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Seven Tips for
Experiencing a Closer Relationship with
the God of Your Understanding
At one time or another,
many of us have longed to experience a
closer relationship with our Creator. We
may wish to hear God’s voice more
clearly, better understand God's guidance
for our lives, and/or bask in God's peace
and enduring love for us. Here are seven
tips to assist you in gaining and
maintaining a close friendship and partnership with the God of your understanding.
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Set aside time specifically
reserved for prayer, meditation, and
communion with God. Make space
in your day to bring all that’s
on your mind and heart into
God’s presence. Simply taking
some allotted time to be with
God is a wonderful first step in
getting serious about getting
closer to your Creator. |
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Silence is golden. When
spending time talking with God,
be sure that you’re in a place
where distractions will be
minimal. Remember that, although
you can talk with God any time
of the day or night, to spend
your allotted “God time” in a
place where you can be quiet and
undisturbed. Silence can be
uncomfortable for us if we
aren’t used to it, but many
times, God chooses the silent
moments in which to speak to us
in the way we will best hear and
understand. Be sure that your
mind is quiet, as well as your
physical surroundings, so that
you can be open to hearing God’s
voice. |
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Relax. Make sure you’re
comfortable during your prayer
and communion time with God. Get
into a comfortable position,
loosen any tight clothing, get a
hot cup of tea, or take a nice
hot shower to help calm and
soothe you. |
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Remember, God may not answer
in the way that you want or
expect. You may not hear a voice
within your head or heart
telling you which direction to
take or what choice God wishes
you to make. Rather, you may
feel a prevailing sense of
peace, or experience a deep
desire to read a certain book or
talk to a particular person in
order to discover the guidance
God is giving you. Be open when
awaiting God’s answers, and know
that God will provide in the
perfect time and way. |
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You don’t have to be fancy.
There’s no need to make your
prayers elaborate or articulate,
if you aren’t comfortable
speaking in that way. God
accepts each of us right where
we are; we can be as poetic or
simplistic as we’d like when
talking to God. God loves us
dearly, whether we’re eloquent
or not. Talk to God as you’d
normally speak, and God will
listen to you with compassion
and understanding. |
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Be patient. Remember, our
time and God’s time are often
very different. Your prayers may
not be answered tomorrow, or
next week, or even next year.
Then again, you may receive an
answer within a matter of
seconds or minutes. But don’t
get frustrated if that isn’t the
case. God knows you intimately,
and loves you deeply. You will
receive answers… but in God’s
time, not necessarily your time. |
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Don’t be afraid. We all
are beloved to God, and God cares
about each and every one of us. God
wants what is in your best
interest, and, even if God’s
guidance isn’t always what we
expected or even wanted, it’s
important to remember that God
knows us even better than we
know ourselves. Trust God’s
innate love and wisdom, and know
that God will make all well. |
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Finally… an eighth bonus
tip. Remember, we don’t all pray
and worship in the same way. We
may call God by different names,
utilize different customs and rituals for communing with God, and envision God in different
ways. Some of us get on our
knees to pray, some of us lie in
our beds, some of us make music
to worship, and still others pray while washing our dirty
dishes. They say that “variety
is the spice of life”, and there
are a wonderful variety of ways
to talk with our beloved God.
You may find one that you’re
particularly fond of, or you may
enjoy several ways of worship.
It’s my belief that, it doesn’t
matter how you talk with God, as
long as you do it with an open
and sincere heart. Enjoy the
process of becoming closer to
God… once you experience the
blessing of discovering a close
friendship with the God of your understanding, your life
will be transformed for the
better. Many blessings! |
© Kim Loftis. All
rights reserved. |
