Knowing God's Heart

A short on intimate knowing of God

There’s a line Joe Jonas sings that stopped me mid-scroll: “I know your heart by heart.” Not I know your thoughts. Not I know your name. Not even I know your voice. But I know your heart… by heart. I’ve memorized it. Internalized it. I’ve let it shape me.

And I wondered, what would it mean to say that about God?

Not that I know about God. Not that I know what He wants from me. But that I know His heart by heart. The rhythm of His mercy. The shape of His tenderness. The pauses He takes before responding. The way His voice cracks when He’s moved by compassion. The ache He feels for His creation. The laugh that bubbles up when we get it—when we finally see.

To know God’s heart by heart is to carry more than memory. It’s to live so close that love becomes muscle memory. It’s to have wept beside Him, danced with Him, walked miles in silence with Him. It’s to have learned the contours of His affection, not through theology alone but through time, intimacy, presence.

Jesus says in John 10v14 (ESV): “I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me.”

There it is.
Mutual knowing.
Deep recognition.
Heart by heart.

And I wonder if this is what the saints and mystics meant when they said things like: “God can be known, but only by love.” That you can memorize scripture and still miss the scent of His nearness. That you can serve Him for years and never look Him in the eyes.

But those who know His heart by heart…they walk through fire and somehow still sing. They recognize Him in the wind and in the whisper. They don’t need the clouds to part or the mountain to shake. They’ve memorized His silence. They know His stillness.

I want to be one of those. Not just a preacher of God, but a knower of His heart. Not just a thinker of faith, but a friend of the Flame.

Because when the storms rage, when the prayers go unanswered, when the path goes dim, doctrines may fail me. But memory won’t. The memory of His heart. The memory of how it feels when He leans in. The memory of being known.

So may we become those who know His heart by heart. Not for the applause. Not for the certainty. But for the friendship. The nearness. The love that remakes us.

Oh and that Joe Jonas song I spoke about earlier, You can find it here.