He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High… Psalm 91:1
Central on my heart this morning is keeping secret things a secret. There is a place of intimacy with God that is meant to be secret. It’s not meant to be shared with the whole world. Doing so only cheapens what is precious and meant to be private.
It’s absolutely ugly to take what is intimate and share it with the whole world.
We’re living in a time in human history where the most intimate things imaginable are shared openly on the internet. All this really tells me is that the hearts of people have gotten as hard as stone. We’ve lost all conception of what’s appropriate. Love, by its very nature, protects that which is precious. It never exploits intimacy.
When we take that which is intimate between us and God and brag about it before men, what we’re really doing is prostituting our relationship.
I’ll tell you something- God doesn’t like being used. If you want Him to share secrets with you, then you will need to learn how to keep a secret!
There are many things that God has done in my life that are meant to be shared with the Church, and of course, it’s not wrong to do so. There are, however, a great deal of things that God speaks to me privately that are never meant to be shared with the Church at all. The truth is, I think the vast percentage of things that God speaks to me, are never meant to be shared with anyone.
But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret… -Matthew 6:6
The temptation to make secret things public is often nothing more than a desire to be seen in the eyes of men. And if that’s our motive, it’s absolutely offensive to God!
The relationship that I have with God is not meant to be broadcast in some ostentatious way for the whole world to see!
The whole point of intimacy is that there are things that are never spoken of because they are only meant to be shared with our intimate one.
This is an incredibly important point.
God whisked me away and drew me to Himself seven years ago. He brought me into the secret place with Him. Unless you get a hold of my journal, most of those moments will forever remain a secret! He was cultivating a love relationship with me, and if there’s one thing I know about God, He doesn’t appreciate it when we “kiss and tell”!
Early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up and slipped out to a solitary place to pray. -Mark 1:35
We can be sure that there were a great many things that happened between Jesus and His Father that were never recorded in the Bible. He enjoyed the secret place with His Father, and except for some brief moments, we have been given almost no insight into what those prayer times entailed.
There’s great wisdom and discretion in knowing what to speak about and what to keep to yourself. If you want to be a lover of God you will not just spill every detail of your intimate relationship with Him to others. When appropriate, you will also pick and choose with whom you open up to.
God knows how to be intimate! And He will teach you how to be intimate if you will let Him.
The other beautiful thing about keeping intimate things intimate is that it cuts pride at its root. I think it’s very safe to say that the great saints of God throughout history have had more of their hearts hidden than on display. We are given but a glimpse of the treasure of their relationship with God, the rest remains secret as it should. Otherwise, why would it be called “the secret place”?
Take me away with you—let us hurry! May the King bring me to His chambers. -Song of Songs 1:2
How romantic our God is! How passionate and filled with love! Love like this cannot be hidden, but neither should we exploit it. No, we treasure and protect that which we truly love.
How radiant is the Bride of Christ, and yet how chaste!
Those who blab on about every secret thing betray intimacy. The King’s inner chambers are not meant for the Public Square.
Drink water from your own cistern, and running water from your own well. Why should your springs flow in the streets, your streams of water in the public squares? Let them be yours alone, never to be shared with strangers. -Proverbs 5:15-17
Do you think God will share His intimate secerts with a talebarer? Can He trust you with His heart?