Over time, we have found that people require many things to survive and thrive. The bare necessities – food, shelter, and water, are easy to see and understand. Yet I would then add a fourth thing: connection to other people and, more importantly, our God, our Creator.
God created man in His image, which I believe partly refers to God’s relational character. We see how a relationship is supposed to look when we examine the three different aspects of God and how they are connected in one: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. They are all connected and together, just as we were created to be connected to God. What is interesting and beautiful is how God ensures this happens with his children. We were created sinless, and yet we chose sin, separating us from our God. God then created a way to fix the problem we created as humans.
“Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water” (Hebrews 10:19-22 ).
He made a way for sins to be carried for years until, ultimately, through God the Son, those sins could be dealt with once and for all. Then the Son made a promise yet again not to leave us but to send us his Spirit.
“If you love me, keep my commands. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you” (John 14:15-17).
We were created for connection, integral to who we are and what we are meant to be. Take a moment today to be thankful for all that God has done just so we could have a personal, intimate connection to Him. This is a connection that makes us feel valued and loved.
By Christian Frans