How I can be closer to God! Get close to Him!
Let me start off by saying how valuable it feels for a Christian to be close to God. Probably the closest moments I've felt to God were when I was begging with tears in my eyes on my knees for help and then feeling a consolation come over me, I don't believe these are imagined...and the little signs we see and notice when our prayers are answered (not all prayers are) but the things others call FATE or coincidence...the special feeling of being a child of God, of knowing that God loves us, that He created us out of nothing, that he sent his son Jesus Christ to die for us that we may have life in us, be worthy of heaven. Our basic belief is that since we are imperfect and sinned and needed grace, Jesus died and by his blood we are redeemed...perhaps it's a mystery to some, but not to one who has accepted Christ as their saviour.
It's comforting to know God is always there 24/7 to talk to, to pray to....It's comforting to know I am going to heaven when I die..that I have a special purpose and that I can make a difference, but as a Christian in a unique way, by striving to LOVE ...to love others with a holy love/attitude..to be as patient as possible, to STRIVe for goodness...let this be your goal.
My life used to be full of intense anguish. I’m a 19 year sufferer of bipolar, a survivor of a life long illness. Yes, there were many times I asked God to take me, that I didn't want to live, but I've always believed that there was a good reason for my pain, that somehow it could be used for good, and that God brings good out of bad.
Since I’ve been doing better through taking Lamictal which is a great mood stabilizer for bipolar or manic depression, I feel I need to draw my attention to other things. I haven’t been feeling close to God, which is a great feeling, since my intense pain let up and since I’ve sort of ignored God. What I need to do, is focus on the other things in my life, besides mental and emotional pain, to stay close to God. What are these things?
- I need to stay away from people and places that bring me away from the cherished relationship I have with God, these include anything that takes away my peace, whether it be overly loud and obnoxious music, violent movies or television shows, and even the Religion and Belief forum on Hubpages. (Why do I need to constantly read about atheists who constatntly say there is no God when I’ve decided with my mind and heart that there is and that I want to foster a loving relationship with him?)
- Take advantage of what’s in front of me. I want to be more patient and ask God to help me deal with my mother and/or anyone in my life who challenges me as well as not to complain about what I don’t have like a newer car and be grateful for what I do have (loving family and friends, a “car”, things to do, etc.)
- Trust in God and pray at any time of the day, wherever I am and for whatever I feel, and pray for my loved ones and even you on hubpages! (Whoever I feel like praying for.) There is no limit to who or how many people I can pray for.
These three things are plenty to help keep me close to God....I believe it's the things in our lives that are already there that are the tools we are given to better ourselves and to be blessed by...this is simple but I never really got a chance to grasp it until my major pain left, I know that God has helped me overcome some huge obstacles in the past year and that many things He has planned for my future...all kinds of things...blessings and challenges. But in order to benefit from them, I need to notice them. I’m grateful I don’t feel such extreme mental anguish anymore but in a sweet way I sometimes miss it, for suffering makes me closer to God. If you’ve ever experienced a supreme closeness to God, you are blessed. It may be hard to understand but I believe that the closest we are to God is when we suffer the most.
No one’s perfect
As hard as we try, we can’t always feel close to God every moment, sometimes He allows us to feel separated to test us,,,yes He tests our love just like He tested JOB in the bible, He is the creator. And we are not always going to be able to maintain the kind of “discipline” we wish, as in always be patient or even stay away from lust or any of the things we Christians try to stay away from.
Embracing your humanity
This is part of being a Christian, is to accept that we are weak and we need Jesus Christ. For by grace are ye saved not by works lest any man should boast.
So this is my little hub on my ideas on how I myself can be close to God and I know I’m not going to succeed all the time, maybe only half the time, but my will is interested in knowing God more closely.
One Day At A Time
I also want to note that sometimes we take things one day at a time, yes like al anon goes and AA members, LOL. When times get rough, one day at a time.
Protected
As God in the bible says that he provides for the birds and the little creatures so more does he provide for us and that every hair on our head is counted...as a believer I always know I'm going to be okay, because "God isn't finished with me yet!"