Then the LORD God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper who is just right for him.” So the LORD God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep. While the man slept, the LORD God took out one of the man’s ribs and closed up the opening. Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib, and he brought her to the man. “At last!” the man exclaimed. “This one is bone from my bone, and flesh from my flesh! She will be called ‘woman,’ because she was taken from ‘man.'” …Adam and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame. GENESIS 2:18, 21-23, 25 NLT
• Real relationships require intimacy
• Real relationships require vulnerability
…She saw that the tree was beautiful and its fruit looked delicious, and she wanted the wisdom it would give her. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. Then she gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it, too. At that moment their eyes were opened, and they suddenly felt shame at their nakedness. So they sewed fig leaves together to cover themselves. When the cool evening breezes were blowing, the man and his wife heard the LORD God walking about in the garden. So they hid from the LORD God among the trees. Then the LORD God called to the man, “Where are you?” GENESIS 3:6-9 NLT
• God is calling you
• God is pursuing you
But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. ROMANS 5:8 NLT
Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? … And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow–not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below–indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord. ROMANS 8:35, 38-39 NLT
God is still there when…
Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends. REVELATION 3:20 NLT
And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near. HEBREWS 10:25 NLT
Find a quiet place where you can be together with God and spend a few moments allowing yourself to just breathe. As you do, think back over this last year and the holidays, when was it that you felt most alone? What was it that made you feel that way? Allow the emotions that you felt to surface again and share them with God. Feel him call to you in that place as he called Adam and Eve: “Child, where are you?” What would it be like to answer him and allow him to see you when you’re most vulnerable? During his time on earth, Jesus knew many times in which he was alone, mocked and in pain; he is no stranger to vulnerability. Invite him to be with you there, in that place of vulnerability, and simply be present with you. As you move through your week, consider sharing what you have experienced with someone you trust.