PLAY: Ponder the Love of The Almighty for You

By Heidi Loewen

PLAY invites readers into a deeper relationship with God as they grow in their understanding that he is constantly speaking to each of us. By design, he loves to interact and, dare we imagine, play with us.  The introduction sets the stage for interacting with God through our imagination and why it is okay based on scripture. It also teaches the reader how to recognize God's voice and explains what to expect in the following pages.  PLAY is an interactive devotional/journal.  I have asked God forty times what game he wanted to play and then written down the internal dialogue I experienced with him.  The heart-level revelation he reveals through the games is what I hope my readers will also experience.  Following the scripted games, there are questions for readers to answer on the book's pages.  The forty games are broken up into five categories: With Him, Discovery, Trust, The Battle Belongs to the Lord, and With Others.  A short narrative in line with the category precedes each section.  The book finishes with commissioning the reader to PLAY on their own, followed by several pages with the prompt, "Dear God, what game do you want to play with me?" and "Why?" for the practice to continue.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Heidi Loewen
• Release date: Feb 13, 2024
• ISBN: 9798989962112

Book preview

Ready, Set, PLAY?

If you were to ask my parents how I respond when they say to me, How are you? they would tell you I always give the same answer: fine. Since my childhood, whether I am healthy or sick, I have always responded to them with fine. I grew up seeing myself as friendly, likable, and tough. While my parents would wholeheartedly agree that I am friendly, likeable, and tough, my off-the-cuff response of fine has become a family joke since they can usually see through my façade. My response to the rest of the world unconsciously goes up a notch, from fine to good! As someone who values honesty, I’ve surprised myself by how easily good! rolls off of my tongue when greeted with a Hi, how are you?

Good! How are you?

Good, thanks, and we’re on our way. In the back of my mind, I think, Where did that come from? I’m barely making it today. And how are they doing? Really? I’ve realized I have a history of telling not only people but God that I am fine. However, when I am playing, engaging in activities that I enjoy, my true answer is good! It is through this idea of playing that God has grabbed my heart and taken me on a journey of discovery, beyond my wildest imagination, of His great love for us.

PLAY: Ponder the Love of the Almighty for You. Isn’t it amazing that the God of Creation, the King of the universe, the Unmatchable Almighty, knows, loves, and pursues us? When I consider this truth, my heart swells, and I can feel peace wash over me. My body breathes deeper, tension leaves my face, and I feel my lips curl up into a contented grin. I am okay in this moment of pondering the love of the Almighty for me. Not just okay, but I’m really good. Why? Because I am being held instead of trying to hold everything together.

A few years ago, a picture of a cracking jar came into my mind during a worship service. Instinctively I wanted to hold it together, not let it fall apart, and I understood that it was representing me with myself. My ideal is to be okay, happy, full of energy and purpose. I want to present myself as beautiful and whole. Then God reminded me of the story in the gospels when Mary brought her most valuable possession to Jesus, an alabaster jar of expensive perfume. She broke the jar and poured the perfume out onto Him in an act of worship. The disciples complained she had acted wastefully, but Jesus praised her for her lavish devotion to Him and her gift of love. As I considered this story, I understood it was actually what the jar carried that was valuable, not the jar itself. It had to be broken for it to be poured out. God does not expect us to come to Him, holding ourselves together. He is not waiting for us to be whole before He accepts us. Our lives are our most valuable possession, and He encourages us to come to His feet and fall to pieces. There, we discover what it means to be held by Love Himself, and we can honestly answer, I’m good, because we are His.

I invite you to join me on a journey of discovering more deeply who you are to your Father in Heaven through engaging in games and activities done in your imagination. That may sound weird, but trust me, He will meet you there. Paul’s letter to the Ephesians in the Bible gives us permission. He writes, I pray that the light of God will illuminate the eyes of your imagination, flooding you with light, until you experience the full revelation of the hope of his calling—that is, the wealth of God’s glorious inheritances that he finds in us, his holy ones!(Ephesians 1:18). It is through Him renewing our minds and using our God-breathed imaginations that we are filled with His hope and significant purpose for our lives. A greater understanding of how much we are loved equals greater joy in all circumstances. We aren’t just fine; we are transformed.

Why experience God through children’s games? Jesus tells us, Learn this well: unless you receive the revelation of the kingdom the same way a little child receives it, you will never be able to enter in (Luke 18:17). What do we know about children? How do they receive God’s Kingdom? Children love gifts. Children are trusting. Children are quick to ask for help. Children are curious and ask questions. Children rely on their parents to provide for them and protect them. Children are continuously learning and growing. Children run to their parents for affection and comfort. In God’s Kingdom, I can be more childlike by running instead of walking to the Father for the comfort only He can provide. I can be more childlike by trusting fully that He always accepts me and never shames me. How would you like to become more childlike in your faith? Perhaps getting in touch with your playful side is a good place to start.  :)

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This book holds forty games and activities that reveal how God sees and interacts with us. How is it possible to experience God through games in our imaginations? There are three steps to help us get started:

1.   Believing God is speaking to you

2.   Tuning into God’s voice

3.   Receiving His