Available to all of humanity is a place of intimate love with our Creator. Within this sacred realm of fellowship is a treasure chest of knowledge, intelligence, unimaginable peace, and indescribable pleasure. I wrote this book to help individuals and church congregations, make the vital transition from religion to relationship. The Yearning Heart of God is an in-depth, detailed revelation of God's heart revealed in Scripture, as well as His blueprint on how to discover the way into a love relationship with Him. This book will help individuals and churches identify exactly where they are at on their spiritual journey, and what to do next to keep moving closer to God.
THE YEARNING HEART OF GOD
From Religion to RelationshipBy Adam SpacagnaAuthorHouse
Copyright © 2011 Adam Spacagna
All right reserved.ISBN: 978-1-4634-2888-4Chapter One
THE BIRTH OF DESIRE * * *
Good morning
sweet Lord of my heart.
I call to Thee to walk with me.
I can see You this morning Beloved, walking
By Your stream, In Your garden,
Your presence has awakened the lilies,
Your lovely voice directs the songs of nature's choir,
Your gentle touch dries the dew of the morning,
You honor creation with Your entrance.
I bow with the daisies,
I surrender with the quieting of nature,
I tremble with the quaking trees.
Here I flow with my eternal love
Down Thy eternal stream,
Here I walk in the eternal garden
With the eternal King.
"The birth of desire began in God's secret place of intimacy called the Garden of Eden. I like to call it the "garden of desire" because that is what Eden was all about, and as you get to know God more, you will discover that desire is a flame of passion ignited within His heart every time one more soul falls in love with Him".
"The First Date"
"They heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day." Genesis 3: 8 (NASB)
"My beloved has gone to His garden, to the beds of spices, to feed His flock in the gardens, and to gather lilies. I am my Beloved's and my Beloved is mine." Song of Solomon 6: 2&3 (NASB)
Almost everyone has a fairly good recollection of their very first date with a person who captured their heart. Most of us can recall the preparation we went through before the date, what to wear, what you are going to talk about, and most importantly where to go. Ambiance is always an integral factor in romance. Dinner and a movie is a good "getting to know you better before opening up" type of ambiance, while the walk and picnic basket in the park is most always a definite "I'm interested in you" atmosphere. There is a greater level of affection and unveiling in the quiet and scenic moments of life than in the distractions of a loud restaurant or movie. Why did God choose the Garden of Eden to have His first encounter with man? Was this a "getting to know you more" first date? Or was this a scene of intimate love and divine romance. What did God reveal in Genesis about His heart's desire for humanity?
As I began my study in Genesis, I could not help but wonder what was going on in God's mind and heart as He was planning His first date with humanity. What was the first impression He wanted us to have of Him? What did He want to reveal to us first? What was the first thing He was going to say to His newly created companion? As I was reading the first three words of the Bible; "In the beginning", I suddenly heard God whisper to me, asking me if I could see it. "See what?" I asked. "My preparations, My hearts desire", the Lord whispered. Then it hit me. The scripture came to life and I could see that God was a God of romantic and intimate love. Everything I had ever learned about God and the Bible prior to this moment suddenly began to weave together a message from God's heart that I had not heard before. The preparation and planning, the decision to go to this beautiful and quiet garden to have His first date with humanity, all demonstrated God's deep desire to reveal Himself to us and in essence, cause us to fall in love with Him. I was amazed that I started to discover God's heart in an old Sunday school Bible story that I learned many years ago, when my journey into God's yearning heart had begun. I kept reading, looking for what was going to be God's first message to us, and I was not disappointed.
"The Plan to Win Man's Heart Begins"
And God said, "See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food. Also, to every beast of the earth, to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every grain, herb for food, and it was so. Then God saw everything he had made, and indeed, it was very good. So the evening and the morning were the sixth day."
Genesis 1:29-31 (NASB)
The first move the Lord made was to show His creation that He would provide for us all things. He wanted us to know that He is a generous and caring God, a God that can be trusted, and a companion to us that will never lack in love. I believe the Garden of Eden was a place like no other place on this earth, a scene of indescribable beauty and perfection. To put it in a more modern perception, Eden was like the best vacation paradise on earth. This was an enchanted place where man was constantly offered indescribable pleasure. It had many privileges, like the opportunity to sample all the elegant foods of the earth with the most gorgeous spouse ever by your side. Complete with eternal spa treatments that produce perfect health and wholeness of life. Fruits and plants that would be ranked with the worlds best delicacies ever. Eden had full accommodations to its inhabitants, with the entertainment of first time discoveries that you get credit for discovering. With the protection of God's presence available anytime, you had the option of snoozing with the inhabitants of the forest, or falling asleep in the warm fur of a lion. Every morning you were wakened by the soft breeze and gentle voice of your creator walking in the garden, and calling you for morning fellowship. The Lord had the choice to do anything for His creation and pick any location in the billions of miles of His universe, and He chose this quiet, peaceful, romantic place called Eden to win the affection of humanities first heart. The Garden of Eden was the first place of romance and the first place of intimacy. The first thing God wanted man to experience was total paradise and close affection with Him.
"You will call, and I will answer You; You will long for the one You created".
Job 14:15 (NASB)
The book of Job in the Old Testament of the Bible is the oldest dated transcript of the Christian Bible. It dates back before Genesis and all other 65 books. What I find wonderful about this fact is that God reveals from the very earliest known written scripts we have about Him, that He longs for the people He created. From the very beginning of creation to this day, God has an intense and fresh desire constantly rebirthing itself within His heart. This desire began the moment God saw His first man, and continues every time a new soul enters life.
I believe desire took its strongest form and may have been birthed in the Garden of Eden, and ever since then, has increased with every new soul. The NASB translation defines desire as; attracted, covet, coveted, delight, pleasing, precious, precious things, and took great delight. God created an intense feeling of desire within us so that there would be a pursuit of His nearness. God's nearness is an invaluable gift to humanity that maximizes all of desires definitions. Genesis chapter two declares that we are made in God's image and likeness. Therefore, we share in this overwhelming yearning to...
