Where Do I Begin?

After my post about being in a full relationship with God, I received a call from a friend. She had questions. What does it mean to be in a full relationship with God? What do you actually do? What are the steps? How do you know you are all in? God had shown me that I would have to write about this, and honestly, I felt quite overwhelmed. Her phone call confirmed that I had to proceed regardless of what I was feeling. My fear was the fact that answering one question leads to more questions and I was not sure I could handle it.

The truth is, on my own I can’t handle it, and I thank God that I don’t have to. I am being transparent here because you need to know that while I am doing my best to walk in a full relationship with God, I still feel fear with many of the things that He leads me to do. When I feel fear, I must remember that fear does not come from God. If He has asked me to do something, He has placed in me the ability to do it whether I think so or not.

I realized that although my friend and I have had several conversations about walking with God, I assumed that she and everyone else already knew what to do but it was just a matter of choosing to do it. For some, that really is the case. We are all searching but we must push through the default setting that makes us search for the path of least resistance. The path that makes us want to make God conform to our lives rather than us conforming our lives to His Word. My very first blog post is titled “There Are No Shortcuts to Any Place Worth Going.” It is true. At some point, I will share the details of my journey, but for the sake of simplicity, I want to use this post to answer the questions that I was asked.

What does it mean to be in a full relationship with God?

Being in a full relationship means that you have completely surrendered your will and submitted to God’s will for your life.

What do you do? What are the steps?

You must be intentional. This journey involves a lot of listening, talking, reading, and obedience.

Sit down, get quiet, open the Bible, and read it out loud. Quietly reflect on what you read. Talk to God. Ask Him to help you understand his Word. If you want to be in a full personal relationship with God, you must read His Word. Daily. Listen to teachers who only teach God’s Word. Not religion, traditions, or rituals done from a feeling of obligation to conform to the world. Simply put, it is about having a relationship with God, not having a religion.

You must confess out loud that Jesus is your Lord and Savior. Romans 10:9 says, “If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”

It is about surrender. This sounds harsh but you have to get over yourself. Get rid of everything you think you know and come to your Father God like a child who is seeking to learn. Open your heart and your mind. One thing I should note is that surrender is not something that happens just one time. We must surrender over and over each day and sometimes each moment.

Surrender allows the Holy Spirit that God has placed in you to lead the way. The goal is to align our soul (our mind, will, and emotions) with the Holy Spirit and to become like Jesus. Allowing the Holy Spirit to lead the way means that you are obedient to the voice of God which comes to us in many ways, but most often it is a gentle whisper.

How do you know you are all in?

If I were to sum it up and give a simple answer, I would say I know I’m all in because more than anything in this entire world that I could ever desire, I want nothing more than God’s will for my life and I’m intentionally seeking and living it out. When I get to the end of this human experience, I want to know that I finished what God put me here to do.

I know that this only scratches the surface. There is so much information out there, both good and bad. As you watch and listen to messages, ask God to reveal to you what you need to know and what teachers you should listen to during each chapter of your journey. I heard a great sermon titled “What’s Next?” this past weekend by Pastor Daryl Merrill. You can find it along with other sources that I have found helpful on my Resources page. Regardless of what you hear from any other human being, including me, what is most important is that you talk to God, listen to God, and allow Him to light your path and order your steps. He will show you the way. It is up to you to follow.

Your time spent reading this post is deeply appreciated. If you prefer listening, all blog posts are available on SoundCloud.