People are always saying, “My God is….and your God is…” There is no “my God, your God”. God belongs to everyone. He does not put rules and restrictions on how each of us chooses to have a relationship with Him.
I have wanted to write this post for a very long time, but even though the ideas were clear in my heart, the words were jumbled in my brain. I spent a lot of time reassessing my life-long relationship with God and that’s what I came up with. I dislike using the words “religion” and “Christianity” because man so clearly misunderstood what Jesus was trying to say and made up a bunch of rules and rituals that turned away the people who needed him the most. The majority of us don’t have a problem with picking a church, attending faithfully, and feeling happy and content inside that we are “alright” with God. Then there are those of us (myself included) that wanted more than that from God. I, personally, want God as my very best friend, in thick and thin, accepts me for who I am and doesn’t set up a bunch of rules and rituals that make me feel guilty if I don’t follow them. There is nothing that will erode my relationship with Him faster than fighting guilt over not following rules for relating to God.
I wake up every morning and say the prayer of Jabez with my head still on the pillow. Then I recite Proverbs 16:3 and sit up and say “thank you” as each foot hits the floor. This is the prayer of Jabez:
“Lord, bless me indeed.
Enlarge my territory.
Put your hand on me.
Keep me from evil so I may not cause pain”
And this is my interpretation Proverbs 16:3:
“Lord today I commit all my words and works to you so you may establish my thoughts.”
Yes, before I even step out of bed I ask God to bestow upon me whatever blessings He has for me today so that I may be strong to go out in my world, and with His hand on my shoulder, do what I can to make other lives better in some small way. Then I commit every act and word I will do and speak to him so HE may establish my thoughts. Leaving myself to establish my own thoughts just leads to bad self-talk, breeding sadness and insecurity.
This, to me, is having a relationship with God. I just don’t drop Him for the day after that little morning activity. (Notice I didn’t say ritual – because it was formed out of my relationship with God – not imposed by someone else on me much the same way close bonds and friendships are formed with loved ones.)
God rides shotgun in my car as I make my way around town. God is on the ceiling of the yoga studio when I lay in savasana. At night, my pillow is really his hip that I imagine myself leaning against, closing out the day in thanks and praise. (I actually imagine feeling the rough burlap-like texture of His robe against my cheek.)
Fellowship. Fellowship is touted as being important in having a relationship with God. Fellowship usually means church, but then again, for me, a very different kind of fellowship evolved out of this very personal relationship with God. He directed me, through friends, to my women’s bible study every Wednesday morning. About 30 women of all ages, from all over the cape, from all different churches, and of all different denominations coming together to pray and watch a video and have inspiring discussions about how each of us attain and craft this personal relationship with God. We get to take apart the very hard to understand Bible and are constantly amazed at what is written in there. As we all know, the Bible is a book, but it cannot be read like a book. It’s a history of the past, it’s chronicling what’s happening in our world now in the present, and it’s a predictor of what is to come. The perplexing thing about reading the Bible, as opposed to any other book, is that it is not written chronologically. In our little get together we watch amazing teachers who have spent a lot of time navigating their way through the Bible maze and we learn the amazing truths God wants to communicate to us. And it’s not in a church preaching kind of way either (because I cannot endure preaching or pontificating). The Bible is presented in a manner that begs thinking and your own soul participation.
And this, to me, is building a PERSONAL relationship – not with “my God” or “your God” – but with God, period. If you strike out on your own to build your own personal relationship with Him, I guarantee it will look nothing like mine. Just like your relationships with your friends and family look nothing like mine. How do you start? That is the incredibly easy part. Just ask Him. Just tell Him you want to know Him personally and He will do the rest. Over time you will amaze yourself at the journey He lead you on and the incredible difference in your life after you have asked Him to lead you on a path of getting to know Him personally.
And so, as another day goes by, that, to me is “knowing” God, it finally feels great to have written this post, and…I have written . Open it……
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