Being friends with God

Psalm 23:4

"Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For you are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me."

The Bible tells us in Genesis that Enoch "walked with God." (Genesis 5:21-25) What an amazing thing to be said about any person, but after Enoch had walked with God....he just took him away from this earth. It never says that Enoch died like others. He just walked, and then was taken away to be with God. The scripture also tells us that Moses was a "friend of God." (Exodus 33:11). God spoke with him face to face, as a friend. It is absolutely mind-blowing to think that the God of the Universe, the Creator of everything that exists would want to have a friendship with ME.

There will always be skeptics that say, the Bible is just historical, or God doesn't exist....we evolved from a "soup" as my pastor likes to say. For a long time, I could have agreed with the evolution bit, although something inside of me never felt quite satisfied with the answers I received about how I came to be on this earth. Something inside of me told me there was a greater purpose for my existence, and the existence of everyone I knew other than a fluke accident in nature that led to all the complexities found in a human body. Furthermore, once I began to read the Word of God, it answered EVERY one of my questions, not just some. You see, God desires a relationship (a friendship, if you will) with each and every person. This is more than a morning devotional time, or a kind thought about God, it is a full fledged relationship with the Lord God Almighty. There are even fellow Christians who do not seem to understand what the Lord desires from their own walk with him. They think to themselves, there must be more to Christianity than warming a pew on Sunday morning, and reading the Bible which they can't understand anyway sometimes. I know Christians who even go so far as to say that scripture is just a "band-aid" for life's troubles. That we really need the world's help to solve our problems. But that is contrary to what the scriptures actually say....

Jesus said "I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me." (John 14:6) But what does this mean to our daily lives? It means seeking God's plan and his purposes and his ways all the days of our lives. How do we do that? We read God's Word and we pray for understanding and ways to apply it to our daily lives. If we truly seek a close relationship with God, he will have a close relationship with us.

God says in Matthew 7:7-8 "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek and you shall find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened."

This is a promise that leads us into true living in the grace of God. Accepting Christ as our Lord and Savior is only the beginning of a beautifully reconciled friendship with God. If you cannot honestly say that you have a real, living relationship with God, then you need to examine whether you are in the faith, and to know if Christ is in you. (2 Corinthians 13:5). God is eager and willing, and will go to GREAT lengths to be found by you. He is not elusive, or wanting to hide his many riches of grace from you. The scripture says that we do not have because we do not ask. (John 16:24) We are urged as Christians to ask, so that our joy may be complete.

The purpose of this blog to relay to you all the goodness of God's work in the lives of my family and church, and to give him credit for the wonderful things he has done. I also feel called to shed light on the scriptures in a way that anyone can apply to their own life through the spirit of wisdom. I pray that you read my blog with an open mind and heart, searching for truth in Jesus Christ. Finally, I want to give account for the hope that is in me in Jesus, and be able to show others how Jesus has changed my life, and given me everlasting life which begun the day I accepted him as the Lord and Savior of my life. Instead of keeping our relationship private, as many do, I would like to show the world the great God that I serve....and how he is a part of my DAILY life.

May God bless the hearing of his Word, and bless all who read it richly in the name of Jesus.

I love you all, and look forward to any comments, whether you agree with my blog or not! Feel free to post your thoughts.

In Christ alone...