Intellectual Truth vs. Experiential Truth

So I've been attending a church on a fairly regular basis for a while - honestly I don't exactly know how long but I think about a year maybe.  Tonight I attended the first of a 10 week class that kind of explores Christianity and is for anyone from an atheist to a lifelong Christian.

I've read a lot of books.  I mentioned a few of them in my last post.  Here are a few more..."Love Wins" by Rob Bell, "The Shack" by William P. Young and "The Case for Christ" by Lee Strobel.  In "The Case for Christ" - this guy Lee, a journalist by trade, investigates the claims of Jesus and the New Testament.  Kind of like "investigative reporting" I guess.  He's on a mission to see what all the hoopla is about that converted his wife into a Christian and he goes around the country interviewing many experts in various fields, like History, Psychology, Theology, etc etc.  He's I think trying to find a loop hole somewhere or a crack that will bring the whole idea of Jesus down like the Temple in Jerusalem.  I can relate to this - I was kind of looking for that myself.  I was looking for the reasons I could tell my best friend and others why I, as a Jew, didn't buy this stuff about Jesus being the Son of God, the Messiah.

What I found instead, was a whole lot of intellectual evidence (truth) that points to the contrary of what I was looking for.  It points to Jesus being the only one that COULD be the Messiah.  He may not fit the "mold" of what the Jews (and others) THOUGHT the Messiah would be and do, but He sure fits the part - the way God had intended and laid it all out to fit and not necessarily the way people thought it was all going to shake down.  So I have all of this intellectual belief about Jesus...good stuff, intellectual truth.  But people, Christians, talk about this "relationship" with God, through Jesus and with the help and guidance of the Holy Spirit.  Say huh?

I'm not sure really what that means.  How do I have a relationship with this dude that died, rose again and then went on up to Heaven (I keep hearing the theme song to the Jefferson's in my head when I think about his Ascension - He's moving on up...).  Anyway...He's not here, now, on earth. I can't see Him or touch Him.  He's not tangible.  How do I have a relationship with this dude?  This is the experiential truth.  I see people experiencing Him every day.  I see my neighbor, who is one of my best friends - she has this tremendous faith in God.  She lives it, breathes it, talks about it, prays about it, raises her family in it...His radiance absolutely shines through her in everything she does and in who she is.  She has a relationship with Jesus that is incredible.  I dare say I envy this.  I want this.  I know it's wrong to want what others have but I mean - wanting this type of faith in God has to be a good kind of "coveting" - right?  This is kind of where I am right now.  I'm sort of in a place where I want to experience God - and honestly I have experienced Him in my life - many times actually, if I sit and think about it.  And when I do sit and think about those things, I'm in awe that He would care that much about me to show me in those ways.  But I want that kind of every day relationship.  Like with my best friend.  I talk to her pretty much every day - I either call her, or she calls me, or we text each other - or we hang out.  It's a great relationship.  I enjoy it.  I enjoy relationships with my family and my other friends too - they are real, tangible, and meaningful.  So then how do I go about getting that kind of relationship with a God that I can't call up on the phone, send a text to, hang out with...how does that work?

I know that the more I'm in His word - reading either the Bible or daily emails I get or books about faith - doing bible studies, talking about Him with people - this is all good and it helps me to feel Him with me and know that He's there.  I know intellectually.  I experience occasionally.  I want to have it all - the intellectual and the experiential relationship with God.  I'm working on that.  I wish there were some magic formula for how this works.  Just sit in the middle of the park looking at the lake, read something in the Bible, talk to God and listen for Him to answer...then do what He says.  That would be lovely.  Can I get some of that for now and some to go please?

Here's to hoping that I can find the recipe, and hold on to it and pass it down from generation to generation.  Cheers!