Is it possible to be too familiar with God?
I was raised in a church that taught about the holiness of God, and the majesty and glory of His presence. I felt His presence many times, and it was a reverent time. It was a time to get saved at every Sunday night service.
A little history, my father was a very busy man throughout my childhood. My earliest remembrances are of him studying or working constantly. I felt like he only made time for me when I was sick.
Fast forward to my teens and I saw God as being too busy for my prayers, He would make time for me if no one else needed Him. I read a book that I can’t even remember the title of, but the essence was that God is a familiar God. He wants to be close to His children. What a foreign concept to me.
So I realized that God was not standing over me with a hammer just waiting for me to screw up, and I stopped getting saved over and over. My salvation is secure in Jesus. My debt has been paid and I am born again. Now I am in the sanctifying process. The process of being freed from sin and purified.
In my 30s, God declared to me that the heart of my father was never to push me away or make me feel unworthy AND that this was never Father God’s heart either. What a transformational revelation. I could stop trying to be good enough for God, He was going to help me be holy as He is holy. (Lev 20:26)
So, for me, no, I can’t be too familiar with God. But I understand that we can treat God in an unholy manner or as a “just-like-us” God. He is not!!! He is so much more.
At the time of creation, God walked with Adam and Eve in the garden. This was before sin entered the equation. He was very personal and they were very familiar with Him.
I believe that is the relationship God wants with us. To respect Him as the Creator of the Universe and a holy God, but also as a personal friend. It’s a fine line to walk.