Trinity Encounters

 

Have you ever had an encounter with the Trinity?  I have.  

I met Jesus first.  He  sat on my bed one night after I'd asked Him to wake me up to talk with Him.  I was always so sleepy when I'd kneel down to pray before climbing into bed at night that in frustration, I asked Him to wake me up after I'd had a couple hours of sleep so I could talk with Him while more awake.  He called my name two or three times before I woke up enough.

"Oh," I said in awe, "You did it.  You woke  me up."

He sat there smiling at me, making sure I was awake.  My sleepy mind was still trying to catch up with what was happening.  His love and peace was amazing.

I slipped out of bed and knelt beside it and prayed.

Thinking back on that I don't know why I didn't just talk straight to Jesus.  Why did I have to kneel and close my eyes?  He must have been amused.  Ironic, isn't it?

Anyway, I'd been so trained and primed to kneel beside the bed to talk to my Heavenly Father, that it just didn't occur to me to stay in bed and chat with Jesus, "face-to-face".

I guess He didn't mind me talking to His Father though.

Years later, when very, very down; like exceedingly down, for whatever reason, and after having read some books about the Holy Spirit of God, I somewhat skeptically, yet hopefully, besought the Holy Spirit to reveal Himself to me even though, in  theory, I knew He indwelt me since my day of salvation.

Of  course, He is God, so He could and did.  The Holy Spirit new exactly what to do to connect and let me know His presence was really Him.  I believe this type of encounter would be customize to a particular person, so it would be different for different people.

For me it was when I sat on the edge of the sofa, elbows on knees, just looking dejectedly at the floor.  The Holy Spirit breathed His wind of refreshing over and through me!  I quite "literally" felt and saw the evidence.  Do believe me.

No wise cracks though.  I felt the Holy Spirit's wind blow through my right ear and then out my left one.  Simultaneously, I saw - like a vision - autumn leaves tumbling over each other in the wind, blowing across the ground.  Keep in mind I was living in the Tropics and these leaves were "Canadian" maple tree leaves!  Like I said, the Holy Spirit knew those were some of my favorite things.  He allowed me to see, feel and hear the brisk breeze of His presence with me.  Indeed, refreshing and uplifting time of communion with Him.

God, the Father, came a couple of years after that time.  Sometimes we wonder, does God really care?  Does He really love me?  You know, like that fridge magnet-type saying, 

"God loves each of us as if there were only one of us" (Saint Augustine).  

Is that really true?  I asked God if it was.

His answer was to give me a sense of  Him putting His arms around me and giveing me a hug like no other hug I'd ever gotten.  I felt His  arms and His love -- pure and  holy -- and  it went all the way into my inner core being.  His loving presence enveloped me.  Time and place stood still as I basked and bathed in His love and the knowledge thereof; "YES!"  He was saying, "I do love you, just as St. Augustine expressed."

The message  is, even if we feel like no one else loves us, God, our Heavenly Father does, for sure!  He cherishes us!  Be sure of this.  If you're not, then ask Him to show you.

He has limitless love to lavish upon us and He freely doles it out.

I'm so thankful for these Trinity encounters:  God, the Father; God, the Son (Jesus); and  God, the Holy Spirit.   The God-Head's three persons, each revealing His Self to me.

Draw nigh to God, cuz He'll certainly draw nigh to you (James 4:8).

Spend time talking with Him and reveling in His presence, singing praise to Him.  Praise the Lord again and again.

                                                        ~ERC  September 2021~

Sing, Shout for Joy, with Lincoln Brewster & Paul Baloche.

How Great is Our God,  with Chris Tomlin.