2 Corinthians 13:4 (New International Version)
4For to be sure, he was crucified in weakness, yet he lives by God's power. Likewise, we are weak in him, yet by God's power we will live with him to serve you.
I have often said and heard others say, they want to deepen their personal relationship with God. But, what exactly are we seeking? If we look up the word relationship in the dictionary we find the following five characteristics:
1. Connection
2. Friendship
3. Behavior or Feelings toward somebody else
4. Bond/Link
5. Connection By Family
So what I believe we are looking for is a personal connection, that is strong like a friendship, that these feelings we have are returned, that the bond/link is unbreakable, and that we become connected like a family. The Bible tells us over and over that is exactly what God is offering us.
How do we build this type of relationship with God? I believe it is the same way you would build a personal relationship with anyone. But, there is one major difference God will never disappoint us like others will. God is perfection thus, his love for us is perfect. So how does one build a relationship? I believe there are three main ways to build the personal relationship we are looking for.
We must seek presence.
We must trust in God's Love For Us
We need to build our bond with God by learning to live as he did.
1. Seeking God’s Presence.
What does this mean? Think about this in terms of building a friendship with someone you met and really think is fun and interesting. How do we build these relationships? We call them on the phone and talk, go out to eat or a movie (we find their interests, dreams, and desires). We want to know where they are from and where they are going. Well it is the same with God. Okay we can’t go to the movies but we can do a lot of things that will help us Seek His Presence.
We must read the Bible. God has given us the Bible as his spoken word to us. It is stressed over and over but cannot be said enough. When you read the Bible God will use his words to speak directly to your heart. Many complain that when they read the Bible they do not understand what is being said. That is a major cop out – there are many study guides and newer translations that can help us with understanding. God will reveal to us his purpose for us if we ask.
Psalm 119:11 (King James Version)
11Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.
That is the Second way we seek God’s presence is through Prayer. We MUST spend time with God. This is how we will develop a true walk with our Lord. When something good or bad or sad happens in your life, if you are like me you cannot wait to get on the phone and talk to someone you love and give them the 4-1-1. Well, God needs to be the first "phone call" we make. I love the fact that I have God's direct phone number and don't need an operator to connect my call. I believe that we should want to rush to the Lord in prayer each day. This needs to be a personal one on one with our Lord. I don't have to wait in line to get his attention. He love me and want wants me to come to him and lay my burdens at his feet. We must talk to him and listen for his answers. We must not just talk to God when we have a problem. How many times have you waited till the end of the day when you are lying in bed to take the time to pray? What happens??? I can assure you that Satan will find his way into that moment. He will give you magic sleeping dust to sleep or through thoughts of the day into your mind and distract you from your time with the Lord. Satan does not want us to find this personal relationship with God. He wants us to loose our focus and not grow into strong Christian examples. Let me give you a little more to think about - if we want our relationship with God to be strong and on a personal level why is it that we often seek his presence at the end of the day? Why do we not find a time, everyday, time set aside just for our walk with the Lord.
Colossians 4:2-4 (New International Version)
2Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. 3And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. 4Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-23 (New King James Version)
16 Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
How else can we seek God’s Presence? For many of us Christian music can bring us closer to God’s presence. Listening to ministers preach, youth leaders, seminars, books, tapes, or any other media that talks about God will help you grow to know God further.
2. Learn to Trust in God's Love for Us.
What does this mean? To me this means that we must have FAITH. Faith is a funny thing. One day I have a lot then the next day I am struggling to let go. Like I said before it sucks to be human. God will not let us down. His love for us should never be in doubt. John 3:16-17 says it all to me:
16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.
3. Seeking the special bond with God by living a life that will bring us closer to God.
How will I ever be able to follow God's commandments or live the way God wants me to? Will this really help me to feel closer to him? What will help me link or bond my life to him? I believe that the only way to be closer to someone is to spend time with them and to respect and honor their beliefs and needs. I believe if we try to live like Jesus is walking beside us each day (because he really is) imagining that he is watching over everything you do and say (because he is) we will draw closer to him because we will be living more like Jesus and we will be following his examples. Of course we will never achieve perfection, but if we strive to live and love like Christ, I believe he will bless us and we will find ourselves drawing closer to him in all ways. The best part is that once we confess our sins we are apart of God's family immediately and it isn't dependent on us being able to earn this love. Just like building a relationship with someone you need to really put all of yourself into it.
John 14:15 (New King James Version)
15 “If you love Me, keep[a] My commandments.
I am sure that I have missed other ways for us to build our personal relationship with God - so share your feelings about this. Remember God wants this relationship just as much as we do. He is always there waiting for us to draw closer to him.
No comments:
Post a Comment