Out Of Touch

Dear Friends,

Today my Bible reading took me to the story of Nicodemus, as it's told in John 3. For those of you who aren't familiar with this story, Nicodemus was a religious man - a Pharisee, actually. And the Pharisees were a sect of people who maintained extremely strict religious rules, and believed strongly that their way of thinking and living was superior to anyone else’s. By the world's standards, Nicodemus was an extremely holy man.

But he had one problem: he wasn't in touch with God. He thought he knew how to handle life, but he didn’t. And as a result he was left miserable, and in search of an answer to his problems. That’s what led him to seek out Jesus. And when he met Jesus, Nicodemus let his guard down and opened up his searching and lonely heart. Jesus responded by telling Nicodemus the Gospel Truth. As he listened, John 3:9 tells us that Nicodemus responded by saying, “How are these things possible?” In that honest response, Nicodemus is basically saying to Jesus, “I know there's an answer, but I don't know what it is. So what do I need to do?” In other words, Nicodemus humbled himself before Jesus and honestly asked for help.

I love the story of Nicodemus because I think it shows us how we need to approach Jesus. There have been times in my own life when I've tried to understand how God was working - or when I've struggled to feel joy or peace or hope. But every time I would try to fix what was wrong on my own, it just didn't work. Fortunately, each time God met me right where I was - with my little bit of faith - just like He did with Nicodemus.

And what God did for Nicodemus (and me) He can do for each and every one of us. So today, let's follow Nicodemus' example and seek out Jesus. Let’s sit at His feet and open our hearts up, letting Him know our struggles and burdens. And then let's give God the opportunity to be at work in our hearts – speaking the truth we need to hear and meeting our deepest needs.

Amen?

Daniel