Do you remember when you fell in love? I do. I hate to admit it, but I met my husband while sitting in the window of my car. I was whistling at the cars speeding by, lighthearted, filled with excitement that I had a place to live. Friends to be with.

Then a car pulled beside us. I saw them. Two young guys. Obviously country. The one that was driving smiled at me.

I ducked back in the car, rolled up the window. “Oh my goodness, keep driving,” I said to my friend, Michelle.

It was a whim. A shy girl sitting in the car window in a small college town, whistling at cars.

And now a guy two guys were following us. You may not believe me, but that wasn’t my plan at all. 

For any mamas reading this, it sounds like a bad movie. Don’t do this, you say to your children, pointing out the error of Suzie Eller’s ways.

But somehow that evening ended up in a small fast food restaurant. Two girls, two boys. Drinking a Coke and sharing a meal. And the relationship between Suzie and Richard began.

Now, nearly 34 years later and three children, three in-law children, and five grandbabies, I am so glad his warm, kind smile is still aimed my way.

But it’s been work. Marriage. Intimacy. Change. Hard times like cancer or when our child was critically injured by a drunk driver. Financial hardships.

In the past 34 years we’ve learned that we can turn away from each other, or turn to each other even if that means we have to work through anger or misunderstanding to find that place of comfort and strength as we face life together.

I love this guy. So stinking much. He truly lights up my world after 34 years.

But the reality is that intimacy isn’t natural for most of us. We are pretty selfish at heart just because we are human. We want what we want. When we want it. At the pace we want it to arrive.

It only becomes natural as we practice it.

As we end this six-week journey to carve out time and intimacy with our Heavenly Father, it’s only a beginning.

Maybe you have asked, “Why is this hard? Shouldn’t it come easy?” Perhaps you are pointing at others, wondering why your walk with God isn’t looking like theirs. . . yet.

Intimacy spiritually is not natural for most of us in the beginning, but when we decide on it, choose it, nurture it, and continually practice it, then it becomes natural.

And eventually it’s not only natural, but supernatural. You begin to sense God’s voice because it’s familiar to you. Scripture takes on depth. Your quiet time — when you close out everything else, if only for a few moments — fuels you.

And like any deep relationship, there will be those times you work out misunderstandings, or find comfort, or express your hurt or anger, but in a place that is safe and founded on mercy.

And it’s carved out over time as you come to know Jesus.

It’s a relationship worth investing in.

Intimacy with Jesus will change you, even on those days that you feel nothing. And on those days when you feel everything. You are creating a deep well of relationship upon which to draw, moving from a person surrounded by faith to a believer immersed in faith.

Thank you for joining me these past six weeks. But understand, it’s just a beginning.

For those who want to go deeper, join me in the next six weeks as we move into 30 Days of Growth. We’re going to discover how to take what is in the Bible, understand it, and live it out day by day.

And like, Martin Luther we discover, “The Bible is alive; it speaks to me. It has feet; it runs to me. It has hands; it lays hold of me.

Will you tell others? Will you pin this to your Pinterest? Will you tell a friend or share it on FB or tweet about?