Then, when you pray constantly throughout the rest of the day, you're doing so as you're doing other things...be it cleaning house, caring for children/grandchildren, working in your garden, shopping, at work, at school, visiting with friends or neighbors, etc. During that time, obviously, it's not just you and the Lord, as all kinds of other stuff is going on around you that you have to pay attention to. So your attention isn't fully on Him, but instead you're simply sharing what's going on in your day with Him.
Both types are needed to develop your relationship with the Lord.
Again, you can relate it to an earthly relationship, same thing goes for that kind too. If you're in love with someone, you want to spend time alone with them, so there's no outside interference; it's just the two of you alone, enjoying each others company, sharing your hopes and fears, and getting to know each other better and better. But we can't be alone with them all the time, so the rest of the time we just chat with them when we can, and it's usually not about personal stuff, but rather about every day things, like "did you take out the trash today?" or, "do you know where the ruler is?", or "would you please shut off that TV!" lol That kind of interaction is needed too though as it helps you continue to know one another better and how you each react during a busy day, and how well you can trust each other to remember things that are important, do the things that are important, etc.
Without both kinds of communication, we're keeping part of ourselves apart from God, a part He wants to share with us and not developing or experiencing the awesome and close relationship we can have with Him. It's like a person who's afraid to have someone love them so they only allow the person to get "so close" and then begin pushing them away. That's what we do wen we don't have both kinds of communication with Him.
It's really a shame too because that's what the Lord has been desiring to have with us since the beginning. It often breaks my heart when I'm studying or reading the old testament to see how very often our Father tried to get the people to have a real relationship with Him, and they just kept refusing. Like after the Exodus when He told Moses to gather all the people together and He would speak to them; but the people said "no!" They were too scared, and not really all that interested. As far as they were concerned, it was just fine with them for God to talk to Moses and then Moses could tell them what He wanted. They weren't interested in talking to Him or hearing from Him themselves. After all, that would make them different just like Moses was! (i always cry when I read that part...I imagine the Father standing with His arms open wide, eager to embrace His children, that He just rescued from slavery, and every one of His children, turned their backs and walked away.
) That story is in Exodus 19-20; Deuteronomy 5, and Hebrews 12:18–21. When the Lord talks about "knowing us" or "calling us by name", He's talking about the kind of relationship where everything is shared...both the intimate times of sharing what's in each others heart and the times of just sharing our day with Him. That's similar to what He's talking about when He says to "abide in Him", "live in Him" or "walk in Him." I guess you could say it's the difference between having Him as a well known acquaintance, like you might know a co-worker, and knowing Him intimately, like you would a husband or wife; or the difference between knowing all about Him and really knowing Him; the big difference is between head knowledge and heart knowledge. I think that's part of the reason He uses illustrations of marriage so often when referring to His relationship with Israel or with us; and the illustration of adultery when speaking of those who have abandoned Him for the world.
When we really stop and think about it...what an extraordinary privileged we have! The creator of the universe, the God who formed our bodies and gave us our intelligence and talents etc. is the very same God who came to this earth and gave up His life so that we might spend eternity with Him. All because He loves us - not as some impersonal "group" of homo sapiens, but as individuals! And He loved us even when we were at our very worst, drowning and wallowing in a pit of sin and evil.
Nor does He loves as as we might love a lower life form, like a cat, dog or bird or fish. No matter how much we might love them, we would never literally make them our children and leave our inheritance to them! (not if we had a sound mind anyway - what would they do with a dishwasher, microwave, dishes, vacuum, computer, TV, car, and money???) But God loves us that way! He loves us so much that besides creating us, He quite literally, and legally makes us who have His children! It always reminds me of what John said: 1 John 3:1 —How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! * That could just as easily be translated, "what an amazing, fantastic, love the Father has for us" or "what a peculiar, out of this world kind of love the Father has for us", etc. John's run out of words to describe it, just like we do!
And this God who loves us so very much, so far beyond what we can even comprehend, isn't satisfied with just knowing us intimately...He wants us to know Him intimately! That is just truly incredible! Like when He walked in the garden with Adam and Eve every day, talking to them, loving them, teaching them; that's what He wants with each and every one of us. That's why He wants us to spend both private time with Him every day as well as continue to share our day with Him throughout the day. It's incredible!
He wants to walk with us and be with us. He loves us and tells us He will never, ever leave us, and that absolutely nothing can separate us from Him anymore because He is greater and stronger by far then everything and everyone, including us. So He calls us to know His Heart, which is contained in His Word, and tells us that through these two kinds of prayer and knowing His Word, we can really know Him. It's really mind boggling, isn't it? And yet still today, people do the very same thing Israel did. They turn their backs and walk away, saying, they'll just listen to what He's said to someone else instead of hearing from Him themselves; or just walk away and completely ignore Him. It breaks my heart all over again.
As you can probably tell, I think about this alot...I can't help it...the Lord has freely given us such a fantastic, unbelievable privilege of knowing Him intimately, it makes me want to stand up and sing and shout His praises!
