32272 Habit 2. Pursue God

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The more you desire to be closer to God, the more you will invest in building your relationship with Him. God wants to be pursued. In fact, He will even create circumstances in our lives to motivate us to seek Him.

Pursuing God is an important habit in cultivating intimacy with Him. Consider the advice David gave to Solomon,

“And you, Solomon my son, obey the God of your father and serve him with a submissive attitude and a willing spirit, for the Lord examines all minds and understands every motive of one’s thoughts. If you seek him, he will let you find him, but if you abandon him, he will reject you permanently.” – 1 Chronicles 28:9

David explains,

“The Lord looks down from heaven at the human race, to see if there is anyone who is wise and seeks God.” – Psalm 14:2

Why does God want us to pursue Him?

Pursuing God requires wholehearted, focused attention. How well can you pursue a goal or person if your attention is divided? If you are pursuing God, you cannot also be pursuing idols.

Time and again the Israelites worshiped idols instead of God.

“They made him angry with their pagan shrines, and made him jealous with their idols.” – Psalm 78:58

When we pursue God, we are demonstrating our desire for Him. The pursuit reveals the priority we place on the relationship. It can be measured by the time, energy, and money we are willing to invest. And it is natural for us to have a greater appreciation and place a higher value on whoever or whatever it is for which we make those sacrifices.

God has created us for a relationship with Him. He has taken the initiative and made a great sacrifice on our behalf. Now He wants us to also make sacrifices for the sake of the relationship.

“Therefore I exhort you, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a sacrifice—alive, holy, and pleasing to God—which is your reasonable service.” – Romans 12:1

So what’s involved in pursuing God?

Our investment > Seek God > Draw near to God > Wait on God

God wants us to seek Him. We are to search God out—to strive after a deeper relationship with Him.

“When you seek me in prayer and worship, you will find me available to you. If you seek me with all your heart and soul” – Jeremiah 29:13

“Seek the Lord while he makes himself available; call to him while he is nearby!” – Isaiah 55:6

“With all my heart I seek you. Do not allow me to stray from your commands.” – Psalm 119:10

God wants us to draw near to Him. We are to sincerely approach Him in humility and with regret for our sinfulness. He desires repentance leading to singular devotion. All too often we say all the right words to God but we are not being wholehearted.

Jesus sees through our façade,

“This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me” – Matthew 15:8

“Draw near to God and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and make your hearts pure, you double-minded.” – James 4:8

God wants us to wait for Him. He is God. He is worth waiting for. His response to our desires will be according to His timetable. Meanwhile, during the interim, we are to have an attitude of patience, faith, and submission.

“Yes, as your judgments unfold, O Lord, we wait for you. We desire your fame and reputation to grow.” – Isaiah 26:8

“I rely on the Lord. I rely on him with my whole being; I wait for his assuring word.” – Psalm 130:5

What are you willing to invest in your pursuit of God? Seek Him, draw near to Him, wait on Him and He will reveal Himself to you. Ask the Holy Spirit to make your relationship with God the highest priority in your life.

“I seek your favor with all my heart. Have mercy on me as you promised.” – Psalm 119:58

32273 Habit 3. Know God

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Knowledge is the foundation for a relationship. Intimacy is only possible to the degree we know a person and have the right perception of them.

God wants us to know what He is really like. What are His character traits?  What’s important to Him? What pleases Him?

When you’re in love with someone, you want to find out everything you can about the other person. Is that your experience with God?

The apostle Paul shared his prayer for the Ephesians,

“I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, will give you spiritual wisdom and revelation in your growing knowledge of him” – Ephesians 1:17

God reveals Himself to us in several different ways. We can see His fingerprints in the intricate design of the created world around us. We can see His mind and heart in the Bible.  In the Gospels, we can also see God’s marvelous character lived out in the person of Jesus Christ, who came to earth to walk among us on a path that leads to heaven.

God inspired holy men of old to record His “autobiography.” Called the Holy Bible, its pages reveal liberating truths and life-changing insights. The priority we place on reading, studying, and memorizing Scripture indicates the importance we place on knowing Him.

The Bible contains God’s love letters to us. These are the words of our Creator, the heavenly Father who adopted us, the loving Savior who died for us, the Holy Spirit who indwells us.

The Bible has been supernaturally infused with the power to accomplish the eternal objectives of its divine Author.

But we must get to know Him better. Use the following questions to stimulate new interest in reading God’s Word:

  • God’s attributes: What are God’s character traits?
  • God’s names: How do God’s names reflect His roles in relating to His people?
  • God’s ways: What are God’s methods?
  • God’s blessings: How has God demonstrated His love for me?
  • God’s commandments: What does God want me to do?
  • God’s promises: How has God committed Himself to me?
  • God’s resources: How does God empower me, help me, and provide for me?

Do you want to know all about God? Do you appreciate and treasure the glimpses you receive through His handiwork and written word? Are you eager to discover even more?

Ask the Holy Spirit to open your eyes as you read the Bible so you can behold the magnificent God whose outstretched arms invite you to know Him intimately.

32274 Habit 4. Love God

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The more you get to know God, the more you will love Him. And the more you love Him, the more you will want to obey Him.

God is the initiator in this love relationship. The apostle John reveals, “We love because he loved us first” (1 John 4:19). The more we realize how great God’s love is for us, the more we will respond by loving Him.

Paul wrote to the Ephesians,

“that Christ will dwell in your hearts through faith, so that, because you have been rooted and grounded in love, 18 you will be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and thus to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you will be filled up to all the fullness of God.” – Ephesians 3:17-19

Do you have any idea of how much God loves you?

Consider the following acts of God’s love for you. . .

He died for us
“But God demonstrates his own love for us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” – Romans 5:8

He forgives our sins
“Surely, for my welfare I had such great anguish; but Your love has delivered me from the pit of oblivion, for You have cast all my sins behind Your back.” – Isaiah 38:17, BSB

He does not condemn us
“He does not always accuse, and does not stay angry. He does not deal with us as our sins deserve; he does not repay us as our misdeeds deserve.” – Psalm 103:9,10

He is gracious to us
“But God, being rich in mercy, because of his great love with which he loved us, even though we were dead in offenses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you are saved!” – Ephesians 2:4,5

He adopted us
“See what sort of love the Father has given to us: that we should be called God’s children—and indeed we are! For this reason the world does not know us: because it did not know him.” – 1 John 3:1

He gives us His attention
“What is mankind that you make so much of them, and that you pay attention to them?” – Job 7:17

He gives us good gifts
“All generous giving and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or the slightest hint of change.” – James 1:17

He is faithful to us
“If we are unfaithful, he remains faithful, since he cannot deny himself.” – 2 Timothy 2:13

He will always love us
“For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor heavenly rulers, nor things that are present, nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” – Romans 8:38,39

As the Holy Spirit helps us to understand the breadth and depth of God’s love for us, we respond with love for God.

There are several ways in which we demonstrate our love for God…

We love Him wholeheartedly
“Jesus said to him, ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’” – Matthew 22:37

We love Him most
“Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.” – Matthew 10:37

We obey Him
“The person who has my commandments and obeys them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and will reveal myself to him.” – John 14:21

We love others
“The person who does not love does not know God, because God is love.” – 1 John 4:8

We sacrifice for one another
“But whoever has the world’s possessions and sees his fellow Christian in need and shuts off his compassion against him, how can the love of God reside in such a person?” – 1 John 3:17

We serve Him
“because we recall in the presence of our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and endurance of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.” – 1 Thessalonians 1:3

We thank Him
“Give thanks to the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. For the Lord is good and his unfailing love lasts forever.” – Jeremiah 33:11

We glorify Him
“Because experiencing your loyal love is better than life itself, my lips will praise you.” – Psalm 63:3

We stay in God’s love
“Maintain yourselves in the love of God, while anticipating the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that brings eternal life.” – Jude 1:21

As you cultivate your love relationship with God, ask the Holy Spirit to make you evermore mindful of how much God loves you. And, as a result, expect the Holy Spirit to continually increase your love for God.

“And hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.” – Romans 5:5

32275 Habit 5. Fear God

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As you get to know God better, you will also develop reverential respect for His holy nature. It’s possible for us to have a love relationship with God, but to not give Him the respect that He is due — the respect that He demands.

We can’t live the way that God wants us to live apart from really understanding what it means to fear God.  We can’t really learn what God wants us to learn apart from having that kind of attitude.  And we certainly cannot worship Him the way that He deserves to be worshiped.

What does it mean to fear God?

The term for fear can describe everything from dread or being terrified, to standing in awe or having reverence. When used of the Lord, it applies to both aspects of the term, a shrinking back in recognition of the difference or holiness of God and drawing close in awe and worship. It is an attitude of both reluctance and adoration that results in a willingness to do what God says. The fear of the Lord, then, is absolutely necessary if we are even to begin on the right foot in learning, living, or worshiping. (From Hard Sayings of the Bible)

Do you revere God’s awesome holiness? Moses displayed a healthy fear of God’s greatness when he prayed, “Who is like you, O Lord, among the gods? Who is like you—majestic in holiness, fearful in praises, working wonders?” (Exodus 15:11)

Why should we fear God?

God’s greatness demands our reverential respect.

“From the north he comes in golden splendor; around God is awesome majesty. As for the Almighty, we cannot attain to him! He is great in power, but justice and abundant righteousness he does not oppress. Therefore people fear him, for he does not regard all the wise in heart.” – Job 37:22-24

God’s Word demands our reverential respect.

“You stood before the Lord your God at Horeb and he said to me, ‘Assemble the people before me so that I can tell them my commands. Then they will learn to revere me all the days they live in the land, and they will instruct their children.’” – Deuteronomy 4:10

God’s works demand our reverential respect.

“And all people will fear. They will proclaim what God has done, and reflect on his deeds.” – Psalm 64:9

We demonstrate a healthy fear of God. . .

When we treat others rightly.

“and submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.” – Ephesians 5:21

When we live righteous lives.

“The fear of the Lord is to hate evil; I hate arrogant pride and the evil way and perverse utterances.” – Proverbs 8:13

When we obey God’s commands.

“If only it would really be their desire to fear me and obey all my commandments in the future, so that it may go well with them and their descendants forever.” – Deuteronomy 5:29

When we serve Him.

“Serve the Lord in fear. Repent in terror.” – Psalm 2:11

When we teach others to respect God.

“Come children. Listen to me. I will teach you what it means to fear the Lord.” – Psalm 34:11

When we worship Him.

“Who will not fear you, O Lord, and glorify your name, because you alone are holy? All nations will come and worship before you for your righteous acts have been revealed.” – Revelation 15:4

Those who have a reverential fear of God enter into a special relationship with specific blessings.

Promises for those who fear God…

“The Lord shows his faithful followers the way they should live. They experience his favor; their descendants inherit the land. The Lord’s loyal followers receive his guidance, and he reveals his covenantal demands to them.” – Psalm 25:12-14

“How great is your favor, which you store up for your loyal followers. In plain sight of everyone you bestow it on those who take shelter in you.” – Psalm 31:19

“Look, the Lord takes notice of his loyal followers, those who wait for him to demonstrate his faithfulness” – Psalm 33:18

“The angel of the Lord camps around the Lord’s loyal followers and delivers them. Taste and see that the Lord is good. How blessed is the one who takes shelter in him. Fear the Lord, you chosen people of his, for those who fear him lack nothing.” – Psalm 34:7-9

“But the Lord continually shows loyal love to his faithful followers, and is faithful to their descendants” – Psalm 103:17

“He gives food to his faithful followers; he always remembers his covenant.” – Psalm 111:5

“You loyal followers of the Lord, trust in the Lord. He is their deliverer and protector. The Lord takes notice of us; he will bless—he will bless the family of Israel, he will bless the family of Aaron. He will bless his loyal followers, both young and old.” – Psalm 115:11-13

“How blessed is every one of the Lord’s loyal followers, each one who keeps his commands.” – Psalm 128:1

“He satisfies the desire of his loyal followers; he hears their cry for help and delivers them.” – Psalm 145:19

“The Lord takes delight in his faithful followers, and in those who wait for his loyal love.” – Psalm 147:11

“Through loyal love and truth iniquity is appeased; through fearing the Lord one avoids evil.” – Proverbs 16:6, NIV

“The reward for humility and fearing the Lord is riches and honor and life.” – Proverbs 22:4, NIV)

“From generation to generation he is merciful to those who fear him.” – Luke 1:50

Therefore. . .

“O Lord, teach me how you want me to live. Then I will obey your commands. Make me wholeheartedly committed to you.” – Psalm 86:11

“And if you address as Father the one who impartially judges according to each one’s work, live out the time of your temporary residence here in reverence.” – 1 Peter 1:17

“Who among you fears the Lord? Who obeys his servant? Whoever walks in deep darkness, without light, should trust in the name of the Lord and rely on his God.” – Isaiah 50:10

“The beginning of wisdom is to fear the Lord, and acknowledging the Holy One is understanding.” – Proverbs 9:10

Ask the  Holy Spirit to open your eyes with renewed understanding to these incredible truths and to help you grow in reverence of God.

32276 Habit 6. Trust God

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Who or what is the object of your trust and faith? Is it God? Yourself? Someone else? Or maybe some material asset or resource? In who or what do you place your confidence that problems of today and the fears about tomorrow will be handled to your benefit?

Consider the advice of the Psalmist:

“Some trust in chariots and others in horses, but we depend on the Lord our God.” – Psalm 20:7

” It is better to take shelter in the Lord than to trust in people.” – Psalm 118:8

“How blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord and does not seek help from the proud or from liars.” – Psalm 40:4

The more you get to know God, the more you will understand how committed He is to you.  As a result, you will be willing to entrust more of yourself into His capable care.

Three Reasons Why You Can Trust God

1. God has the ability to accomplish what concerns us.

“I am the Lord, the God of all humankind. There is, indeed, nothing too difficult for me.” – Jeremiah 32:27

“Oh, Sovereign Lord, you did indeed make heaven and earth by your mighty power and great strength. Nothing is too hard for you!” – Jeremiah 32:17

“For nothing will be impossible with God.” – Luke 1:37

2. God is committed to our well-being.

“For our hearts rejoice in him, for we trust in his holy name. May we experience your faithfulness, O Lord, for we wait for you.” – Psalm 33:21,22

“Look, the Lord takes notice of his loyal followers, those who wait for him to demonstrate his faithfulness” – Psalm 33:18

“An evil person suffers much pain, but the Lord’s faithfulness overwhelms the one who trusts in him.” – Psalm 32:10

3. God will do what he promises.

“And let us hold unwaveringly to the hope that we confess, for the one who made the promise is trustworthy.” – Hebrews 10:23

“For the Lord’s decrees are just, and everything he does is fair.” – Psalm 33:4

“He who calls you is trustworthy, and he will in fact do this.” – 1 Thessalonians 5:24

God is completely trustworthy. He has the ability to accomplish the things that concern you. He is committed to your well-being. And God will do what He promises. He has the integrity; He has the character to follow through. He is faithful.

Trust involves faith and hope. Isaiah admonishes us,

“Who among you fears the Lord?

Who obeys his servant?

Whoever walks in deep darkness,

without light, should trust in the name of the Lord and rely on his God.” – Isaiah 50:10

How many times have you felt like you were totally in the dark? You didn’t have a clue what to do next?  These situations finally bring us to a point when we turn to God in desperation hoping He will respond to our prayers and bring deliverance. God wants us to trust Him during difficult times. Consider the following promises.

Trust God During the Good Times, As Well as the Bad

We all understand the need to trust God when we are in a time of crisis. We see that pattern repeated throughout the Old Testament. But during the good times, the children of Israel would forget about their God — they became self-reliant and turned away from Him. Then God would again put them into difficult situations and after a while, they once again turned to Him for help.

God explained to Isaiah,

“I am the one who forms light and creates darkness; the one who brings about peace and creates calamity. I am the Lord, who accomplishes all these things.” – Isaiah 45:7

When we find ourselves in darkness, there’s a reason why God has chosen to take away the light. When you’re in darkness, is it comforting to know that God is the One who is in absolute control of your difficult situation? Our sovereign, loving God brings good and bad into our lives to shape us and fulfill His purposes. We need to trust Him for the good, as well as the bad.

32277 Habit 7. Enjoy God

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Do you take daily delight in your relationship with God? He wants to be enjoyed by us. This is the most marvelous relationship we can ever have and yet we usually miss out on all God has in store because we are so focused on the material realm.

Our God is invisible but His daily involvement in our lives and presence is obvious to a discerning observer. There are several ways you can enjoy God moment by moment throughout every day.

Delight in God’s Presence

Enjoy being aware that he is constantly with you.

Ask the Holy Spirit to make the following scriptures a reality in your life. Cultivate the art of enjoying our invisible, magnificent God.

“How blessed are the people who worship you! O Lord, they experience your favor.” – Psalm 89:15

“Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you?” – 1 Corinthians 3:16

“Where can I go to escape your Spirit? Where can I flee to escape your presence? If I were to ascend to heaven, you would be there. If I were to sprawl out in Sheol, there you would be. If I were to fly away on the wings of the dawn, and settle down on the other side of the sea, even there your hand would guide me, your right hand would grab hold of me. If I were to say, ‘Certainly the darkness will cover me, and the light will turn to night all around me,’ even the darkness is not too dark for you to see, and the night is as bright as day; darkness and light are the same to you.” – Psalm 139:7-12

“And the Lord said, ‘My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.’” – Exodus 33:14

“And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” – Matthew 28:20

“You lead me in the path of life. I experience absolute joy in your presence; you always give me sheer delight.” – Psalm 16:11

“For you grant him lasting blessings; you give him great joy by allowing him into your presence.” – Psalm 21:6

“You have not seen him, but you love him. You do not see him now but you believe in him, and so you rejoice with an indescribable and glorious joy” – 1 Peter 1:8

“The person who has my commandments and obeys them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and will reveal myself to him.” – John 14:21

Throughout each day, are you conscious of God’s presence? How do you acknowledge Him? How do you relate to Him?

More for “Enjoy God”

Delight in Communication with God

Delight in God’s Creation

Delight in God’s Character

Delight in God’s Word

Delight in God’s Salvation

Delight in God’s Goodness

32266 Involvement in Idolatry

Idolatry is another barrier to knowing God intimately. Only God has the right to be the center of our lives. And yet, we are often tempted to elevate someone else or something to that highest place of priority. Why? Because we are convinced this substitute for God will give the love we crave, the security we desire and the purpose for life we need.

The apostle Paul warns,

Therefore, my dearly beloved, shun, keep clear away from and avoid by flight if need be, any sort of idolatry, of loving or venerating anything more than God. (1 Corinthians 10:14, AMP)

Who or what does your life revolve around? Are you obsessed with some thing? Is there someone who is receiving a level of devotion from you that rightfully belongs to God? If you want to experience the incredible relationship that God is offering you, then you must “… keep yourselves from idols.” (1 John 5:21, NIV).

32265 Spiritual Warfare

If you are a true believer in Jesus Christ and have received His pardon for your sins, then Satan has lost his hold on your eternal destiny. However, that doesn’t prevent the evil one from doing all he can to prevent you from developing intimacy with God and fulfilling His plan for your life.

Communication is vital in building your relationship with Jesus.  What God is telling you through His Word, the Bible, is a huge part of that process. So Satan does what he can to minimize the impact of God’s Word in your life.

Jesus used a parable to expose Satan’s manipulative schemes.

“Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the seed sown along the path. The one who received the seed that fell on rocky places is the man who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. But since he has no root, he lasts only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls away. The one who received the seed that fell among the thorns is the man who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke it, making it unfruitful. But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man who hears the word and understands it. He produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.” (Matthew 13:18-23, NIV)

First of all, Satan wants to prevent you from understanding what God is saying to you. If there is no understanding, then God’s truth will not take root in your life. But if there is understanding, Satan uses trouble or persecution to make it difficult for you to continue applying God’s truth. Or, he may use the deceitfulness of wealth, worries and the pleasures of life to crowd out time and desire for follow through. But when God’s Word takes root in fertile ground, it produces abundant fruit within that life.

What kind of soil do you want to be for God? Do you value what God shows you in His Word and work diligently at applying it in your life? Without being anchored to God’s Truth, you will be overcome by waves of doubt, deception and distraction as you try to navigate your way through the ocean of life.

Other Barriers to Loving God

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32264 Preoccupied with Distractions

Busyness can also be a barrier to developing a closer relationship with God — even when we are actively serving Him. We mean well. We are devoted to Jesus and His Kingdom. But our focus on accomplishment can actually get in the way of our worship and fellowship with Jesus.

Consider this example recorded by Luke:

As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, ‘Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!’ ‘Martha, Martha,’ the Lord answered, ‘you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.’ (Luke 10:38-42, NIV)

Are you more of a Martha or Mary by nature? Do you become so focused on the work you are doing that you don’t have time for Jesus? Unless you make your relationship with God a higher priority than all the other things clamoring for your attention, it will never reach its full potential.

Other Barriers to Loving God

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32263 Lack of Belief

Unbelief prevents us from trusting God. We live in the physical realm, but God resides in the spirit world. Like the wind, we cannot see Him with our human eyes but we can experience the effects of His presence. We require eyes of faith to behold our Spirit God.

The Bible explains,

Without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. (Hebrews 11:6, NIV).

Our God, Who cannot be contained by the entire universe, created us to know Him personally. In fact, He is pleased with us when we seek to know Him better. Imagine that! This incomprehensibly awesome God and Ruler of the universe wants us to have a close relationship with Him. Why would this great Creator God be so concerned about His created beings?

David pondered that same question. He asked, “When I look at the night sky and see the work of your fingers — the moon and the stars you have set in place — what are mortals that you should think of us, mere humans that you should care for us?” (Psalm 8:3, 4, NLT)

Although it’s perplexing, nonetheless it’s true. We are precious to God. In fact, He values us so much that He was willing to have Jesus die on the cross for our sins so we could have an intimate relationship with Him for all eternity. But that relationship requires faith on our part.

Do you believe what God tells us in the Bible? Are you willing to pursue greater intimacy with your Creator God by faith? Will you choose to behold His majesty through eyes of faith?

Other Barriers to Loving God

Continue to read the next article or check the related content for more.