Growing Your Relationship with Christ

Occasionally I will get messages on Instagram asking me how to grow a relationship with Christ. I want to first say my relationship with Christ is constantly growing. I'm not perfect in any way and this blog isn't trying to prove that I am. I however have come to a realization I can't survive without having a close relationship with Him. I depend on Him for strength, support, comfort, peace, and assurance.

I think many times people think my relationship with Christ is good because I have a great life with no trouble or heartaches and that couldn't be further from the truth. My relationship with Christ stems from my abundant need for Him. We weren't meant to live through life alone. We were created by our Heavenly Father and our need for Him grows as we grow. If you feel the need to have a deeper connection with Christ

1. Invite Him into your day.

On the absolute perfect of all days, you will wake up an hour before everyone else and open your Bible in the peaceful, quiet setting of the morning and have the Lord refresh your soul before any of the daily chaos starts. Perfect days do not always happen. Let go of the need to have a perfect situation in order to have a relationship with Christ. Instead, before you ever leave your bed, before your feet hit the floor invite Him into your day. Ask Him to be with you through every moment, to guide your thoughts and your actions, and to lead you to people who need more of Him.

2. Communicate often

Communication is made up of two things: talking and listening. As Christians we communicate with Christ though prayer. Our prayers often consist of us telling him our needs and those of our loved ones, how we wish He would answer, and then we say Amen and move on. During your prayer time, take time to open your heart and listen to what the Lord is wanting to tell you. There is a good chance this won't be audible, possibly just a thought that pops into your head or a feeling you can't shake. Remember Christ isn't a genie who we only approach when we have a need. He is our Heavenly Father and he deserves our prayers and thankfulness.

If you don't know what to pray on your own, pray scripture. Start in Psalms. These are the prayers of David. David is the only man in the Bible who is referred to as 'a man after God's own heart.' The Psalms are powerful verses of scripture coming directly from David's lips to God's ears.

3. Take time to learn more about Him.

It's impossible to fully trust someone without knowing them. It's also impossible to fully trust someone off of things other people have told you. Think back to when you first met someone important in your life. Remember the time you spent together? Remember the questions you asked? Remember wanting to learn as much about them as possible? If a friend introduced you, you loved hearing their opinion of this person, but it was more important to experience their character for yourself. The same goes with Christ. We have to get to know Him on our own. We have to study the Bible to learn for ourselves about the love, mercy, and grace of Christ. As we learn more about Him, we will begin to trust Him more and trust leads to faith.

Our Heavenly Father desires to have a deep relationship with us as well. The Bible tells us if we draw near to Him, He will draw near to us. (James 4:8)

#faith