I am constantly reminded in these digital days of the progression towards autonomy in our relationships. Blogs, Skype meetings, twitter and the entire Internet and Cloud offer cannot supersede the need for personal interaction between humans. Seriously.
Remember when God was leading the Israelites to the promised land, Moses said in Exodus 33:15, “ If Your Presence does not go with us, do not take us up from here.”
In the NLT it is translated, “If You don’t personally go with us, don’t make us leave this place.” Not just Moses himself, but he includes the Israelites when he declares ‘Us’! Even Moses craved the personal touch with His Creator, not him alone but those he was leading.
John states in both 2 John 1:12 and 3 John 1:13 that he, “…has many things to write to you, but I didn’t want to write with paper and ink. One epistle he continues, “For I hope to visit you soon and talk with you face to face. Then our joy will be complete.”
God’s Word translation states ‘Then we will completely filled with joy!’ I put in the exclamation point. Then what? When I visit and talk over things with you personally. Something happens when we get together.
When I moved to the South of France for six months in 1991, the culture really imbedded into me quality time over lunch, or ‘dejeuner’. A full two-hour lunch was part of the daily routine. Children regularly came home for lunch. Coupled with the understanding that eating 3-5 meals with your family, youth are 75% less likely to engage in premarital sex, alcohol and drug abuse. Personal time within this digital family age can help curb destructive habits. Did I say solve all your problems? No, but John expressed, ‘ we will be completely filled with joy.’ Sounds like personal time can help embark us on the journey.
Lastly, what if God had not sent His only begotten Son, literally Emmanuel “God with us”, rather sending us an envoy, just a diplomatic agent of the second rank? Matthew 1:23 clearly presents it to us. God wanted to redeem us so badly that He sent His Son to die for us personally. Our sin separated us from real personal contact with Him and we couldn’t take Him in all His Glory so He fixed it by supernaturally overruling His own natural laws, “Look! The virgin will conceive and bear a son and they will call Him Emmanuel,” which means “God with us.” I know I’ve repeated this, but it is to make a point…He wanted personal time with His creation, His family. Even in the rapidly increasing digital age. Enough said.