How to Have a Close and Strong Relationship with God.

Dear Zikora,

Want to have a soft life? Have a strong relationship with God! Do you want to know the best part? God also desires to have a close and strong relationship with you! Here is a supporting quote: “But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” Romans 5 vs 8. God has always desired a close and strong relationship with us and that is why he sent Jesus (his son) to remove all barriers. This does not mean that your life will be without any challenges, instead, it means, you will navigate those challenges with ease and help from God.

So how do we develop a close and strong relationship with God intentionally? Here are a few detailed steps on how to:

1) Know God:

Know God’s character, his qualities, his instructions and commands. Know God for yourself. It is easier to love and trust God once you know and experience God for yourself. How to know God? Read his word which is the Bible. In fact, study the Bible to understand what is being said to you. The Bible is God’s love letter to you, open it and read. That said, with every chapter we explore, you will continue to learn more about the character of God.

I want you to start understanding God’s character with every chapter of the Bible that you read. How to do this is by asking yourself after each reading; what is God trying to convey here? What underlining character does this emphasize?

2) Love God:

Honor God, let the love of God guide your every move and decision. Loving God is God’s first and great command to us. Here is the quote from the bible depicting the interaction between a Pharisee lawyer and Jesus, and Jesus’s reply to the lawyer’s question:

“And one of them, a lawyer asked him a question to test him. Teacher which is the great commandment in the law?” And he [Jesus] said to him, You shall love the lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment” …Matthew22 vs 35-38.

Make no mistakes, God commands us to love him, and this is how to love him: “If you love me, keep [obey] my commands”…John 14 vs 15.

For more on loving God, Read Why Love is Non-Negotiable:

3) Listen and Obey God:

For God’s word to be beneficial to you, you must obey God’s words and commands. There is an old hymn that goes “trust and obey, for there is no other way to be happy in Jesus”. The words in that hymn is true.

Here is a direct quote: “Whoever has my commands and keeps [obeys] them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my father, and I too will love them and manifest myself to them”…John 14 vs 21.

Furthermore, in the Bible, Samuel, a leader in the old testament of the Bible cautions and reminds us of the importance of obeying God in this way: “Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifice, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen than the fat of rams”…. 1 Samuel 15 vs 22.

Here is yet another supporting quote:

“But be doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in the mirror. for he looks intently at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like”…James 1 vs 22-24.

4) Fear God:

This means that you should be in awe of God and all that he has done. Don’t mock God. In addition, don’t take God’s love and grace for granted. Do things because you fear and respect God’s authority. Fearing God is an essential tool you need to navigate this world. The Proverbs puts it this way: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom”…Proverbs 1 vs 7.

5) Let God be your First Priority:

Put God first in all things. Let him be your confidante, your first point of call in every issue, your all and all, your safe space, your landing, and hiding place. This is also the first commandment God gave to his people in Exodus 20 vs 3-4: “You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth”.

6) Believe, Have Faith and Trust God:

If God made a promise to you in his word, trust me, that promise will come to fruition if you believe it. There is so much evidence of this in the Bible to support this. So just know, at the right time, it will happen for you. God has your best interest and knows every single thing about you. He has so much power and has offered you protection, guidance and love. For encouragement, here is a supporting quote for you: “Those who put their trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion which cannot be moved but abides forever. As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the Lord surrounds his people, from this time forth, and forever more”… Psalm 125 vs 1-2.  

Here is another quote: “For the scripture says, anyone who believes in me [God] will not be put to shame”… Romans 10 vs 11.

That said, believing and having faith in God is crucial. Remember, “And without faith, it is impossible to please him [God], for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him”…Hebrews 11 vs 6.

It is important to note that sometimes waiting is how we show that we have faith, believe, trust, and obey God. Sometimes the wait seems long, however the wait is always worth it. God encourages us here: “But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint”…Isaiah 40 vs 31.

7) Verbally Declare your Believe in God:

This is self explanatory and here is how the Bible puts it: “Because if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved”…Romans 10 vs 9-10.

Note: For anyone who has stumbled upon this page and is wondering how to be saved or how to become a child of God… Read Romans chapter 10. Blog post coming soon..

8) Make your Body and Life God’s home:

Making your body, your heart and soul conducive for the holy spirit to dwell ensures that God always dwells in you and you dwell in him. Pay attention to what you consume. This entails both physical food, and mental/emotional food such as social media, movies, conversations, etc. This is how the Bible puts it:  “Or do you not know your body is the temple of the holy spirit within you, whom you have from God?, You are not your own, for you have been bought with a price. So glorify God in your body…1 Corinthians 6 vs 19-20.

9) Talk to God:

This is done through prayer. By praying to God constantly, and about everything, you will find that your relationship will deepen more and more. Prayer is not just for asking for requests, it is also a way we commune with and confide in God, seek God’s help in fighting our battles, and maintain our relationship with him. Prayer and maintaining a prayerful life and attitude is a really important key in our walk with God. So pray, talk to God about anything, and everything, at all times.

The Bible encourages us to “Pray without ceasing”….1 Thessalonians 5 vs 17.

Summary:

Now that you know how to have a strong and close relationship with God, you must maintain and protect this relationship. Maintaining your relationship with God is crucial because this world would always try to be a distraction. The forces of this world will constantly try to ruin our relationship with God. The Bible warns us: “Be sober-minded, your adversary, the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour” …1 Peter 5 vs 8.  To learn how to maintain your relationship with God, read this blog post: Psalm 81: How to Preserve Our Relationship with God and Ensure a Soft Godly life

Prayer:

Dear God, thank you so much for the way you continue to teach me. I love that you continue to guide me and show me how to be close to you. Please help me to not be just a hearer, but to be a doer of your words. Help me to practice and choose every day to have a close relationship with you. Help me for I cannot do it on my own power alone. I thank you because I know you have heard me. I thank you because I know you can do exceedingly abundantly all that I ask and pray. I pray all these in Jesus name. Amen.