Intentional Intimacy

Jesus gave specific instructions about prayer in this verse. The word “room” He uses in Matthew 6:6, tameion, is defined in Strong’s Greek Dictionary as a secret chamber, a place where you go for privacy, or a storage place, like a closet. All three of these concepts unmistakably emphasize the fact that this place should be private and cut off from the comings and goings of the household. It should be a place where the world can be shut out.

The sharing of a special, secret place is an intimate act in itself. If there is a place where you meet with one person, and with nobody else, that place becomes one of the hallowed sanctuaries of the relationship. The Lord wants intimacy with us.

Intentionality is when you do something by decision instead of by default. The power of intent is huge in the Kingdom. Being intentional means that you have determined to make something a priority.

The Scriptures in Matthew 11:12 tell us, and from the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force. This means we take the Kingdom by pressing in with intentional force.

We go places with specific purposes in mind. When we go to work, we’re there to work. When we go to the gym, we’re there to work out. When we go to our secret place with God, we should be there to spend time with Him, and for no other reason.

Going to specific places for specific meetings with God is all through the Bible. God told Abraham to go to an uncertain place before He would show him anything else. Moses had to go to the top of the mountain, Jesus told the disciples to meet Him in Galilee, and another time, to wait in Jerusalem for the Holy Spirit.

Jesus was intentional about going to the cross to offer us forgiveness and inviting us into a close, intimate relationship. Prayer done with intentionality and intimacy is our RSVP to our King.