Are you seeking something more than religion?

“From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands. God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us.” (Acts 17:26-27 NIV)

It’s encouraging to know that God is not far from any of us. Although he may feel far away sometimes, God says he is not far away from us. He set the times and the places where we should be so that we would seek him and possibly find him. It is not a coincidence that you are right where you are at this moment. God sees you and you can find him if you seek him.

Many of us have pursued things in hope that they would bring us joy, comfort, peace, love. We may have sought fame, wealth, power, a relationship, a career, a family, even religion hoping it will make us whole. Some of these things are good, however, they can still leave us feeling unfulfilled, wanting, feeling like there is still something missing. In fact, I was one of those people seeking for more through my education. I remember while pursuing my master’s in public health, one of my first classes was on ethics. I learned about the Tuskegee experiment carried out for 40 years by the U.S. Public Health Service (PHS). Six hundred African American men, about half having syphilis, were promised free medical care while the researchers provided them with no treatment and instead studied the progression of the disease. Throughout these 40 years, some of the men had severe health problems, developed blindness and mental disorders, and some died, all the while they were lied to and weren’t provided any effective care. That’s a long time and a lot of people led astray by a powerful institution. (You can read more about it here). This study along with other unethical studies are some of the reasons why ethical laws for research were put in place. We thank God for that!

When I heard about this story, I was outraged. Somewhere in me it clicked that my education was not my answer to the deeper truth I was seeking. I realized that people no matter how good-willed or educated they are, will always let me down. My eyes were opened, and I knew that I needed God. I needed something higher than human beings that I could depend on.

Maybe you can relate to that feeling; the recognition that your relationship, your money, your career, you name it, is not it! There is more to this life than what meets the eye. What you are really looking for is God, but not just any god, the God of the Bible, the God that points to Jesus.

But what does it even mean to have a relationship with a God I can't see?

^“Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.” (John 4:23-24 NIV)

Many of us have pursued religion out of obligation or our families’ wishes. What we really need to pursue is relationship, a relationship with God. This is more than going to church on Sunday, or saying a prayer every now and then, or doing good deeds. This is a real relationship that involves communing with God! A relationship that gives us peace, love, joy, comfort and all those things we truly desire.

Picture this: You meet someone that you find interesting. You talk every now and then, you are getting to know them. You start communicating more frequently, you are building a friendship. There are some things you appreciate about them and other things you are not sure of. The person likes you and has made it clear to you that they like you, but you don’t know yet. Maybe a combination of several things they do convince you or maybe it was one big thing that completely amazed you. Whatever the case, you fall in love, now know you want to be with them. You decide to get married. But there is still so much you continue to learn about this person. Marriage is a continuation of your relationship. You are still getting to know each other. Sometimes you feel so in love and other times you wonder what you got yourself into. It’s not an easy journey. No matter what, this person’s love for you helps you to overcome your doubt. A relationship with God is somewhat like this… except that God already knows everything about you and completely loves you regardless. God has always been the first to pursue us and he is waiting for us to respond.

If God already knows everything about me, why would he care that I seek him? Because his love is not imposing. He gives you the freedom and choice. Why does he even want a relationship with me? Because he loves you! Don’t you want relationships with the people you love? And aren’t you willing to do a lot of things for them? Yet, what we are willing to do for our loved ones is so little as compared to what God has done, continues to do, and will do for us. God doesn’t need us, we need him, but he wants us.

How do I pursue a relationship with God?

The short answer is by getting to know him, obeying him, and frequently communicating with him. It is difficult to have a relationship with someone you don’t know. Fortunately, that’s why God gave us the Bible which is all about his story with humans. We get to know him through the Bible. God also gave us prayer, which is an open gateway to communicate with him. And God gave us people who can help us to have a better understanding of him and walk with us when life is tough.

Look out for future posts on practical ways to develop and sustain a relationship with God. In the mean time, this is a good article on developing a relationship with God.