Preparing For an Encounter With God

After a person encounters God, she should be changed. His very presence should produce a foundational transformation in the life of the one who has met with Him. It is not enough for us to talk about what we have experienced. We should be living it out flamboyantly. This is what He expects of us.

He has said in His Word, "Come out from them and be separate" (2 Corinthians 6:17). This is His call to us — to be changed as a result of our meetings with Him. But what does that change look like?

In John 12, Jesus pays a visit to His close friends, sisters Mary and Martha and their brother Lazarus. Jesus decided to share some time with these beloved friends six days before the Passover Feast celebration. He might have wanted to visit them for several reasons. Realizing that His trials and subsequent conviction and crucifixion would soon take place, He may have wanted to spend time with His close friends before He died. Also, Bethany was a place of quiet rest for Jesus where He could escape from the demanding crowds for a while. At Passover, multitudes of people would be coming to see Him and vying for His attention.

However, John 12:1 emphasizes what I imagine was His main reason for His visit to His friends. I am sure He wanted to inspect their lives, because this is "where Lazarus lived, whom Jesus had raised from the dead."

The last time He had visited them, Jesus had performed a radical miracle in their midst. God Himself had shown up, and He had raised Lazarus from the dead! An encounter like that should have changed them forever.

Mary, Martha, and Lazarus, as well as many other onlookers, had been privy to an astounding demonstration of Jesus' power and love for them, and now He had come back to visit. What would He find when He saw them next? Had His miracle altered their everyday lives?

I believe Jesus was watching carefully to see how their lives had been changed and whether they were different as a result of what had happened during His previous visit. I believe that the Lord is also watching us to see if we are any different after we have an encounter with Him. I wonder if He is watching you right now to see whether this will be just another book that you read and go away the same or if this time you will be forever changed.

Steven Curtis Chapman is one of my favorite Christian recording artists. Not only is his musical talent incredible, but his lifestyle is also consistent with his message. I appreciate many of his songs, but my favorite is a song about the radical differences that should characterize a Christian's life. It is called "The Change." The song talks about how transformation is a choice. It's a lifestyle that boldly broadcasts to the world, "I am changed."

Who cares about all the Christian paraphernalia we own and wear if we don't have the lifestyle to back it up? Why wear Christian t-shirts if our hearts underneath are not sold out for Christ? What difference does a Christian bumper sticker make if the person driving is as angry and bitter as everyone else on the road? What good is our Christianity if we are not different while here on earth?

There should be some tangible, genuine evidence of a transformation. And when you and I encounter Jesus and recognize His hand moving in our lives, we should experience this radical change!

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Excerpted from And We Are Changed. Copyright © 2003 by Priscilla Shirer. Used by permission of Moody Publishers. Excerpt may not be reproduced without the prior consent of the publisher.

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