3 Things To Avoid In Your Relationship With God
By Jaleia Christine
I have come a long way in my relationship with God. There was a time where I wanted nothing to do Him; crazy to think that now we are closer than ever.
I wanted to share these “3 Things To Avoid” with you because these are things I learned throughout my journey and kind of wish I knew beforehand.
Blaming God When Things Go Wrong
I learned this lesson the hard way. Not too long ago, I applied for an educational program that I thought was a step in the right direction. I had put so much effort into my application and was really relying on God to open up the doors to this new opportunity.
I was praying day in and day out ultimately asking God to make things go my way — and when they didn’t I was pretty bummed. I didn’t want to talk to God, or pray, or read the bible because I thought God had failed me. It wasn’t until a couple days passed that I realized two things: I couldn’t live without my relationship with God and His will is greater than mine.
If you ever find yourself in a situation where you’re praying for something but it never comes true, refrain from being upset with God! When this happens, we should actually be praising Him for saving us from something we thought was good for us but wasn’t in His plans for our life!
2. Not Reading Your Bible
I have countless testimonies about God speaking something to me, me obeying Him, and miracles happening because of it. Those testimonies would never exist if I couldn’t hear the voice of the Lord. And how do we hear the voice of the Lord? Through reading our bibles!
One of the most essential components to a healthy relationship with God is reading your bible. From the bible comes the ultimate truth and word of God. The bible is nicknamed “The Sword of the Spirit” because of how powerful God’s words are. It is vital that you spend time everyday reading your bible. You get to know God more intimately and get to see the very nature of His character just by reading His word.
Not to mention that you can hear the holy spirit clearer when your mind is full of God’s promises and emptied of the worries of this life.
3. Using God’s Grace As A Free Ticket To Sin
Once upon a time, this used to be me. Before I fully dedicated my life to Christ, I knew of God’s grace and mercy and used it as a assurance in my guilt from sinning. Yes we should look to God’s grace when we sin but we should never take it for granted.
When Jesus died on the cross and ascended to heaven, He left the Holy Spirit on this earth as a helper to all believers. When we decide to give our lives to Christ, God sends the Holy Spirit to live inside of us and we are born again. Being born again signifies a transformation from our old lives to our new lives.
“ Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has gone, and the new has come!” 2 Corinthians 5:17
The bible says we have become a “new creation” when we are in Christ. That means we throw our old lifestyles of sinning away and pick up our cross. In no way does the death of Jesus and His forgiveness mean to keep sinning as we please.
After I personally experienced the conviction of taking God’s grace for granted, this truth acted as a catalyst in my faith. I found myself in a very sobering moment with only one option: to fully surrender my life and leave my sinful nature behind. Granted no one is perfect and we will continue sinning, but when we begin to cherish the value of God’s grace and forgiveness, it truly changes the game.
I hope these three things planted something on your heart as you read them. As they were a blessing to may, I pray they were a blessing to you too.
Love,
Jaleia Christine