Fostering a personal relationship with God is a meaningful and transformative journey that can bring a deep sense of peace, purpose, and fulfillment to your life. However, it’s important to understand that nurturing this relationship requires time, effort, and dedication. In this blog post, we’ll explore practical tips for building and strengthening your personal connection with God.

By the way, what if I told you your feelings aren’t inherently bad or sinful? You don’t need to fear or suppress them. They can be a guide. If you’re interested, I have a free 3-day study on living by faith while processing emotions. Check it out here!

Strengthening Your Personal Relationship with God

We often hear that it’s not about religion but having a personal relationship with God. I’ve said this many times myself.

Yet, what we may overlook is how we actually go about building a personal relationship with God. Similar to our connections with the people we interact with daily, nurturing this bond with God requires time, patience, consistency, and effort.

Trust doesn’t magically appear.

Love isn’t built on empty words.

Forgiveness doesn’t flourish if our actions contradict it.

Establishing a personal relationship with God becomes challenging when our relationships with others impact how we view God. As spiritual beings, our actions here in this world are intertwined with our spiritual pursuits.

In my Spiritual Growth Coaching program, many clients don’t always have a hard time reading the Bible but accepting God’s love for them. Knowing God is one thing, but bridging the gap between knowledge and belief proves difficult. They struggle with trust, finding themselves mired in worry and anxiety.

This brings me to a question: If they’re consistently reading the Bible, why is there a disconnect between what they read and what they experience?

It’s a question I’ve pondered in my own journey of building a personal relationship with God.

“I’m reading my Bible, studying the Word, and going to church,” I’d think to myself. Where am I missing it?” Well, I believe it’s a common struggle. We aren’t supposed to retain information or take in as much as we do now. Our aim isn’t merely to accumulate knowledge about God but to integrate what we know about Him into our lives.

Strengthening our personal relationship with God is a gradual journey marked by intentionality and consistency. Getting closer to God is like building any relationship—it takes time and effort. Just like with friends or family, it’s about spending time together, talking, and sharing what’s on your mind.

Praying and reflecting regularly help you connect and understand God better. It’s a patient journey as you figure out your faith, learning to trust and depend on His wisdom. Reading the Bible helps you know His teachings, giving you a guide to live by. The key is trying to put these insights into action every day, making your connection with God more than just an idea but a real part of your life.

Ways to Nurture Your Relationship with God

Discovering ways to strengthen your connection and personal relationship with God is about keeping things simple and real. It’s not about complicated steps but finding genuine ways to connect. Whether through prayer, reflection, or understanding sacred teachings, the key is making these practices a part of your everyday routine. This journey is an opportunity to build a meaningful relationship with God, using practical and heartfelt approaches to meet you where you are in your faith.

Practice Regular Prayer and Reflection

Prayer and reflection are essential components of any personal relationship with God. Taking time out of your day to connect with God through prayer and reflection can help you build a deeper sense of intimacy and understanding with Him. Whether you choose to pray in a church or in the privacy of your own home, it’s important to make this practice a regular part of your routine.

Read and Study the Bible

The Bible is a treasure trove of wisdom and guidance for those seeking to deepen their personal relationship with God. Reading and studying the Bible regularly can help you gain a deeper understanding of God’s character, His love for you, and the principles that govern His kingdom. You can also use study guides and commentaries to help you better understand the Bible’s teachings.

Attend Church and Fellowship with Other Believers

Attending church and fellowship with other believers can help you build a sense of community and accountability in your personal relationship with God. It can also provide opportunities for learning, growth, and encouragement. You can participate in church activities, join small groups or Bible studies, and volunteer in various ministries to further connect with other believers.

Listen for God’s Voice

In order to build a personal relationship with God, it’s important to listen for His voice. This can be done through prayer, meditation, and reflection, as well as through paying attention to the signs and signals He sends in your life. Listening for God’s voice requires a willingness to be open, receptive, and attentive to His guidance and direction.

Building a personal relationship with God takes time and effort, but the rewards are immeasurable. By practicing regular prayer and reflection, reading and studying the Bible, attending church and fellowship with other believers, and listening for God’s voice, you can deepen your connection with God and experience a greater sense of peace, purpose, and fulfillment in your life.

How to Have a Personal Relationship with God

If I asked what helps us connect with God personally, you might mention prayer, reading the Bible, and going to church—important things.

Now, let’s talk about getting close to God. Real closeness involves trust, forgiveness, saying sorry, and love—just like in our regular relationships.

Just learning about my husband or asking questions about him doesn’t automatically make us close. Similarly, knowing about God doesn’t always mean we live like God loves us. It’s like having facts without really getting it—knowing but not doing.

The challenge in building a personal relationship with God often comes from our unchanged minds. Our hurts stick around because they haven’t been fixed by the hope we have in Christ, grounding us.

God’s love is different from human love. He sent His Son to fix our mistakes, forgiving us even when we didn’t deserve it.

In my Spiritual Growth Coaching program, I’ll guide you in turning what you know about God into how you live every day. Learn more here!

The Bible says to know and stick with God’s teachings. But keeping our lives and connection with God going isn’t just about thinking about the Bible. It’s about living it out.

It’s not about ignoring prayer and reading the Bible; it’s about doing what we get, not just knowing it. This is how we move what God says from our thoughts to our hearts.

For example, when I decide not to worry and give it to God, I start to trust more—a big part of getting close. I’m not relying on myself but knowing God will take care of things, just like He always has.

Living it helps us believe it, and when we believe it, we live it.

What Does the Bible Say About Having a Relationship with God

The Bible talks a lot about having a close relationship with God. In one part, Jesus says we need to stick with Him, like branches on a vine, to be fruitful and do anything worthwhile (John 15:5). Another verse, Jeremiah 29:13, tells us that if we genuinely look for God with all our hearts, we’ll find Him.

Philippians 4:6- 7 encourages us not to stress out but to talk to God about everything, and then we’ll feel a peace that’s hard to explain. So, the Bible gives us a guide—be with God, seek Him with your whole heart, and talk to Him a lot.

5 Bible Verses for Building a Strong Personal Relationship with God

A few scriptures to remind us and teach us how to have a personal relationship with God.

John 17:3, “And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.”

Revelation 3:20, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.”

John 14:23, “Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.”

Romans 12:1-2, “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

Romans 8:15, “For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!””

The Lord has never left you. He desires a personal relationship with you. 

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