Most of us have heard of Jesus' disciple named Thomas. He is traditionally known in many westernized Christian circles as the one disciple that doubted Jesus' resurrection. Our overall opinion of him is... well..., negative. Even his name is seen in a negative light - Thomas the doubter. I have literally heard whole sermons preached on Thomas and doctrines created and hailed as the true spiritual meaning of his name.

One such doctrine called Thomas "two-faced" and "double-minded" because the literal meaning of the name is double or twin. This preacher butchered Thomas' name and character and made Jesus seem absolutely dreadful. I mean... who wants a master or leader who recognizes one of their struggles in one of the most vulnerable times in their life to consider it a weakness and berate them for it? That's right - absolutely no one!

But in this teaching, that's exactly how he made it sound. One would picture Jesus walking up to a man who had deeply loved him and faithfully served h...

News Flash: Walking with God in the garden in the cool of the day is not intimacy. That's acquaintance. If you and one of your work buddies or colleagues took a walk every day, no one would think, "Oooh, that's deep! How intimate!" No. Co-workers may think "Ah, they're buddies." They may even think that the two of you were trying to stay in shape, but that's about all they would think apart from speculation of scandalous behavior. Rarely, however, would anyone assume intimacy from a daily hike.

How much more would it look strange for the deepest sign of intimacy in marriage to be enjoying a saunter through the garden. It sounds romantic, but honestly, it's surface level. Walking and talking with you is me getting acquainted with you, and that acquaintance will only go as deep as our talks. Furthermore, if all we ever did was walk and talk about all the lovely things we could do together without ever doing them, our relationship would be pretty shallow.

Even in a parent/child relation...

Have you ever heard the songs, read the devotionals, or listened to the sermons that passionately proclaim with desperation, "Oh Lord, if we could only see a glimpse of your face or a snippet of your glory, we will be satisfied!"? Have you vehemently declared such things yourself? I know I have... but all that speech changed one day when I recognized that a "glimpse" was just not enough.

I mean... would you want the God of the universe to break through the clouds, enter your sphere in plain sight, and you just get a glimpse of Him? I sure wouldn't! Do we sing and pray such things because we believe God to be so stand-offish and impersonal that He would rather be left alone? Do we think He just likes to hear us beg and watch us grovel in the dirt of mystery concerning the One who resides in the heavens arrayed in light? Maybe we believe God likes to be hidden, but that couldn't be farther from the truth.

I have news for you: Just the fact that you love God enough to cry out for Him ma...