I come to the garden alone
While the dew is still on the roses
And the voice I hear, falling on my ear
The Son of God discloses
And he walks with me
And he talks with me
And he tells me I am His own
And the joy we share as we tarry there
None other has ever known
He speaks and the sound of His voice
Is so sweet the birds hush their singing
And the melody that He gave to me
Within my heart is ringing
And he walks with me
And he talks with me
And he tells me I am His own
And the joy we share as we tarry there
None other has ever known
~ Johnny Cash
God said, “My presence will go with you. I’ll see the journey to the end.”
~ from Exodus 33
Oh beloved, there are those days. There are the days when the distress and eustress of life threaten to overwhelm us. And these really are the very best of days.
He is with us.
He is not just beside us.
He is in us. We are in Him.
We are one.
This lapis blue-eyed mystic awoke at his customarily early hour to simply hit his knees. There really is no other good place to go at 3:40 in the morning. And this same mystic is a mess of a man if he does not start his day by stopping first – and listening to the One Who always makes sense when He talks.
And while it is useless to go on about the details of visions, it is often helpful to let the doubting know that they can know – really know – G_d. So, read on if you wish.
It is difficult to describe the relationship between two people under any circumstance. And in the case of the relationship between the created and The Creator, the difficulty in explanation becomes simply infinite. At least it was this way for this writer – until this morning.
Perhaps it is because this mystic is also a weaker brother, that G_d has to speak so clearly to men like me. It seems men stronger in faith are more able to simply get up in the morning and know He is with them, and so on they go walking into their day with Him. And while i have never doubted His presence for years now, it is so wonderful that our wonderful G_d talks to us and tells us exactly what we need to hear.
“I just want you to know how much I Love you Mak. I am so exceedingly glad to know you. Oh how I Love you. You are coming up on a time of great blessing. I just wanted to tell you this. Now go back to sleep for a while. You are very tired right now.”
And so He does. And so i did.
Can we see it?
The relationship that we have with the Almighty is unexplainable because relationship itself implies some sort of separateness. Not that the the separation is always a wedge or something negative, for even a very happily married husband and wife will even have some degree of separation between them. And perhaps this separation is the perfect picture, because a good marriage is but a shadow of the real thing.
No, what is happening in the light that casts the shadow seen in marriage is not a relationship, it is a union. We are now one with the One Who made us and Loves us and gave us new Life in Him. And it is the same power that holds the very Triune G_dhead together, that binds us together with Him – Love.
Said more simply, G_d is Love. He gives us His very self as we give ourselves to Him, and the exchange of selves dissolves the old man and creates a completely new solution now in Him. There is no suspension, only a complete solution that will never come undone. For the force holding the solution together is the force that binds G_d together in the infinite and unchanging state in which He is.
So, as we begin to understand our oneness with Him, things start to slough off of our existence. All the fear, all the doubt, all the anxiety, all the worry – all of it – simply goes away. And in its place, we begin to see increasing amounts of Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and even self-control. And this is a very good thing.
A good brother wrote me a note on this very subject some time ago. And it took awhile, but this writer is beginning to understand what this man was saying.
My Dear Brother,
Laying aside the possibility that you are enjoying the wonders of having gone stark raving mad, I would surmise that you have come to understand that you are utterly one with Christ.
One thing is certain, which ever case it may be, do not attempt to understand. Oneness with the Lord is inexplicable. Further, do not look for a cure!
A delighted brother, Gene
