How to Have an Encounter with God

Paul was knocked off his horse by Jesus. The result: he became the man who wrote half of the New Testament.Moses stumbled upon a burning bush. The result: he partnered with God to deliver the Israelites from slavery.Peter was filled with the Holy Spirit. The result: he saw 3,000 people saved and helped found the church.Jesus saw the Father in heaven and the Holy Spirit came upon him. The result: he went into the desert and then started a life of miracles.There's a pattern here: Encounter with God leads to radical change in intimacy with God and impact. It was about five years ago that I began to desire an encounter with God. I had heard stories of other people who had had encounters and how it changed their lives, and I knew that I wanted my life and my impact to go to another level. I began asking and asking that God would touch me in such a way that it would change my life and my ministry.Then one night, I decided to pray all night, from 11am-6am. At three in the morning, I started to experience something that is hard to explain in a blog. My body started to reverberate with a kind of electricity from heaven, and this lasted for about three hours. I sensed God's presence so powerfully and strongly that it had a physical impact on my body. I had what many would refer to as an "encounter." And something shifted.A few months later, a woman from a village who had only recently accepted Jesus told me she had a dream about me. In the dream, a man appeared to her and said, "Jonny and his wife are full of power and they can do anything." I was stunned. Something had happened in me, and it was being confirmed even to a new believer in a village.From that moment, my life changed. I began to experience a deeper level of intimacy and ability to hear God's voice. I also began to see God do many supernatural signs and wonders that I had never seen before.And it all started with an encounter. An encounter is an event or an experience with God in which there is a supernatural manifestation of God's presence in your life. It is out of the ordinary, and it is often marked by some kind of physical sense of the presence of God.I share my story and the stories from the Scriptures to build your faith that you could have an encounter as well, an encounter that could shape and transform the way that you do life and ministry. I want to lay out here several encounter principles.

1. You need an encounter - The Word and the body of Christ are full of people who had a radical encounter with God. This wasn't just a head-knowledge new level of understanding, but a moment in which they saw God or were shaken to the core, and this moment brought massive change in their lives and ministries. We all need supernatural breakthrough in our lives, and encounters are one part of getting to where we need to go.
2. You can position yourself to have an encounter - There are several things you can do to put yourself in a position where you would have an encounter. One is to ask God for an encounter. A second is to ask other people to pray for you to have an encounter. A third is to be around other people who have had encounters and to hear their stories to build your faith that an encounter is both relevant and possible. A fourth is to learn to wait on God, to be in his presence and to expect him to meet with you. A fifth is to consider doing a long fast, as I talked about in this article.
3. Once you have had an encounter, you need another encounter - Peter experienced Pentecost, and then later in Acts 4, he had another encounter with the Holy Spirit and was filled with boldness. Encounters aren't just a one time event, but they are a way of life. The goal is ultimately to have a daily encounter with Jesus, to daily have our minds renewed by his presence.
4. Encounters often initiate a process - Moses still wasn't a perfect leader after the burning bush, and Paul was not ready to share the gospel after he was knocked off his horse. But the encounter began a process of change in their lives.
5. Encounters do not guarantee obedience - Peter, James, and John had a significant encounter at the mount of transfiguration, yet they still abandoned Jesus when he went to the cross. Even after we have had an encounter, we still have to make intentional decisions to obey what God has told us to do.
6. You can't always control when you are going to have an encounter - Encounters can't always be experienced on demand. Several of the encounters from the Bible mentioned above were certainly not expected. We can position ourselves for an encounter, but God is the one who ultimately has to show up. The key is to believe that he wants to give you an encounter.

What is your story of encounter and how it changed your life?