God really wants one thing from us. To be our best friend. God doesn't want to be someone you come to just when you need something. No one wants that kind of friendship. God wants to be in our thoughts and our hearts all day, every day. But he doesn't want to force a friendship with you, because that really isn't a friendship at all. He wants to spend time with us, without any strings attached. He likes you that much.
We were designed for this type of friendship with God. In the garden of Eden before the fall, it was like that. God just came and spent time with Adam and Eve. But ever since we decided that our way is better than God's, he has loved us enough to let us make our own mistakes. Now we are confused on how to get back to a real friendship with God.
If you want a friendship with someone who wants to be your friend, what do you do? You spend time with them. That way you get to know each other, you have good times and memories, and the friendship builds. Even when you go through tough times, and you will go through tough times in this world, it is easier with a friend around. So how do we spend time with God?
The fact is, he is with us all the time. So all we have to do is recognize this and do something about it. If we want to talk to him, we just pray. We don't have to kneel down and close our eyes and bow our heads. Those are habits made to keep us from being distracted while we pray. Real prayer is just going through the day, letting him know how you feel. Once a girl asked me for advice on how to pray. She said that she didn't know how to pray and she was worried she was doing it wrong, so I asked her how she prayed. She said, "I just go around all day and think to myself, 'God, what do you think about that song?' or 'Thanks for giving me friends' and so on." I told her that is exactly what God wanted. To be a close friend you talk to about everything.
Another good way to get to know God is through meditation. That is a big scary word that people think means you have to sit in a yoga position for hours on end. It really just means to spend time thinking about something. God gave us a lot of information for everyday life in the Bible, so spend some time reading it and then think about it through the day. If God says to love my neighbor, am I doing it? What would loving my neighbor look like? Spend time thinking about God and what he's done for us. The more you get to know him, the better you will understand how good a friend he is.
Thinking about my purpose:
Know. God
wants to be my best friend .
Remember.
"Friendship with God is reserved for those who reverence him." -Psalm 25.14a
(LB)
Think about it.
How can I remind myself throughout the day to talk to God and think about
him?
