Intimacy with Jesus

[00:00:02] Speaker A: Welcome to the YA podcast. Lean in as we dive into the [00:00:06] Speaker B: practicals of life with Jesus as spirit filled young adults. Welcome back, everyone, to the young adults podcast podcast. We are so excited to be back again for another episode in season six. This is Jess, as you know, and I'm joined by a dear and wonderful friend of mine, Jothi. Why don't you say hello? [00:00:41] Speaker A: Hi. [00:00:42] Speaker B: Hi, everyone. Jothi and I met just over a year ago, I think in numa, and over the past year she has been mentoring me in the scriptures and has just been so pivotal in my life and my development. And I wanted to bring her onto the podcast today. But most people maybe have heard about you or maybe seen you in the foyer, but not necessarily know you. So why don't you tell the listeners a little bit about yourself? [00:01:08] Speaker A: Yes. Thank you, Jess, for inviting me into this podcast. It's been such an honor and a privilege and thank you for allowing me to mentor you in the scriptures. That's been such a blessing in my life, you know, Praise God. Yeah. So I have been a disciple of Jesus since the age of nine. But along the way I met Jesus personally and I began to develop an intimacy with him which I value and cherish. He is my treasure, my pleasure, everything, the precious pearl that I have found, you know, so that's my first identity. I'm also a wife and a mom and I've been in Melbourne since two and a half years. And coming to numa, it's been such a interesting journey. [00:02:02] Speaker B: Yeah, yeah. We're so glad that you came to Melbourne. We're so glad that you came to Nima. And as you've already mentioned, like your first, your first priority and your first identity is to Jesus and being his disciple. And that was the thing that drew me to you in the first place. [00:02:18] Speaker A: Thank you. [00:02:19] Speaker B: I think I'd heard about you. I maybe said hello, but the first conversation I distinctly remember, you were just exuding the love of Jesus. And it reminds me of the scriptures in acts that talk about, you know, when they saw Peter and John, they knew that they'd been with Jesus. [00:02:35] Speaker A: Thank you. [00:02:36] Speaker B: And when I was talking to you like, wow, this woman has been with Jesus. And especially at that time of my life, I was feeling a little bit disconnected, feeling a little bit dry, and said to you, can you teach me how to love Jesus the way you do? And that's what started our relationship. [00:02:53] Speaker A: I remember that. And yeah. So intimacy with Jesus has been a big part of my life and that's what I teach through the book of Song of Solomon, how to develop, how to behold Jesus, how to know his heart. And when you get to know his heart, the beauty of his heart, you can't help but fall in love with Him. So that's the path, the pursuit through Song of Solomon. And that came by a personal calling from Jesus. As he was teaching me through Song of Solomon, he kind of revealed to me that he wants me to use me to bring him as a person, his likes. What is he like, what is his character? And to relate to that, to people and to bring them to intimacy with Jesus. And the book that he taught me, the platform that he. He wanted me to use, was through the book of Song of Solomon. So, yeah, that's. Yeah, that's kind of my journey. And so talking about intimacy. [00:04:04] Speaker B: Yeah, that's very good. [00:04:05] Speaker A: I would just want to share the scripture with you. Psalm 91:1, it says that he who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. [00:04:18] Speaker B: Beautiful. [00:04:19] Speaker A: So, you know, it says that he who dwells in the secret place. So we know that dwelling is kind of a permanent stay. It's not coming in and going out of his presence. [00:04:30] Speaker B: Dwelling. [00:04:31] Speaker A: Yeah. It is that abiding presence. Right. And so when you abide in his presence, you develop that intimacy with Him. You get to know him as a person, his character, his voice, his heart, his power, his beauty, his majesty. I mean, there's so much more, you know, I think we will never arrive. You know, we will be learning eternally, even in heavens, getting to know Jesus on a deeper level. And then again in John 17:3, Jesus says, this is eternal life, that they know youw, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. So eternal life for a believer starts here on earth when we invite Jesus into our lives. And Jesus talks about knowing the Father, knowing Jesus. And that knowing in the Greek is ginosko, or in the Hebrew, it's yada, which means an experiential, tangible, intimate knowing. [00:05:39] Speaker B: Wow. [00:05:39] Speaker A: So. So it is to this relationship that Jesus invites us to know him experientially, to know him tangibly, to know him intimately. And that happens in any relationship. We have to spend time. We have to give that time to Jesus to get to know Him. So that's kind of the first part of intimacy, getting to know Him. The second part of intimacy, I would say getting to know ourselves through his eyes. [00:06:16] Speaker B: Yes, that's really good. [00:06:17] Speaker A: Yeah. So it's getting to know us too, because there are a lot of things that we don't know about ourselves. [00:06:24] Speaker B: That's very true. [00:06:25] Speaker A: And the world gives us their point of view, but we want to learn about ourselves. We want to discover ourselves through the lens of Jesus, the lens of the Holy Spirit. [00:06:36] Speaker B: That's really true because I think sometimes we think we know ourselves best, but ultimately the Holy Spirit knows us better. The Trinity knows us better than we know ourselves. He intricately wove us in our mother's womb, it says in Psalm 139. So, yeah, it's. That's cool, because it's not. It's both. It's both knowing him, but even knowing ourselves, it's. [00:06:57] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:06:58] Speaker B: Ultimately, it's not a selfish motivation to have intimacy with Jesus, but it does benefit us. [00:07:03] Speaker A: Yes, definitely. And you know what? When we get to know ourselves through Jesus eyes, what he thinks about us, we discover our value and worth and identity in Him. [00:07:16] Speaker B: Yes. [00:07:17] Speaker A: And that will not be shaken because the world will try to shake it. The devil will try to shake that value, that worth, that significance. But when we really get to know ourselves through him, through his eyes, we can always go back. We can anchor ourselves in how he sees us, what he thinks about us. So that's kind of the, you know, offshoot, like, you know, a bonus to intimacy. And, you know, we get to enjoy his presence. We get to hear his voice, whether to turn to the left or to the right. The Holy Spirit, you know, speaks through you. There's so much, you know, into that, and it's a beautiful journey. So I just want to, you know, I just pray that the Holy Spirit would stir everyone's hearts to be excited about this journey with Jesus, that we can grow into this intimacy. We can get to know him as a person. And he is one of. I mean, I wouldn't even say one of the. But he is the most beautiful person I have ever met. [00:08:19] Speaker B: Amen. [00:08:19] Speaker A: You know, and there is scripture to it. Psalm 45. 2 says. [00:08:23] Speaker B: I was just thinking of that. [00:08:24] Speaker A: It says, you are the most excellent of men, and your lips have been anointed with grace. So why wouldn't we want to get to know such a person? You know, it's so good to hang out with him, you know, so, yeah, [00:08:40] Speaker B: I love that you just painted such a beautiful picture of the secret place and of dwelling in Him. I think that especially this generation of believers, like, we know that we need to spend time with God. We know that it's a good thing. Okay, I should get up early in the morning and read my Bible, but maybe not from the revelation of His Beauty, maybe from a legalistic mindset or a religious mindset of, oh, this is what I should do, instead of actually approaching it in this beautiful way that you've presented that he is the lover of our soul, he is the most beautiful among thousands, as it says that. That he is the most beautiful one and that he desires us and that we can desire him. So what would you say? Like, how would you encourage people to actually get to know him, like, to get started? How do you steward? How do you cultivate that intimacy? [00:09:31] Speaker A: Yeah. So, you know, I like when I. I mean, and that's very natural, what you said that, you know, we go to Jesus for our needs, to meet our needs. You know, we have issues in our lives. We want things to go well. So we always. I mean, I went to Jesus like that, too, because I had issues in my life, you know, and I really went to him just to, you know, seek help. And I want things to be fixed and life to go well. So I went to him, right? And I remember I had this long list of requests. But as I went to him with this long list, and I was methodically, mechanically praying through that, I found I almost fell asleep, you know, I mean, I'm sure we can all relate to that. There is this, you know, spiritual boredom and spiritual complacency that sets in, you know. So I remember asking the Lord one day, one morning, that, is this what all prayer, like, you know, is meant to be? It feels so boring. Like, you know, I'm almost yawning and falling asleep. Yeah. And I remember the Holy Spirit speaking to me through an impression. I said, like, you know, what is in your hand? So I said, it's my list, you know. So I said, did I ask you to pray those things in the list? So I said, no, it's my list. And I, you know, that's how. That's all I knew, right. But then the Lord said, ask me what I should pray and I will show it to you. So, and that changed my prayer life because I began to ask the Holy Spirit, Holy Spirit, will you help me to pray? And I also applied that to keeping my quiet time, because, like you said, like, we know we should get up or we should spend some time, but there are so many distractions, right? So I began to ask the Holy Spirit, Holy Spirit, I want to make a commitment to pray to meet with Jesus. And I even kind of considered it as an appointment with God. So I want to meet him and make this appointment with Him. But will you help me? Like, I will do it maybe for a week and then fail. But Holy Spirit, you know, will you help me? So I remember very clearly my timing was like 5am in the morning because I had Samuel and, you know, like, I was, you know, so I had to wake up a bit more early. But I remember Holy Spirit waking me up at five. Even Samuel would cry sometimes. Exactly at five. [00:12:05] Speaker B: Wow. [00:12:06] Speaker A: You know, so he has a way of waking you up and stirring you up and reaching and nodding you and prompting you. Yeah, but we need to understand that tug. [00:12:16] Speaker B: We need to. [00:12:17] Speaker A: And partner with him and yield to that tug. You know, we can also reject it. We can kind of turn on the other side and sleep. That can also happen. But if you yield to that tug, if you surrender, if you partner with him, he will, you know, it won't feel like a chore. It won't feel like a burden. That's what I have experienced, you know, so. But giving that time is the essence of building intimacy. Because, you know, we can't build a relationship with anyone without giving time. [00:12:50] Speaker B: Absolutely. Yeah. [00:12:51] Speaker A: And without communication. Right. So that's. I would say that seek the help of the Holy Spirit. He is our helper. He will help. He wants to help. He's waiting for us to ask. Yes. And as we get into that pattern or a rhythm of quiet time with the help of the Holy Spirit, also ask him, teach me to pray. Disciples ask that question. [00:13:15] Speaker B: Right. [00:13:15] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:13:15] Speaker B: I was thinking that. [00:13:17] Speaker A: Teach us to pray so he will cast the Holy Spirit will. And it won't be like a long list. I remember in my life that, you know, he cut off everyone in the long list or everything. And he would maybe like, ask me to pray for two or three people. But what he did was he began to show me the things behind the scenes, so to speak. Like, why are some people acting the way they are? You know, and he began to show me things that happened in their past or, you know, what's going on in their heart. And that kind of made the prayer very exciting because now I am doing targeted prayers. [00:14:01] Speaker B: Yes. [00:14:02] Speaker A: Like, you know, it's hitting the target. Like, I'm not generally praying because the Holy Spirit is helping me to see what the strongholds are, what the bondages are, you know, and giving me the scripture to pray. And it's also, we have to have the Bible with us. [00:14:19] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:14:20] Speaker A: And a journal as we pray, even if it's a short time, you know, have your Bible opened up, have a journal, because he will give you thoughts. He will take you to scriptures. And so that's kind of my experience with stewarding the intimacy. And then, you know, you begin to fall in love with him. Like he. Through prayer, he opens up in himself. [00:14:45] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:14:46] Speaker A: He talks. And I'm sure you would have experienced all that, right? [00:14:49] Speaker B: Totally. And I think what you're saying is really beautiful because when it's just a list, when it's just a ritual or a chore, it can very easily become boring. And you think, oh, well, this is all there is to God. But when you actually get to know him and the Holy Spirit leads, you realize how limitless God is. [00:15:07] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:15:07] Speaker B: And you fill yourself with scripture and Holy Spirit reminds you of this verse. And you get to go on this journey of discovering this God that is deep and wide and high and beautiful and magnificent and. And yeah, it just takes you on such a different journey when you actually let him lead it. Because prayer, I mean, we're talking about intimacy, which is ultimately the key, is through prayer. Yeah, but prayer, I think it was. I wish I had the quote in front of me, but some of the desert fathers, I believe, or the early monks, Christian monks, said that the primary purpose of prayer is relationship with God. [00:15:46] Speaker A: So true. [00:15:47] Speaker B: Coming with our list, it's not to get something from him, but it is to purpose, is to know Him. [00:15:52] Speaker A: Know Him. And yeah, that is so true. I mean, that's what I have, you know, experienced. But there's always a starting point, there's always a commitment. And the Holy Spirit is right there to help you because he wants us to grow in intimacy. He will magnify Jesus. He will reveal Jesus through the scriptures, through the prayers. He will reveal Jesus because that's what he loves to do. And so know that the Holy Spirit is right there with you. You're not alone. And he's also the senior partner in prayer because the Bible says in the book of Zechariah that He is the Spirit of grace and supplication. So he is the spirit of prayer. And in Romans, you know, the scripture says that the Holy Spirit will help us to pray when we do not know what to pray, that he will help us to pray, you know, in our weakness, you know, so he is the one, you know, to recognize him, to ask him for help. Yeah, that's the key. That's the key, you know, of having this. Stewarding the secret place, you know, and we can, you know, one of the other things that I have found out in my life is we can come to him as we are. Like, we don't need to pretend that, you know, oh, Lord, you know, we have to be praying these smart prayers. And you know, if we are bored, we can say, lord, I don't even have the desire to pray today. Give me the desire to desire you. Give me the desire to pray to you. Because you can start from that very low place. And he is willing to work with us. We don't have to pretend about anything. And if our hearts are feeling anxious and depressed, sometimes we feel so low we don't want to pray. Yeah, because those things, you know, bombard like, you know, issues of our life circumstances. You know, we feel low, we feel depressed, we don't feel connected to him. But the key is to bring our hearts as it is and say, lord, this is my heart. This is where I am today. I feel depressed, I feel low, I feel anxious, I feel fearful, I feel stressed. I don't feel like praying, but I come to you and just as I am to find grace. And actually it's Hebrews 4, 15, 16, you know, it's a beautiful scripture. It says that for we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have the one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are, yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God's throne of grace with confidence so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. [00:18:54] Speaker B: That's beautiful. [00:18:54] Speaker A: So I always ask Jesus, Jesus, did you go through this struggle that I'm going through now? I'm sure you would have had days you didn't want to pray to the Father. You would have struggled because it says he struggled with everything that we went through. He struggled with the same weakness that we are facing. Right. And so he understands, he empathizes. He can feel for us like, you know, what it's like, what are we going through? And then he says, we can approach his throne. So we are with confidence. We are not confident in our hearts, but we are confident about his heart. [00:19:32] Speaker B: Beautiful. [00:19:33] Speaker A: That his heart is committed towards, to picking us up from that low place. He is faithful. He wants to see us through. He wants to partner with us in coming to overcoming these things and being connected to him, staying in that relationship. So it's not about the confidence of our hearts, it's about his heart. We are confident about his grace, his mercy that is available to us in times of our need, in times of our desperation, that we can go to him with confidence. Because his heart is stable. [00:20:11] Speaker B: Yes. [00:20:11] Speaker A: You know, his heart is loving, he is kind. His heart doesn't Shift like our heart. [00:20:18] Speaker B: Yep. We're on the roller coaster. And he's the fly. Like, he's the ground. [00:20:22] Speaker A: He's steadfast. His love is steadfast. His faithfulness is enduring. His mercy is enduring. [00:20:29] Speaker B: Beautiful. Yeah. [00:20:30] Speaker A: You know, and that's what the scripture says, that your faithfulness and your mercy and your love endures forever. And so we can find that grace and he will move our hearts if we are consistent with him. Like, you know, if you just keep on telling him, lord, my heart hasn't shifted today, but will you shift me? You know, I just went through a period where I was really hurt by a family member in my life, you know, and I kind of like really grieving over that relationship. And I had, you know, unforgiveness to start off with. I had. I mean, I was even worried whether it'll develop into bitterness. And I didn't want that. I wanted. I felt a lack of love, you know, to be honest, like, you know, towards that person. And I tried to change myself, you know, and I said, I don't want to feel this way. I don't want to be this way. And I started quoting scriptures, but it didn't really work. So finally I went to God and I said, lord, this is my heart. I feel the unforgiveness. I feel bitterness is developing in me. I don't like. I feel a lack of love. But I want to give it to you as it is, you know, I want to give. I surrender my heart as it. This is where I am today. Will you forgive me? Will you help me to shift my heart? Will you move me, my heart, to a place of love and forgiveness? And today I can feel my heart is much more lighter, much more warmer, much more peaceful. Able to forgive, able to let go, able to love that person. Because he shifted my heart. He worked in my heart. His grace, you know, I call the grace kind of a lubricant because it makes it bearable, you know? You know, there's like, softness developing in your heart. And, you know, he moves my heart from a place of unforgiveness. And. And he healed my heart. He healed my wounds. Bound off my broken heart. Help me to forgive, move on, see that person in a new light. Pray for that person. All of that I tried in my own strength. Didn't work. But when I came to him, just as I am, and surrendered, Lord, this is it. Take it and replace it with your love. It does happen. He does work. It's real. [00:22:51] Speaker B: That's beautiful. I was before Recording this, I felt the Holy Spirit just prompt me to encourage people that they can come in authenticity before God. So I love that you're talking about that. He reminded me in Romans 8 that you referred to earlier. But at the end of the chapter, it talks about what can separate us from God's love. And ultimately it goes through a list. You know, can, can famine or nakedness, poverty, death. Nothing, nothing can separate us from his love. And so he will always meet us. But we need to come with our honesty and exactly what you. Just to summarize what you're saying. Yeah, it's. It's us coming with a genuine heart and saying God, actually today I don't feel like it. Today I have bitterness in my heart. Today I am hurt. And back to what we said earlier. He knows us better than we know ourselves. So he already knows that we just need to be honest and actually allow him to meet us there. Because ultimately nothing can separate us from his love. [00:23:51] Speaker A: Yeah, yeah. [00:23:52] Speaker B: None of these things can cause him to not love us. [00:23:56] Speaker A: Yeah, yeah. [00:23:57] Speaker B: But we need to actually meet them. Would you say though that on the other side of the coin there are things that can become a hindrance to us relating to God or blockage to our intimacy with Jesus? [00:24:09] Speaker A: Yeah, yeah. So, you know, it's good that you mentioned that because when you, you know, like we all know the distractions, you know. [00:24:19] Speaker B: Yes. [00:24:20] Speaker A: And I guess the first thing that comes to our mind is our smartphone, the social media, the distraction. So I almost find a parallel life in the sense that we go to church on Sunday or we attend a meeting on Wednesday, whether it's young adults or Bible study or whatever. Then we have these worship nights and conferences and all of that. We attend as Christians and we are excited to be together and all. But the other days of the week we have this life relationship with the social media, TikTok, Instagram, you know, scrolling and not that it is wrong, but it occupies, it's conditioning us, you know, it occupies the most of our time and our attention and our affection. And now lately AI has been added into the picture. [00:25:18] Speaker B: So. [00:25:19] Speaker A: So I was having a conversation with a friend of mine and you know, she was saying that how we can go to ChatGPT and ask for. I mean, I'm sure we all know that, but you know, it's very common to ask ChatGPT not to just use it as a tool, but to go to ChatGPT for personal need. Like, I'm feeling lonely today, I'm feeling a bit down, I feel stuck, you know, I don't know what to do. I feel unhappy and anxious. And so there is a research, I think a study that has just come out that says, I think it's 2025, the majority of the people used ChatGPT for counseling and therapy. Wow. That means we are going to ChatGPT. [00:26:15] Speaker B: Wow. [00:26:16] Speaker A: For personal emotional needs to be met. And I think that is a dangerous place because the Bible and it's for Christians. Right. And a lot of Christians, they don't think about this because it's a very subtle thing. We can get sucked into this. Right. And so because the Bible clearly says the Holy Spirit is our helper, he is our comforter, he is our counselor and the wisdom of God as we wait upon him, what we get, his wisdom, the revelation of his wisdom is incomparable. Like what ChatGPT gives is your programmed data based wisdom and its algorithm. And it's a machine. But there is lately lot of efforts have been put into making. Look, I mean I look like he's a person. [00:27:15] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:27:16] Speaker A: You know, so that we can have a human connection. Like, you know, they will say that, you know, we have seen like, you know, this AI companion. Right. [00:27:25] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:27:26] Speaker A: So which to a young child, I mean, like, oh, he's the companion, he's the friend. [00:27:31] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:27:31] Speaker A: You know, that you can go to. And especially when we are vulnerable, when we are alone, when we are, I mean it's such a temptation to connect and there's somebody to talk to. And I've even heard that, you know, a family member of mine saying ChatGPT answers me quickly, but God doesn't answer me. [00:27:49] Speaker B: Wow. [00:27:50] Speaker A: You know, which, like, you know, I have to, you know, I don't know whether God will answer me instantaneously or immediately, but I hear from ChatGPT quickly. So why can't I go to ChatGPT? So, so that is a. I mean I wouldn't like that's a kind of a valid thought process that, you know, we can have. But waiting upon God does something in our heart. [00:28:15] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:28:16] Speaker A: You know, the thing about ChatGPT is ChatGPT will never convict you. It will always tell you what you want to hear. [00:28:23] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:28:25] Speaker A: What your like, you know, it's like [00:28:27] Speaker B: a confirmation bias in a sense. It's like because even when, sorry, even when we talk to someone else, they might say something that is somewhat what we want to hear, but there's still a different perspective. Whereas AI can literally just give you what you want to hear. [00:28:44] Speaker A: Yeah. AI is programmed that way. AI is programmed to be nice to you. [00:28:48] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:28:49] Speaker A: You know, it'll never give you a. Like a, you know, like a conviction from a point of view of conviction. This is not right. [00:28:57] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:28:57] Speaker A: This is wrong. You know, so if I can just [00:29:00] Speaker B: jump in for a sec. I was actually just listening to some news on the way here, but lawsuits against. [00:29:05] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:29:05] Speaker B: One of the AI companies because it had. And I don't want to talk about what. What. What specific crimes actually led to, but people suggesting. I'm thinking about doing this and with no moral ethical compass. [00:29:19] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:29:20] Speaker B: The. The AI companion suggested, oh, this is the best way to commit that crime. [00:29:27] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:29:27] Speaker B: And so literally, people are going to it. And for. [00:29:31] Speaker A: Yeah. I mean, there is data that it has happened. You know, so. So I think we, as Christians, we have to be. Because it is a deception. And especially among the young people. And even. And I think this is a conversation that, you know, like you, as the young adult pastor should have and in church, even among the children, like, because they are getting hooked to ChatGPT at the age of like 10, 11. [00:30:02] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:30:03] Speaker A: Literally 13. Like, you know, in that age, in that range. And then they don't. They won't know anything different. Like, you know, so I think this is a very important. Because it's deceiving. And the Bible says in the last days, even the elect will be deceived. So I can definitely see the deception that take your eyes off from God. There is a digital God here who answers you immediately. And coming back to that conversation of waiting upon the Lord, the Lord does a work of transformation in your heart to look like Jesus. He develops patience, he develops character, he develops love and all that in our hearts. And the wisdom of God that he reveals, you know, is so way, you know, high above. [00:30:52] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:30:53] Speaker A: There's no comparison. Right. I mean, ChatGPT might give you an immediate answer that will comfort your flesh. [00:30:58] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:30:59] Speaker A: But in the end, the Bible says if you follow the way of the flesh, it'll lead to death. [00:31:04] Speaker B: Yep. [00:31:04] Speaker A: But if you follow the spirit, it will lead to peace and everlasting life. So that's the difference. [00:31:11] Speaker B: Yeah, man. As soon as you started talking about this, and we're not trying to make an enemy of technology or anything like that, but as soon as he started talking, I just felt the faith. Father's heart. Yeah. And just his heartbreaking for us, his sons and daughters, that we would run to something other than him for to satisfy our flesh when he is the ultimate satisfaction of our souls. [00:31:32] Speaker A: Yeah. So use all means. Like, you know, take use of ChatGPT AI as a tool But I wouldn't connect with him for my emotional need and get, you know, satisfied and because Jesus is the only one who really satisfies the longing of our heart. And you know, you can still, after talking to ChatGPT, it might give you a temporary fix, but the next day you could feel depressed again. Because it hasn't been removed by Jesus. [00:32:04] Speaker B: Yes. [00:32:04] Speaker A: It hasn't been dealt by Jesus strength, by God's strength. And his presence is the one that will remove and break and give you freedom. Chachi. PT doesn't you know, it won't give you freedom. The Bible says if the Son of God sets you free, you are free. [00:32:25] Speaker B: Indeed. Indeed. [00:32:26] Speaker A: Right. [00:32:27] Speaker B: Amen. Amen. We could talk about this for hours and you're just a wealth of wisdom, but I mean, we do need to, like, start moving towards the close of the episode. But what are some, I guess, practical things that you would tell whether your younger self or you would tell the young adults that are listening to this? We've started to talk about practicals already, but in terms of. Yeah, really cultivating that relationship with Jesus. [00:32:55] Speaker A: Yeah. I mean, if you just asked me the question what I would tell my younger self. [00:33:00] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:33:01] Speaker A: I would go back because a lot of things that was happening between me and the Lord when I was really young, I didn't know, I didn't have a, you know, like, what do you say that I didn't have an understanding and knowing, like a framework. Right. You know, so I would, I, I would tell my younger self to maybe connect with a mentor, a person who has, like, been through this. Like, I was really being stirred by the Holy Spirit. I was having encounters with the Lord, you know, but I didn't have a clue that he was encountering me. Like, you know. [00:33:37] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:33:37] Speaker A: Only later on I understood that he was stirring my heart. And that's why I had this intense desire to connect and, you know, grow. And he did all those prompting, you know, there was visitations, like, you know, but I didn't have a clue. I just took it, you know, in my stride. And so I now would go back and say, connect with the mentor who has been through, you know, who has been intimate with Jesus, who knows the scriptures, not just the experiences, but who is back, you know, who's backing it up with the Word. [00:34:09] Speaker B: Yeah, great. [00:34:10] Speaker A: That's so important. Like, you know, don't just go for the experiential part of the Christian life. But, you know, there is foundation. The scripture, the word of God is the foundation. Back it up with the scripture. And if Something goes against the scripture, don't receive it. You know, so you have to have. It's good to have a mentor like that. So that's one of my, you know, the young adults, like, you know, pray for your mentor, connect with someone who can guide you in those things. Talk the process, like, you know, process it out, like, you know, just to, you know, process the scriptures together, process what's happening, you know, with the prayer life. Because a lot of people don't talk about the spiritual boredom, the dryness that we go through. They just give you, oh, you have to pray. And people struggle with these things. You know, you feel bored, you feel stuck. You know, you don't feel. Picking up the Bible and, you know, you feel sleepy. You need to talk about these things. These things happen. [00:35:11] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:35:12] Speaker A: But you can overcome that. So that is very important. So that's one of the practical things that I would, you know, advise the young people. [00:35:23] Speaker B: Thank you. And is there any other, like, final thoughts you want to share before we pray? [00:35:29] Speaker A: Yeah, I just want to. It's worth it. This journey is worth it. He is so totally worth it. And, you know, the Bible says, pick up your cross daily and follow me. But when you get to know who you are following, the cross feels lighter. [00:35:50] Speaker B: Amen. [00:35:51] Speaker A: The cross feels, you know, not like a bird. Like you're not scared of the cross because a lot of us focus on the first part of the words and forget, you know, like, don't know, follow me. And who are. Who is this person that we are following? Like, you know, you know, he is so worthy, he is so loving, he's so faithful. He will see you through so, you know, falling in love with him, growing in love with him, building intimacy with him that, you know, that is such a treasure to keep. [00:36:26] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:36:27] Speaker A: Yeah, that's what I want to do. [00:36:28] Speaker B: That's beautiful. Thank you so much. Just, even I can just sense the Lord's presence as we're talking, and I'm like, being so encouraged by this conversation. And. Yeah. As we just come to a close, would you just mind praying over our young adults that they would have that encounter with the person of Jesus and. And recognize his worthiness. [00:36:49] Speaker A: Amen. Oh, of course. I would love to. Yeah. [00:36:52] Speaker B: Thank you. [00:36:52] Speaker A: Of Father, we thank you. We thank you. We thank you for your love. We thank you, Lord, for this journey of intimacy that your invitation to get to know you personally, tangibly, experientially, through the Word, through the secret place of prayer. Lord, I pray even as the young adults. Father, whoever is listening to this conversation, Holy Spirit, you would begin to see stir up the desire in them to start this journey, to grow in a deeper level of intimacy with you. That you would give them the tools, the mentors, you would prompt them, that you would reveal yourself to them as their helper, Lord, who would initiate that longing in them and helping them to keep the quiet time and a secret place with the Lord. And you would reveal Jesus to them in a fresh new way. And they would continue that journey and impact others and bring others into intimacy with you. [00:38:00] Speaker B: Jesus. [00:38:00] Speaker A: Thank you, Jesus. We love you. In Jesus name we pray. Amen. [00:38:05] Speaker B: Amen. Amen. Well, young adults, I hope that that has blessed you. I hope this conversation has opened up your heart and wood you into him. And we would love to hear from you of how this has impacted you and just hear the stories that come out of that. So thank you so much, Jyoti, for your time, for being on this podcast and for blessing your community. [00:38:29] Speaker A: Pleasure. Thank you. [00:38:31] Speaker B: No worries. Well, we will see you guys next time. [00:38:39] Speaker A: Sam,