselves from God, feeling unworthy and unlovable. Where He may looking for us to receive His grace and let it go, accepting that as far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our sin.

What we think is important and significant, if is not leading us to know Christ better, may really be a distraction. Or we may be seeking our own significance in what God has for us and missing the point of it all.

Paul pressed in towards knowing Christ and made it the priority of his life, letting all else go. He proclaims in Philippians 3:12, “Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.”

And how do we press towards knowing Him better?

Sometimes I think that knowing Christ has to do with reading the Word and interceding. I could shut myself in my room for months on end reading His word and talking to Him and really come to know Him. I can become so jealous to have more time to do this.

I never seem to get this luxury for long enough. In looking to have more time to spend with Him, I wonder if sometimes looking to shut myself in my prayer room can be about escaping the pressures and difficulties.

Sometimes I think that knowing Christ is about becoming more Christlike. This is true but when I focus all my attention on my actions of being more Christlike, I can lose sight of Christ Himself and end up at times feeling self-righteous when I get it right and defeated when I fail.

Other times I have found knowing Him through acts of service, giving, or connecting with people on the margins. But when I think if I do more things for Him I will look more like Him and know Him better, I can overload myself with activities hoping that somehow I will know Him better through them and become too busy.

Other times I think it is about doing all the practices and spiritual disciplines... reading, practicing Centering Prayer and Lectio Divina. But I think that the minute we make it about our practices and methods, we lose something in it. Our focus needs to be on God Himself and not our practices, or feelings / emotions associated with these.

Another way I think we come to know Christ is through suffering. As we share in His sufferings we become more like Him and also learn to trust Him in deeper ways. Paul says in Philippians 1:29, “For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only believe in him, but also to suffer for him."

However, something I am not as good at is play and celebration. Yet Christ is very much in these activities as well. He does not want us to suffer all the time but gave us life to enjoy it... seeing nature all around us with it's beauty, fragrance and sounds are clear evidence of His extravagant love in invitation to come out to play.

In addition, stepping out in faith and trusting Him will lead us to know Christ better. When we are willing to step out, we find that He meets us there and we come to know Him and trust Him more in this place.

And speaking of stepping out in faith, sharing our own stories of our journey in vulnerability will lead ourselves as well as others to know Christ better. Sharing our lives with each other and seeing God through each other's lives draws us to know Him better.

Community with others is an invitation to know Christ in deeper ways. Genuine love always reflects Christ and leads us to know Him better. When we move towards others, serving them, loving them, and investing in them, we share Christ with them.

All these paths lead to knowing Christ, but we need to be open to be led by the Holy Spirit not by form, processes and/or routines. One minute I may find Him in my morning prayer, another moment I may find Him in the worship music, the time, the conversation, serving someone at work, blessing a person who is taking out their bad day on me, the events around me... He is everywhere.

When we don't see Him, it is more likely our own inattentiveness than His absence. He is always working around us if our eyes are open to Him. The point is not to follow a specific pattern of activities, but to let God lead, learn to embrace what He is doing, and enter into it with all our hearts.

If we are being attentive to the Holy Spirit moment by moment, we will be led by Him into knowing Him better. Greg Boyd writes of practicing being present with God in the moment and being attentive to Him in our everyday lives. He quotes two of my favorite authors -

Jean Pierre de Caussade writes, “All that matters is... to belong totally to God, to please him, making our sole happiness to look on the present moment as though nothing else in the world mattered.” [3]

And Brother Lawrence notes, “I have found that we can establish ourselves in a sense of the presence of God by continually talking with Him.” [4]

Frank C. Laubach, writes, “My part is to live this hour in continuous inner conversation with God and in perfect responsiveness to His will, to make this hour gloriously rich. This seems to be all I need to think about.” [5]

“I'm not going to be so wrapped up in doing that I can't sit at Your feet... I was made for loving You. I was designed to be with You. To walk with You in the cool of the day. To walk with You side by side. To be where You are. I want to be where You are.” sings in the background.

My Bible Commentary goes on to note, “Progress in the Christian life is exactly equal to the growing knowledge we gain of the Triune God in personal experience. And such experience requires a whole life devoted to it and plenty of time spent at the holy task of cultivating God.” [6]

So how do we cultivate this continual walk and experience of God in our lives?

We “want to see the unseen realities of eternity.” We “want to sail away on the ocean of Your unending love.”

“Just do it... jump in to the wonder of His love” sings.

Frank C. Laubach would play a game with minutes where he would see how many of them during an hour he could devote to God. Here are some of his suggestions for keeping our attentiveness on Christ during the day:

“1. Pray

2. Recall God
3. Sing or hum a devotional hymn
4. Talk or write about God [I would add, talk or write to God]
5. seek to relieve suffering of any kind in a prayerful spirit.
6. Work with the consciousness of God's presence.
7. Whisper to God.
8. Feel yourself encompassed by God.
9. Look at a picture of symbol of Christ.
10. Read a scripture verse or poem about God....” [7]

Both Frank C. Laubach and Greg Boyd speak of sharing our moments with Christ by being 'with' Him. When we recognize that He is there present with us and even visualize Him sitting along side of us we are naturally going to be more available to Him.

Greg Boyd writes, “Lawrence, de Causade, and Laubach each stress the importance of transforming everything we do as an act of service and worship to God. This is one of the surest ways to stay awake to God's presence and ensure that our thoughts remain captive to Christ.”[8]

Paul suggests embracing every moment in everything with God with a heart of gratitude rather than offense or anxiousness, knowing He is near and talk to Him in and about everything. He writes in Philippians 4:4-7, “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness [patient meekness] be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.”

What we focus on is where we are drawn.  Paul goes on to say, "Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy -think about such things." (vs 8). 

Sometimes I think my situation needs to be right to really stay present to God. But Paul found God everywhere, even in prison. Paul proclaims that in every situation and difficulty, Christ is enough and can bring us contentment (Philippians 4:12-13).

Lord, forgive me for sometimes falling into routines and patterns that are really going through the motions rather than loving you with my whole heart. Also forgive me for complaining about my circumstances at times rather than finding You in it. We long to know You better and keep company with You. There is no better invitation. Help us to be present to You in all that we do, learn to rejoice even in the difficulties, and offer all up to you as worship. Invite us to walk with you in the cool of the day. Help us to remove offenses, distractions, stresses, and worries out of our lives so we can see You more clearly.

1, 6. Tozer, A.W., The Pursuit of God Bible. NIV. Hendrickson Bibles, Peabody, MA. 2013.

2-4, 8. Boyd, Greg. Prefect Present: Finding God in the Now. Zondervan, Grand Rapids, MI. 2010

5, 7. Laubach, Frank C. Letters by a Modern Mystic. Purposeful Design, Colorado Springs, Co. 2007.