Pursue God

A vibrant relationship with God is active, not passive

April 9

Have you ever been in a relationship with someone who says they love you but doesn't really put forth the effort to show you? They do some things, but the skills and attributes that do not come naturally to them are hard, so they avoid. Conversations always seem one-sided. They want to be seen and understood, but they really don't listen to what you have to say. A relationship like this can be painful and unfulfilling. I believe God can feel like this with us. We do all the things a good Christian should do; we go to church, we give our money, we volunteer, we pray. These are all good things, but do we really know God? Are we really worshiping Him? When we pray do we know how to listen for His voice? His word is a lamp for our feet, and a light for our path. Do we know how to walk with Him? I know I am learning more every day, and writing this blog is connecting me to my Father in ways I could have never imagined. Too often when the burdens of life are weighing us down, we want to use any other distraction but him. We will turn on the TV, watching meaningless shows, we will play games, some will have just a little drink of wine, hoping to dull in the pain, end the worry. We endlessly seek for something that will give us some relief, to take the weight of the world off of our shoulders, and we don't realize that simply going to him, the one who made us, will lift this burden that we were never meant to carry. This all sounds wonderful, but how do you do it? How do you have a vibrant relationship with a God you don,t see? A relationship with God is not passive, it is active. Sing praises to his name, worship him, open the Bible and read, surrender your Life to him, read the books of other people who have discovered this. Apply the truth you are hearing to your life, practice it until it becomes your new normal. I think too many times, too many of us want it to be too simple. Too easy. We want God to wave His magic wand and make us the people we want to be and the life we want to have. He gave us free will, so He will not impose on us this change, but He will give us the tools to do it ourselves, with His help. It is in this help that we draw near to Him! If you want to hear him, if you want to see his face, you have to seek him. This is not a passive activity. But God wants us to draw near to him. God wants us to want him with our whole heart, to pursue him. We have to actively pursue Him, and he is worth pursuing.