In this 4 part series, Tom opens up his heart helping us into a more loving relationship with God.

Tom Brock

The next step that we take in our relationship, if it builds, is that we commit to that one person and then we get engaged. This is a wonderful time. First of all we are so happy that we have found someone that thinks we are worth keeping and we can dance around and taunt all the other singles that we have somebody and they don't. Then we are able to share things of our heart. We talk about the future. Where we're going to live. What type of car? How many children. How much money are you going to make, and how much she is going to spend. The relationship begins to grow deeper. You learn about each other's likes and dislikes. Life is good and the future is bright.

This is a time that builds and helps us focus. But it also brings frustration. As the emotions grow and the intensity of the heart grows so does a desire to have a closer relationship. We want that fulfillment of our hearts and we express it in everyway we can. If we are going to follow the scripture then we are in a holding pattern that just intensifies as time goes on. We want more but we are not in a place that we can receive it. Here it is again, the natural displaying the invisible.

Many in the body have come to this level of relationship with the Lord. The decision has been made that we will not go after any other god and we are making plans for the future. We know that we love him and we are excited that we have found him. But the frustration of not being touched by him is still there. We have to move to the next step and that is the one that will bring the release that we are looking for. The decision to marry. Now I know that the Lord is coming for his bride, but what I am talking about here is a mind and heart set that is a commitment of intended purpose. In other words, this is what I am going to do. I will not turn away and my life belongs to Him. Pretty much throwing yourself into his arms and never looking back.

What can make that happen? Only a heart that falls in love. What builds love? A friend of mine say's this "shared experience builds intimacy", and this is true. The more time you spend with a person and the more things you share the deeper your hearts grow together. It can only work with love as the platform that things are built on. Love is an amazing drug. It does things that nothing else can do. Think about it, how many of us know we have problems? How many of us know we have just about all the issues we can handle. That's pretty much the story for us all. So what do we do? We find someone who is in the same shape we are and we say let's form a partnership. Nobody in their right mind would do it. That's where love comes in. It hits us in a way where nothing else matters and we are convinced that everything will be just fine. You have seen young lovers as they go through their baptism of love. They walk around with the star struck look in their eyes, holding hands and passing through life as if nothing else matters. They can be walking in the rain and you can say 'come on in here, you're getting wet.' They'll answer, 'we don't care'. If you try and talk to them about practical things it goes nowhere. 'What are you going to do for money?' 'We don't need money.' 'What are you going to do for food?' 'We're not hungry.' 'Where are you going to live?' 'With my Mom.' They don't have a clue, because they are under the influence of a powerful drug.

This is where it begins and for many it stops. We think that now we have come to know Jesus all we are to do is to wait for His return. So we go to church, we sing our songs and we follow the pattern of church life and wonder why we don't feel fulfilled in our relationship. Again it is just like marriage, the love must be ever growing. The love you had on your day of salvation is not enough to get you through the things that will come your way in the years to come. If you would have come to me on my wedding day and said 'you don't have any idea what love is all about.' I would have defended myself and told you how much I loved my bride to be. I would have been offended by your statement and would have shown it in someway. After Suzie and I were married for five years we looked back and were amazed how much we didn't know. After ten years we were even more amazed. Not that we were not in love, but how little we new about it and each other. Each day that we have together our love is built upon; we learn more and more about each other and learn what brings pleasure to each other. The love we had on our wedding day was truly love, but it wasn't enough to get us through twenty nine years of marriage. It had to increase; we had to have a better knowledge of each other. We needed to find each other. We needed to learn more about each other.