Having A Personal Relationship With God

First of, I’m not going to pretend like I’m a born again, church going, daily Bible reading new person (because I’m really not, it’s a process lol). I’ve always been a Christian but I never really grasped the reason behind why I was.

I was your typical person that went church for the sake of it (or because it was the norm) till I couldn’t be bothered anymore & didn’t have to (once I moved out my family home). Truth is, I just personally had no real reason to go. I was gaining temporary fixes but nothing long term. I always reverted back to my normal behaviour/mindset as soon as I stepped out of church or the day after etc... no real change or happiness gained lol.

However, what I realised during my #30DaysOfSelf (check previous blog post), is that the reason I felt the way I did above, was because I didn’t know God for myself. God was shown to me as a strict parent from a young age (which inevitably, I rebelled against, just like a kid being forced to do something u don’t want to do lol). So, to me the Bible was like a textbook (I didn’t want to study it) & going church was like going to class without understanding the course (confusing & boring). Therefore, I decided that I was going to develop a personal relationship with God in a way that was convenient to me... but how?

(N.B. don’t complicate your personal relationship with God. Keep it simple.. start by seeing him as a friend, then as a best friend then as a mentor etc. - Note to self)

Firstly, I went back to the basics of simply praying every morning & night (without ANY expectations) even if it’s just a quick prayer in my head, as a form of meditation. Then I started to watch random sermons on YouTube at least once a week in replacement of going church for the meantime (p.s I’m not saying don’t go to church btw). I took notes of what I learnt from each sermon & started to apply it to my everyday life which is helping shape my mindset. I’ll give three very brief examples of what watching sermons online taught me but how I personally interpret it :

•The story of how Jesus used 2 fishes & 5 loaves to feed 5000 people (Mark 6:41 in the Bible), taught me about making use of the little resources I have to maximise my potential. It also, taught me how to use my circumstances to empower me to think outside the box & not wait for things to come to me before I make a move etc.

•The story about how Jesus told Simon to go into the deep sea to go fishing but previously Simon didn’t catch nothing in that part of the sea. However, he went back again faithfully and this time he caught an overload of fish (Luke 5:1 - 11 in the Bible). That story taught me to never quit or give up even when times are hard. That I should I keep trying because all it takes is one of those ‘try’s’ to work & I’ll achieve more than I expected etc.

•The story about Jesus being tempted by the Devil to go against his beliefs & morals but he stayed strong even when he was uncomfortable (Matthew 4:1-11 In the Bible). That taught me about, not allowing my uncomfortable situation to lead me to go against my morals or values. It taught me about remaining disciplined even in desperate times etc.

(N.B. The Bible is a spiritual book full of wisdom, faith & life changing experiences. It’s a book that can be read & applied by anyone even if you ain’t a Christian)

Secondly, this enabled me to change my childhood perspective of the Bible and church. I now see the Bible like one of those life changing books you read (I.e. some books teach about becoming a millionaire... while the Bible teaches you about wisdom, faith & life). I see church like going to a networking event (I.e. some events teaches about their personal experience in reaching monetary success... while at church, preachers teach about their personal experience in achieving spiritual success). In other words, a preacher can only really teach me at church about their experience with God & their own interpretation of the Bible.

Therefore, Church (to me) is not there to solely change me. I have to sought the changes I want through my understanding & personal relationship with God. Church is really there for me to further develop my knowledge, also to communicate, share & learn from other peoples testimonies about their different experiences with God. In addition, making new spiritual friends (that I can genuinely converse & relate with) as well as to gain inspiration to keep growing spiritually etc.

(N.B. Don’t stay in a church that you can’t learn from or you just go to because your used to it. If your not happy there, then change churches or stay at home but either way keep watching sermons online to keep on growing spiritually - not to self)

P.s don’t be confused, I’m not a reformed born again Christian at all lol I’m just more aware & intact with my spiritual being. I still go through my daily challenges but I’ve grown (& still growing) a lot more spiritually and my faith In God is unbreakable. Have faith even at times when you can’t see why🙏🏾

Thanks for taking time to read this & please don’t forget to subscribe & leave a message! :)

In case needed, Click this link for my YouTube playlist on sermons I watch (I update it weekly):

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLHkEOhe5y04GhL_ToiCgOjnOrymugskGx

If you haven’t already, download the free Bible app. It has loads of Bible plans to learn from: http://bible.com/app

Follow my journey on Instagram: @Davidologunja