WEBVTT 00:04.368 --> 00:07.074 [SPEAKER_00]: to know God is to experience God. 00:07.936 --> 00:17.176 [SPEAKER_00]: Just as we experience aspects of one another as we grow in friendship, we experience the wonders of God as we seek to simply know Him. 00:18.178 --> 00:23.389 [SPEAKER_00]: God is calling us to a life of seeking Him with all we are. 00:23.369 --> 00:30.902 [SPEAKER_00]: He's calling us to value relationship with him, above all else, that we would love no other but him. 00:30.962 --> 00:41.580 [SPEAKER_00]: May you encounter wonderful aspects of relationship with your Heavenly Father this week, as we wholeheartedly seek to know him with all we are. 00:41.640 --> 00:44.685 [SPEAKER_00]: Welcome to the first 15 podcast. 01:09.742 --> 01:20.333 [SPEAKER_00]: Our Scripture for today comes from Psalm 46, verse 10, Scripture says, Be still and know that I am God. 01:21.814 --> 01:24.237 [SPEAKER_00]: I will be exalted among the nations. 01:25.037 --> 01:27.360 [SPEAKER_00]: I will be exalted in the earth. 01:31.504 --> 01:35.648 [SPEAKER_00]: The single greatest privilege in life is to know God. 01:36.826 --> 01:46.597 [SPEAKER_00]: the God who formed you, provides for you and sent His Son to die for you, longs to have real relationship with you. 01:47.979 --> 01:57.911 [SPEAKER_00]: He longs to be known by you, and through the powerful sacrifice of Jesus, we truly can't know Him like any other person. 01:59.332 --> 02:05.820 [SPEAKER_00]: And in fact, in some respects, 02:06.374 --> 02:17.256 [SPEAKER_00]: Jeremiah 31 verses 33 through 34 says, but this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days to clear the Lord. 02:18.258 --> 02:27.657 [SPEAKER_00]: I will put my law within them and I will write it on their hearts and I will be there God and they shall be my people. 02:28.463 --> 02:34.469 [SPEAKER_00]: And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother saying, no of the Lord. 02:35.590 --> 02:41.076 [SPEAKER_00]: For they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, to clear his the Lord. 02:42.037 --> 02:47.943 [SPEAKER_00]: For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin, no more. 02:51.987 --> 02:56.091 [SPEAKER_00]: From the least of them to the greatest, says the living God. 02:56.510 --> 03:03.379 [SPEAKER_00]: no matter who you are, no matter what you've done, you can know the God of love. 03:05.061 --> 03:10.889 [SPEAKER_00]: Knowing God is no longer reserved for those individually appointed as His leaders. 03:12.371 --> 03:19.440 [SPEAKER_00]: Knowing God is no longer reserved for those like David, Isaiah, Peter, with the clergy. 03:20.662 --> 03:25.268 [SPEAKER_00]: All of us have equal access to the living God. 03:26.058 --> 03:27.902 [SPEAKER_00]: and from the place of knowing God. 03:28.684 --> 03:38.548 [SPEAKER_00]: We are granted the ability to experience his incredible attributes and be blessed by a greater awareness of our union with him. 03:39.777 --> 03:49.711 [SPEAKER_00]: When we seek to know God, the Bible is clear that we begin to experience His love, hear His voice, and feel His peace. 03:51.273 --> 03:57.842 [SPEAKER_00]: We can partner in His purposes, and rest in His presence. 03:57.862 --> 04:05.633 [SPEAKER_00]: When we center our lives around knowing God, we gain experience with Him like we do any other 04:06.693 --> 04:15.203 [SPEAKER_00]: I don't seek to hear my wife's voice, rather I seek to know her and have conversation with her as a byproduct of that. 04:16.405 --> 04:26.877 [SPEAKER_00]: I don't seek just the emotion of love for my wife, rather in getting to know her and walking in relationship with her, I experience her affections for me. 04:28.239 --> 04:35.367 [SPEAKER_00]: So it is with God. 04:37.034 --> 04:51.354 [SPEAKER_00]: I pray that as we look at the individual aspects of experiencing God this week, your heart is stirred to simply seek deeper relationship with your Heavenly Father, whatever may come as the result. 04:52.856 --> 04:58.924 [SPEAKER_00]: Your Father loves you enough to pay the ultimate price to have relationship with you. 04:59.917 --> 05:07.868 [SPEAKER_00]: take time to see Kim and discover the wealth of his affections for you today in guided prayer. 05:34.544 --> 06:00.062 [SPEAKER_00]: As we begin, meditate on the availability of knowing the living God, allow scripture to stir up your desire to seek Him with all your heart. 06:01.342 --> 06:07.459 [SPEAKER_00]: Psalm 46 10 says, be still and know that I am God. 06:08.863 --> 06:11.310 [SPEAKER_00]: I will be exalted among the nations. 06:12.292 --> 06:14.659 [SPEAKER_00]: I will be exalted in the earth. 06:57.232 --> 07:02.321 [SPEAKER_00]: And next, is your life centered around the pursuit of knowing God? 07:03.884 --> 07:05.827 [SPEAKER_00]: Check the posture of your heart today. 07:07.430 --> 07:13.200 [SPEAKER_00]: Look at the way you spend your time, your emotions, your thoughts, and your actions. 07:14.462 --> 07:17.788 [SPEAKER_00]: What seems to be your greatest pursuit? 08:00.732 --> 08:01.353 [SPEAKER_00]: and last. 08:02.614 --> 08:08.539 [SPEAKER_00]: Spend some time centering your heart around true relationship with a noble God. 08:10.081 --> 08:14.204 [SPEAKER_00]: Ask him to help guide your heart through your day toward this pursuit. 08:15.866 --> 08:23.213 [SPEAKER_00]: Ask him to give you a check in your heart when something takes his place as the greatest desire in your life. 08:25.035 --> 08:28.798 [SPEAKER_00]: Live today with him as your highest priority. 08:30.297 --> 08:35.752 [SPEAKER_00]: Psalm 119 verse 10 says, With my whole heart, I seek you. 08:36.855 --> 08:39.683 [SPEAKER_00]: Let me not wander from your commandments. 09:18.998 --> 09:27.277 [SPEAKER_00]: Jeremiah 9 verses 23 and 24 says, let not the wise man, boast in his wisdom. 09:28.500 --> 09:31.928 [SPEAKER_00]: Let not the mighty man, boast in his might. 09:32.583 --> 09:50.575 [SPEAKER_00]: Let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boast in this that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord who practices that fast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. 09:51.677 --> 09:55.384 [SPEAKER_00]: For in these things, I delight to clear the Lord. 09:57.862 --> 10:15.043 [SPEAKER_00]: May we be those who boast solely in our relationship with God, may His love and nearness be our highest joy, and may it be set of us at the end of our days that we sought the Lord above all else. 10:39.830 --> 10:42.528 [SPEAKER_00]: Thank you so much for listening to today's podcast. 10:42.930 --> 10:45.165 [SPEAKER_00]: I'm Josh Miller with First With Team. 10:45.550 --> 10:50.155 [SPEAKER_00]: First, 15 exists to help you connect with God every single day. 10:50.695 --> 10:53.478 [SPEAKER_00]: And we'd love to hear if that's working well for you. 10:53.519 --> 11:05.271 [SPEAKER_00]: Would you shoot us a note at podcast at first15.org and tell us about your experience with first 15 and more importantly, how it's helping shape your relationship with God every day? 11:05.992 --> 11:07.333 [SPEAKER_00]: We are so glad you're here. 11:07.393 --> 11:12.739 [SPEAKER_00]: Have a wonderful rest of your day and may God bless you as you see him.