The Church Needs to Experience Jesus More

Knowledge is good, experience is better

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I was in the middle of worship at our old church when I felt the Holy Spirit fall in the most supernatural way I could ever remember.

It started with goosebumps on my neck, shoulders, and head. But then the feeling kept happening, almost like flames in a fireplace. My heart began to pick up its pace, but I was in the most peace I had ever been. 

I could hear the music, but it was as if it was walled off, and I could ‘feel’ the things of heaven in my mind. It was as if God had walled off the external stimuli to allow me to walk into a special place.

At that moment, I knew I was simultaneously experiencing God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. And in that moment, my experience with the presence of God would change for the rest of my life.

Since that time nearly three years ago, my experience with the presence of God has multiplied into something I can draw on at almost any moment. And it is something that more Christians need in their lives.

I lived in the shallow end of the faith pool for years.

I grew up in a very controlled church. We did the same Sunday service every week. It was a lifeless faith for years. It seemed the pastors were the only ones connected to the Holy Spirit, and everyone else was there just as if they were going to an event in an arena. 

Even then, when I finally put my faith in Jesus, my confidence was more intellectual than anything else. There weren’t many experiences to go with all that I accumulated in the Bible. 

For the first few years of my faith, there were so few experiences with Jesus or moments where I encountered the Holy Spirit. And even then, when those things would happen, I had no context for them.

And this stale faith followed me for years. I would pray, read my Bible, attend church, and do everything. But something always felt like it was missing. And I definitely could understand why people felt Christianity was lifeless.

Until I was shoved into the deep end.

My wife and I sat at a table with three other couples at a marriage conference. This marriage conference was the last-ditch effort for all three of these couples.

Their marriages were in shambles. One couple had their divorce paperwork all ready to go. They just needed to sign it. But they committed to family and friends to do this conference before signing.

At this point, we had been married for just over five years. Our marriage was good, not great, but good. We were by far the most healthy of people at the table, making us ‘leaders.’

During this three-day event, we experienced something that could only be quantified as a miracle. All three couples walked away changed. I don’t know how they are doing now, but at the time, God had moved in such a way it changed everything.

And my wife and I experienced the power of the Holy Spirit in such a way that it changed our marriage and lives. We saw people prophesying, speaking in tongues, having visions, and finding overnight healing.

And for me, I entered a whole new world of my faith as God became more real to me than ever before. How I experienced my faith in that conference and afterward took me into deeper waters I never knew possible.

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How to Experience Jesus

I once shared how I started to experience Jesus with someone, and he said I was only imagining my encounter. And in some ways, he was right, except it wasn't only my imagination.

In assuming that I am experiencing Jesus only in my imagination, he misses out on two critical components of my experience with Jesus: 

• My knowledge and understanding of the Bible. Specifically, what Jesus does and says in the Bible.

• The Holy Spirit. Who creates a connection with our spirit, which leads over our body and soul.

With these two things, I know that my experiences with Jesus are authentic and not only about me.

Coffee with Jesus

I have shared before a practice that I started about five years ago where I sit down and have coffee with Jesus. I pour a cup for me and a cup for Jesus, and we sit down on the island in my kitchen. Then, I invited him into my space to meet with me.

As I sit there, I pour out what is happening in my life. They are problems, sometimes dreams, and other times still. I share beautiful things I am thankful for.

And then, I pull out my journal and wait. 

In these waiting times, I listen for Jesus to respond. Initially, I felt like he responded only a little of the time. Yet, now, I can almost experience Jesus upon the invitation.

What happens is that I open myself up in the spiritual and begin to experience Jesus through the Holy Spirit. At the moment, my knowledge and experience with Jesus from the Bible connect me with him to hear from him about the things I have shared with him.

This is available to anyone who believes that Jesus died on the cross and rose from the grave to forgive our sins and invite us into eternal life. And it is an experience that more people need now than ever.

What Experiencing Jesus Isn't

It is never condemnation. It is never shame. It is never the heaping of guilt upon you. This sort of talk in your times with Jesus isn't from Jesus. These are lies that the devil wants you to believe to distance you from Jesus.

Experiences with Jesus are never about bending him to what you want in life. There have been plenty of times with him when I ask for something, but he asks me if it is a desire of God's Kingdom, and I immediately know it is not.

It isn't worthless time, either. It is valuable even when you first try to experience Jesus this way. Your willingness to try is a point where I know Jesus steps into the room with you and is so pleased with you. And as you practice listening for him, you will begin to hear and see.

What Experiencing Jesus Is

It's freedom, connection, and joy. As I write this article, I have stopped countless times to ask Jesus what to say. I get up from my computer, fall face down on the flow, and listen.

And in every instance, I feel the joy from the Kingdom of God and the freedom he brings in, sharing with me important tidbits about himself and his father.

This is a connection that surpasses any connection you make on Earth. It is more profound and more substantial than your marriage vows or your love for your children. And it grows more and more every time you step into it.

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Final Thoughts on Experiencing Jesus

If you want to experience Jesus genuinely and authentically, I would like to give you three easy steps. They are simple but by no means a formula.

1. Read the Gospels. Highlight or underline any places where Jesus speaks, and it hits you. Pray through these verses. Ask Jesus to step into your life and connect these verses to your life.

2. Pray and ask to experience Jesus. Jesus says, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.” (Matthew 7:7–8)

3. Invite the Holy Spirit to fill you. The Bible says we can be filled with the Holy Spirit: “And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 13:53). Ask God to fill you with the Holy Spirit.

4. Create space to experience Jesus. Have coffee with him. Go for a walk with him. Sit in your car during your lunch break with him. Whatever you do, create a space for you to be in the presence of Jesus and listen.

5. Record your experiences with Jesus. Sometimes, experiencing Jesus will be easy. Other times, it will be challenging. I always write down my encounters with Jesus so that when it is hard to hear him, I know I have listened to him before and will hear him again.

Experiencing Jesus isn’t complicated. But, it can be difficult when we are starting or have been in a tough season of life. That’s why I think it is essential to create habits that help you step into your connection with Jesus.

I also want to acknowledge there are a lot of ways to experience Jesus. People experience him in dreams, through nature, in visions, with worship, and in conversations with trusted friends. I don’t want you to lose those experiences, either.

I want to leave you with this:

When was the last time you experienced Jesus? What made that moment so powerful? Ask God to create more moments like this and create space to encounter him.

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