Let’s unpack Jesus’ encouragement to stay close to Him a little more. It is clear that His words point to a close and continuing relationship rather than a distant and intermittent one. How can we have such a relationship with Him? I guess the short answer would be that we do what we would do in any close friendship. We spend time with the person and open our hearts together, sharing and listening. It’s the same with Jesus, but because He is not bodily present with us, we must use our spiritual senses, or in the language of psychology, our ‘imagination’ to picture Him. This is often referred to as ‘practicing the presence of God.’ If this idea is new to you, why not stop now and take a moment to imagine Jesus with you, wherever you are. Then go a step further, imagining what He might say to you. Listen to His voice and take to heart whatever you hear. They will be the most important words you hear today!