"On the last day many people will say to me, 'Lord, Lord, we spoke for you, and through you we forced out demans and did many miracles.' Then I will tell them clearly, 'Get away from me, you who do evil. I never knew you."

Matthew 7:22-23 (NCV)

   So then the christian life is not just about using God's power, having the correct theology, or living according to the law. It is about a relationship. Jesus says "I never knew you." In other words, it is your relationship to Me that is your saving grace. Not how well you performed.

   So how do we come to this deep, life-affirming, knowledge of Jesus as our friend and savior? The first step, if you have not already taken it, is to ask Him into your heart. By doing this, you open up the possibility of a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, God's Son sent in flesh to die for our sins; who with the power of the Holy Spirit rose from the dead and conquered satan and death so that we can live with Him in heaven.

   In order to allow the relationship between you and God grow there are 3 things that must be consistently observed and practiced or else the relationship will be devoured. It is the same principles as seen in any human relationship; especially husband and wife. We are, after all, Jesus' bride and the laws that affect our relationships on earth affect the laws of our relationship with Him. These three things are: knowledge, communication, and time.

   First of all we must have the most clear picture of who someone is before we can truly understand and know him/her. If we do not know them, or are decieved about who the person is, then it will affect everything about how we interact with the person: what we will expect, demand, think, and feel. Therefore it is of utmost importance, first of all, to KNOW the person. When we have a clear understanding of who the person is, then we will not only know how to relate and interact with the person but will have a deeper relationship based upon that knowledge.

   So how can we humans know God? Well, we have been blessed with the innerant, flawless, complete, independent, and Holy Spirit guided book that contains everything we as humans need to know about God in order to have a deep loving relationship with Him as our Savior, Lord, and Friend. In order for us to know God we must daily read, study, and allow it to sink in to our hearts. The more we digest of it, the more we read and understand of it, the more we will see a clearer picture of who God is and the deeper our relationship will be.

   Anyone who has had any type of relationship will tell you that the most important aspect of any relationship is communication. If there is no communication death will surely overtake that relationship. This is also true of our relationship with God. There are two important aspects of communication and neither one should be overlooked else the communicate is only half effective. These are talking and listening.

   Release with another brings intimacy, so when we talk to God and relay our fears, hopes, dreams, frustrations, and pains, we are breeding intimacy between ourselves and God. When we cease to be honest and open with Him (which is retarded considering He knows it anyway), we close down our avenue of communication with Him and thereby begin to feel the burden of carrying these things alone, or not finding adaquate mechanisms to deal, and begin to blame God. All we have to do is be honest with God and give Him the problems, and in His infinite wisdom and grace He will help us. But He won't if we close ourselves up. So talking with God brings openness and intimacy, and holding in grows frustration and distance.

   Listening and truly hearing are another important aspect of relationship, and this most absolutely true of our relationship with God as well. If we do not take time to HEAR Him, to learn to know the sound of His voice, we lose out greatly on all He has to give us, as well as sacrificing our ability to live for Him. When we do not hear Him, we cannot follow Him. Jesus said that His sheep will know Him and "know His voice." If we ignore Him, we lose, not only in our communication and relationship, but we lose His guidance and help through the darkness in our lives.

   And finally, in order for our relationship with God to grow we must invest time. Many of us have heard tales of fathers who were distant because they devoted all their time at work, or with other's, and neglected to feed the relationship with their children and wife. We know all about the horrors it wreaks on every individual in those families, yet we fail to learn from them! Any relationship takes time invested in order to grow or even exist! If we are to grow closer to God and truly live His desire for our lives we must spend time doing His will and learning His word. But just as important is spending time with Him.

   If we keep these mind and act upon them daily we will begin to see our relationship with Him grow and deepen, and we will see a greater abundance of His fruit in our lives....

"But the Spirit produces the fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, godness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. There is no law that says these things are wrong."

Galatians 5:22-23 (NCV)