How To Make God Personal?
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Last night at church, I shared a message about Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. We read from Genesis 3:8:
"And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden."* (NKJV)
This verse highlights something important for all of us. Before Adam and Eve sinned, they heard God clearly. There was no confusion about what He said, including His command not to eat from the tree of knowledge. Even when Satan tempted them, he did not claim God hadn’t spoken. Instead, he questioned what God said and suggested God had withheld something from them.
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After Sin, Something Changed
After their disobedience, Adam and Eve still recognized God’s presence, but their relationship with Him had changed. The verse says they heard God "walking" in the garden, but the original Hebrew suggests something even deeper: God was coming to meet them. The phrase "in the cool of the day" is often misunderstood. In Hebrew, it is connected with the word "Spirit." The garden was perfect in climate, and the emphasis is on God’s Spirit moving among them.
Yet, instead of running toward God, Adam and Eve hid. Why? Because they no longer felt close to Him. The word "presence" in Hebrew means "face." They hid from God’s face, from intimacy. Imagine a married couple standing face to face; that closeness is what Adam and Eve lost. They hid from His voice and His Spirit, and turned away from His face.
Hiding Among Creation
Here’s a powerful truth: Adam and Eve hid among the trees, the very creation God gave them authority over. In our lives, we often do the same. We hide from God among our work, our routines, even good things He has given us. We get distracted by the world, advice, or trying to fix our lives on our own. This clouds our perspective of who God really is. Yes, God is holy, powerful, and the Lord of all. But is He personal to you? Does He care about your daily life and struggles? The answer is yes. Jesus promised the Holy Spirit would come, so God could live in us and be with us (John 14:16-17).
A Call to Change
We need a lifestyle change as believers. The world says, "You can’t expect change if you keep doing the same thing." This is true for us spiritually as well. What are we hiding in? What has God given us authority over that we’ve let distract us from Him? If we keep hiding, we miss the personal intimacy and blessing God wants for us.
Let’s stop and ask God to show us where we’ve gone off track. Don’t wait until eternity to experience God face to face. We can have that intimacy now. As a church, let’s focus on what God is calling us to do—personally, not just what He’s called others to do.
Personal intimacy with God is unique to each of us, just as He created us.
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Blessings and prayers.
Pastor Richard