Growing Closer

January 14th, 2022

Growing Closer
Are you a person that tends to wait for change, or someone who tends to initiate change? What’s the practical difference in your life?

For people who value a relationship with God through Jesus, most would say they want to grow closer in that relationship with Him. But do we wait for that to happen or initiate action that helps that happen?
What do you think is within your realm to draw closer in your relationship with God? Or you could ask another question that might be easier to answer, “How do I cultivate friendships with people?”
Let’s start with some things we know about what God desires in our relationship with him:

We can have a close, active, everyday relationship with Jesus, who loves us just like God the Father loves Him (John 15:9). That’s pretty significant love!
God values our honest desire for relationship (1 Samuel 15:22). It doesn’t have to be complicated. We, as humans, seem to have a need to complicate things but God doesn’t.

So, how can we move closer in our relationship with God in an uncomplicated way? Relationships require activity on the part of those involved. We know that God has already reached out to us through Jesus’ life, death and resurrection. We know He freely offers that, and is present with us through His Holy Spirit.

First and foremost, God must be first in our life. In the Bible, Paul stated it this way: “But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things.” Philippians 3:7,8
In that confident relationship He extends to us, He gives us direction that can be helpful in nurturing valuable relationships of various kinds. He urges us to be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry. He calls us to live under the direction He gives us in the Bible regarding healthy, respectful relationships.

He calls us to humbly accept the word He has planted in us. He calls us to act on that Word! Don’t just listen to it; live it! Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks in the mirror, but when he goes away, he immediately forgets what he looks like!
Finally, He gives a real down-to-earth, practical example of deepening relationships: “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” You can read about all of this in James 1:19-25

4832 Pondering: What can you start to do, or continue to do, that will help you grow closer to God? What simple ways can you enter His presence, read about Him, pray to Him, be involved with others that are on the same journey?

Posted in Growing, Discipleship, Gift