Sacred Intimacy: A Life Lived in Relationship with Him

By Alma Sullivan-Lovell

This book is powerful on impact and is guaranteed to help you on a step-by-step journey to achieving fullness in the Lord Jesus Christ. It is appropriate for such a time as this and will help every believer in every area of life. Often people are stuck in their spiritual journey and do not know how to proceed.

This book will provide the sp

• Language: English
• Publisher: Trilogy Christian Publishing
• Release date: Jan 7, 2020
• ISBN: 9781640886124

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Sacred Intimacy

A life lived in relationship with him

Alma Angella Sullivan Lovell

Trilogy Christian Publishers

Tustin, CA

Trilogy Christian Publishers

A Wholly Owned Subsidiary of Trinity Broadcasting Network

2442 Michelle Drive

Tustin, CA 92780

Copyright © 2019 by Alma Angella Sullivan Lovell

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise noted, taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture quotations marked (KJV) taken from The Holy Bible, King James Version. Cambridge Edition: 1769.

All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever.

For information, address Trilogy Christian Publishing

Rights Department, 2442 Michelle Drive, Tustin, Ca 92780.

Trilogy Christian Publishing/ TBN and colophon are trademarks of Trinity Broadcasting Network.

For information about special discounts for bulk purchases, please contact Trilogy Christian Publishing.

Manufactured in the United States of America

Trilogy Disclaimer: The views and content expressed in this book are those of the author and may not necessarily reflect the views and doctrine of Trilogy Christian Publishing or the Trinity Broadcasting Network.

Cover image: Photo by Andrew Neel from Pexels

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available.

ISBN 978-1-64088-611-7

ISBN 978-1-64088-612-4 (ebook)

Contents

Dedication v

Foreword ix

Introduction xiii

Chapter 1. The Urgent Need to Grow 1

Chapter 2. Spiritual Alignment: Staying on the Straight and Narrow Path 11

Chapter 3. Suffering: Embracing It as Part of the Growth Process 97

Chapter 4. Kindness is the Nature of God: Be

Exceedingly Expectant of Him 131

Chapter 5. Shining for Christ in a Corrupt World:

Making Jesus Attractive 169

Chapter 6. Divine Assignment 229

Chapter 7. The Secret Sauce 295

About the Author 297

Dedication

No man is an island; therefore, whatever we have accomplished in life, there are always some very special people who help us to get there. Our divine helpers come in various forms, even in the ones we serve.

The last three years has been a very special journey for me. Two very special people, my adopted son and his wife, Pastor David and Lady Chandler, opened not only their hearts to me but the doors of their church and entrusted their flock for me to teach Bible study. I started out by using Bible studies authored by popular Christian authors until the Lord told me to use whatever he has given me. Trustingly, they—along with their congregation—embraced that which the Lord laid on my heart in the form of Bible studies. Together we grew; as I learned and practiced what God taught me, I fed it to them, and together we all walked a beautiful journey in intimacy with him.

We cried together, fell down and rose up together, accepted the Lord’s rebukes and discipline together, and reveled in his commendations together. What a beautiful journey!

Usually Bible study ends with prayer by Lady Chandler, praise God for giving her the gift of prophetic intercession; and at the end of one of our sessions, she told me, Mom (that’s what she calls me) you need to write, you need to write. People are waiting for what God has given you! It came at a time when I had stopped writing this book, thinking it was not that important. Along with prayer, our encourager, Nancy, usually gives us a word of encouragement. The Lord has a way of using the things he allows her to visualize as encouragement to his people. One night she told us, I see us all as candles glowing. The next week, she came back with a typewritten note for each of us explaining what the Lord said about us as his candles. Here is mine:

Angella

A candle lighting up the Word of God. Making God’s Word bright and easy to see (understand). A candle of pure bright light bringing God’s Word, as God intended. (Picture a candle in God’s classroom, allowing the children of God to see and understand their lessons, which bring each an understanding of God and bring them along God’s chosen path.)

You may have a picture in your mind of a big group of people. No, it was not. It was three to seven people the most each night. Good things come in small packages, and we were our good thing to each other. Thank you all for walking this journey with me as I pen these pages.

Foreword

The call for urgent intimacy with our Lord Jesus Christ has been a consistent ringtone for Angella Sullivan-Lovell for the twenty-four years I have known her. Her relationship with the Lord and the manner in which she disciples others have the same common theme—intimacy and growth!

Sacred intimacy is poised for such a time as this.

Angella has repeatedly demonstrated and emphasized that the journey of a Christian, their first step, commences with spending quality time with the Lord and getting to know him on a personal level. Her conversation details how the Lord instructs her about simple everyday routine like how to dress. These intimate conversations with the Lord personify the Holy Trinity and allow others to yearn for this closeness that Angella shares with the Lord.

Angella has a passion for mankind, and she wants to see people living the abundant life, which Jesus promised—a life that is free and victorious in Christ so that the believer can confidently declare: I know the Lord Jesus Christ as my personal lord and savior. This is her mantra and her persuasion—once you know the Lord personally, you will desire to grow in him daily. Knowing the Lord intimately also equips you for service and for you to be fully aligned to his perfect will for your life.

My journey with Angella began twenty-four years ago when she took on an assignment from the Lord to watch over me because he was ready for us to develop an intimate relationship. Because of her boldness and love for the Lord and for his people, she successfully spent about six (6) years handing me over to Lord. This has been a delight for the Lord and herself because today, I have come to know the Lord as she does—a Christian woman packaged and bundled with deep intimacy with the Lord. This is the outcome the Lord desires of her when she is placed on an assignment, and could only be achieved because she spent quality time with the Lord. Her quality time connects her with voice of the Lord, and as such, she speaks with an instructed tongue!

The Sovereign LORD has given me a well-instructed tongue, to know the word that sustains the weary. He wakens me morning by morning, wakens my ear to listen like one being instructed. (Isaiah 50:4)

Instructed tongue can only emanate from one who spends consistent long hours with the Lord. This is the theme of her book, Sacred Intimacy, spending time with the Lord and experiencing the abundant growth through such relationship. Growth that demonstrates that you know the Lord and that you hear from him and that you can speak on his behalf.

This book is powerful on impact and is guaranteed to help you on a step-by-step journey to achieve fullness in the Lord Jesus Christ. It is appropriate for such a time as this and will help every believer in every area of your life. Oftentimes people are stuck in their spiritual journey and do not know how to proceed. This book will provide the spiritual guidelines as instructed from the Holy Spirit through dedicated time spent with him.

The time for sacred intimacy is now, and the people of God are being summoned to carve out a special intimate time with the Lord in order to hear from him, to take up your divine assignment, and to let your light shine in a corrupt world.

This book is committed to you as a vital part of your spiritual journey.

Avril Bailey

Introduction

When you hear the word intimacy, what comes to mind? Marriage, relationship, oneness, private, special moments, commitment, trust, love, sharing secrets, getting to know someone. Those are my words, what are your words? Do you associate God, the Holy Spirit, and Jesus with the word intimacy? When I say the Holy Spirit desires an intimate relationship with his children, there are usually two responses: people either get excited or it grosses them out. Those of us who get excited have already been surprised by how intimate he can get, and a taste usually leaves us wanting more. On the other hand, if it grosses you out, meaning you feel scared, burdened, sarcastic, skeptical, or suspicious about the idea, you need to experience him in this way, because you truly have not, and you are missing far too much.

My sister Collette and I have agreed to get intimate with the Lord at 4:00 a.m. every Saturday. We were joined in the last few months by my other sister Pauline. He has been blowing our minds as he reveals who he is, his delight and displeasure in some of our characteristics, his heart for his people, and how he desires to perfect the things that concern us. As we learn from him and surrender, we see transformations in us, becoming his original masterpiece; as we intercede for others, we see him breaking bondages, saving souls, and transforming lives.

The Bible says of Moses in Exodus 33:11a (NLT), Inside the Tent of Meeting, the LORD would speak to Moses face to face, as one speaks to a friend. Well, that’s a big part of sacred intimacy. Moses and God had a special relationship initiated by God. They had a project that required them to spend much time together (Exodus 3:9–10). Moses had to learn about God in regard to his will and desires and take instructions in fulfilling them (Exodus 19:3–6). He had to represent God to a nation and got disciplined when he did not represent him correctly (Numbers 20:9–12).

💗 Sacred intimacy comes when you are getting to know God, his will and desires, and enjoying him as a companion as he transforms you back into his original intent and purpose, and yes, let’s not forget enjoying that special work he has prepared in advance for us to do (Ephesians 2:10), the colaboring to let his will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

This book may have been given to you by a friend who knows you need to experience God intimately, or you may have seen the title and, out of curiosity, picked it up. You may have skipped through the chapter headings and said, I want this growth, I see the need for urgent spiritual growth in my life. Better yet, you may have bought it because right now, you will do anything for God, and your quest and hunger for him led you to purchase this book.

If you have already understood your need for Christ and have made this all-important decision, then I challenge you to commit yourself to intimate growth by applying the principles you will pick up from reading this book. Commit to a special time and place to read this book with him. Commit to quieting your spirit to listen to his interpretation of these pages just for you. Finally, commit to exchanging your perspective for his, as he interprets the pages 💗 just for you.

Chapter 1

The Urgent Need to Grow!

I am sure, throughout your Christian life, you have heard over and over that as a Christian, you need to be constantly growing. 💗 I have heard the phrase there is no stagnation in the Kingdom; you either mature in your faith or go back to old ways. On a more personal level, I am sure you have felt the Holy Spirit nudging you to stop certain behaviors, attitudes, thought patterns, and motives. You have felt miserable and dissatisfied, and when you finally settle down, you know he is saying, You need to give me more one-on-one time. That, my friend, is his way of saying you need to grow. But why do we have to grow? Further still, why is there an urgency to grow right now? Why can’t we just get saved, lean on Justification by Faith, and live that way, changing a few or some evidently bad behaviors and that’s it?

I would like to address the issue of urgency. This sense of urgency has always been a theme in the Bible. In Hebrews 10:25, there is an encouragement to not forsake the assembling of the body, and it ends by saying, And so much the more as you see the day approaching. Romans 13:11 (NIV) says, And do this, understanding the present time: The hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed.

Among the many spiritual reasons the Bible gives for us to grow, let me focus on a few that I believe are critical in enhancing the other important principles in setting the premise for the rest of this book. In his letter to the Colossian church, the apostle Paul was encouraging those in Colossae to grow "so that they may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God" (Colossians 1:10 NIV). Obviously, the apostle links growth with pleasing God. To the Ephesians, in chapter 4, the apostle outlined the provisions God has made for them to grow. He first focuses on how growth (maturity) can bring them into the fullness of Christ, which is the ultimate reason for our growth. He also emphasizes another reason for growth: Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming (Ephesians 4:14 NIV). He shows here that growth provides stability in the truth of God’s Word, where we will not be deceived, especially in these latter days. Though there is no evidence of who wrote the book of Hebrews, this writer also encourages us about the danger of not growing in our faith. His concern was that the Hebrew Christians were no longer seeking growth, and if they were no longer interested in growth, then they would not be able to distinguish good from evil, which may result in them falling away from faith in Jesus Christ. In Hebrews 5:11–14 (NIV), it is written:

¹¹ We have much to say about this, but it is hard to make it clear to you because you no longer try to understand. ¹² In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! ¹³ Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. ¹⁴ But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.

Above and beyond all the reasons provided above, I feel the most significant reason is 💗 growing in the Lord allows you to experience his intimacy! You cannot afford to miss out on this! For indeed you will if you are satisfied with just being saved. The end-all of all our growth efforts is to truly know him intimately. Charles Stanley, my favorite preacher/teacher, puts it this way, Intimate relationship with God is you and him talking. He listens to you, you listen to him, you obey him, he guides you. That is an awesome sense of intimacy in a life that trust God.

I would like to discuss some questions that will help us see where we are at on our spiritual growth part and identify things we can implement to keep us growing spiritually. These questions will allow us to discuss things we can deliberately put in place to grow in our intimate relationship with God.

Let us discuss your personal relationship with the Holy Spirit.

In Matthew 14:23, the Bible points out what I am assuming was a habit of our Lord Jesus Christ. This habit was the getting away by himself to pray and be alone with the Father. I believe Matthew put in this special piece to leave us an example of a very important principle. All three synoptic gospel writers thought it important to point out this principle:

But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed. (Luke 5:16 NIV)

Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. (Mark 1:35 NIV)

These verses give one of the most important principles to be implemented for continued growth in our Christian walk. This is, to develop a personal relationship with the Holy Spirit, we must deliberately and intentionally set aside time with him. The following questions can assist us in analyzing if we are practicing this all-important principle that our Lord implemented into his life into our life:

• What does your personal time with the Lord look like?

• Is there a special place you meet with him?

• Is there a special time you meet with him?

• In the situations you struggle with or your everyday decisions, do you have a word from the Lord on them or have scriptures addressing them?

While we do not find this last question in the scriptures outlined above, I believe it is important, as time alone with him must be used for both listening to him and seeking him on critical issues in our lives. 💗 Growth comes when our everyday issues are interpreted by him, and we make the choice to see them as he sees them. Taking on his perspectives and exchanging them for our perspectives.

Continuously Feeding Our Spirit

The importance of intentionally making time to spend with the Lord should result in maturity. Feeding our spirit at other times when we are not deliberately one-on-one with him is also very important. The Bible encourages us to pray without ceasing, but we can also cultivate his presence without ceasing also. Proverbs 16:20 tells us of the importance of paying attention to the instruction of the Lord. Colossians 3:16 (NIV) exhorts us with a list of things that can edify us spiritually: Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. Acts 16:24–30 tells us of the power of prayer, praise, and worship. Fasting also is a critical piece in feeding our spirit and getting us to a place of maturity.

Jesus himself left us an example of time alone, which included fasting (Matthew 4:1–3). He also gave his disciples instruction when they fasted (Matthew 6:16). The use of the word when means it is expected of them. While not all versions of the Bible have Mark 9:20 mentioning fasting, the KJV (King James Version) added fasting to prayer as Jesus instructed his disciples of what it takes to get certain breakthrough. So the questions for us to answer as we focus on continuously feeding our spirit for growth are the following:

• Do you have a favorite preacher, author, or mentor—apart from your pastor—who feeds your spirit?

• Do you have your favorite hymns, praise-and-worship songs that you bask in regularly?

• Is fasting a regular part of your life?

• How obedient are you to fasting when the Holy Spirit prompts you?

To show that we are committed to the things suggested above, we must be strategic with our time in general and how and where we are feeding our spirit.

Our Family Life

The Lord has placed all of us within families. I worked with foster care kids for seven years; it is a very sad thing as not having a family of your own or, in most cases, being taken from your family and placed in another family or