How To KEEP A Relationship With God

"How To KEEP A Relationship With God"

Sooooo, you say you have a relationship with Jesus, but you feel like you're on the verge of relapse and you're wondering how to keep and maintain the most important relationship you so desperately need. Well, one thing for sure, Jesus will never leave you nor will He do wrong by you. So, you might need to revise your give and take of your relationship with Jesus.

Before I go into how to KEEP your relationship with God, I will cover a few main points on HOW to actually have a relationship with Jesus if you do not have one already.

The Process of HOW:

The first step in having and developing a relationship with Christ is,
1. SURRENDER:
You have to be able to surrender to Christ, if you ever expect anything from this relationship you want to have. "So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you" (James 4:7) The very first thing you have to do is surrender to Christ, and give up the ways of your sinful nature. You come to Christ, and you acknowledge that Jesus is YOUR Lord and Savior, and that you will give up ANY and EVERYthing to follow after Jesus. The same thing goes with a human relationship. Let's say you decide to enter into a spirit-guided relationship, and only be with one guy. This means that you have to STOP acting single and flirting with every guy you see, and be loyal to the guy you decided to be with. (As classy christian ladies, we shouldn't be throwing ourselves at any guy in the first place. You allow for a young man to PURSUE YOU not vice versa). So, when we surrender to Christ, we let go of all of our sinful, ungodly, rambunctious ways, and pick up our cross and follow Jesus.
2. WILLINGNESS:
You have to be willing to have a relationship with God. You cannot force anything; it's just like a relationship you would have with a human. You cannot force a friendship or a relationship. What will happen if you try to force a key in the wrong lock? It will not open. The key won't work. You cannot force yourself to give up everything for Christ because ultimately, you won't be doing anything at all because you will be bitter in your heart. Be willing to chase after Jesus. Be willing to get to know Christ just for WHO He is NOT for what He can give you. Jesus is AMAZING, and he's kind, sweet, and how perfect ladies...Jesus is a GENTLEMAN! Who wouldn't want to be willing to have a relationship with Him?!?!?! Once you actually decide in your mind that you are going to be willing to live for Jesus everything else will flow smoothly.
3. ALLOW GOD TO USE YOU:
After you have surrendered your life to Christ, and made up in your mind that you are going to have a willing heart to serve him, (the next part is easy), you have to allow God to use you. What I mean when I say allow God to use you is you just have to learn how to rest and trust God's plan for your life. You have to be ready to move when God says move. How can God use you for the greater good of the Kingdom if you're walking outside of God's will for your life? That's a very bad place to be. Resting and trusting in God's will allows you to be used by God the way He has intended. God can use you for SO many wonderful things, you just have to surrender yourself, be a willing participant, and be ready to go when God wants to take you somewhere.

Now that I have covered a little bit on HOW to have a relationship with the most AMAZING man ever, Jesus, I will give you some more pointers on how to actually KEEP a relationship with God.

So, you have a relationship with God, and you feel like giving up because no matter how hard you try, you don't feel connected with him? Well, let me tell you. Like I said before, God NEVER leaves you. The strain you may feel in your relationship is because you and your FLESH are getting in between the quality time God so desires to have with you. It's not God's fault. It's your fault. YES, that sounds really mean, but lovelies, know that I am not trying to be mean but simply speaking the truth to you. "Nothing can separate us from God's love" (Romans 8:28). Nothing can nor ever will. BUT, our flesh can separate you from being able to hear God's voice, and direction, and guidance. 

One thing you have to make sure you do when you are in this AMAZING journey with God is
1. COMMUNICATE EVERYDAY (PRAY):
Ladies, let God know how you feel. You say you want someone who cares about your feelings. You say you want someone who will just listen to you pour out your heart, but you don't reach out to that someone who has always been there. JESUS! He is the PERFECT person if you just want to listen and spill your heart out to God. Communicate with God. He cares about your feelings, your hurt, and your thoughts. He wants to spend time with you. So, don't be afraid to tell God how you feel. Be open with God, and just chilllllllllll. Take note. Don't be too busy telling God about your feelings that you forget to let God speak to you. Now, God is a gentleman and he won't force himself on you BUT in order to know what you should do or where you should go, you have to allow God to speak to you through the Holy Spirit so He can give you guidance and direction. Sometimes, you have to go into your quiet place and meditate on his love and allow for him to speak to you. Yes, I know you love Jesus and you want to tell him everything, but also remember, he wants to talk to you too! ^.^
2. MAKE A DECISION:
Make a decision that you want to live for God, and to please and serve Him. It's not all about the TAKE. You have to give some too. You're probably thinking, giveee??? What??! I have nothing to give God. Ohhh, yes you do love. God wants your WHOLE heart and your life. Surely, you can give Him those things. Because when your heart is right with God and you fall madly in love with him, trust me, you'll want to be doing everything you can to make God happy. (: This also means living for God even though you just don't feel like it. It's hard, but that's when you press into God all the more. "Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you" (James 4:8).
3. CHILL:
Yes, my love, chill. As you already know, God wants to spend time with you. And there are some times where we just need a break from this crazy world, and that's when we come and REST and just chill with God. In terms of chill, I mean putting on a little worship or praise music, open up your bible, and spend some time in prayer. You'll be amazed on how renewed you will feel. It doesn't matter how you spend time with God, as longs as you do it reverently. 
5. SACRIFICE:
With all relationships comes sacrifice. And this is very important especially when it comes to your relationship with Jesus. In order to be in or keep this relationship with God, you have to be WILLING (there goes that word again lol ^.^), you have to be willing to sacrifice some things for God in order to get closer with Him. Now, this can vary. Since God is jealous for you, He does not want you devoting any time to something else that should be devoted to him. God may ask you to give up a friendship, a sport, a organization, or anything of that nature in order for you to be closer and grow in Him. It all varies for every person. So, just spend time in prayer and ask God what you should sacrifice in order to grow closer in him.
6. COMMITMENT:
If you are really serious about your relationship with God, you will quickly learn that you need to be committed to God in order for God to really shine through and in you. "Jesus replied, 'You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.'" (Matthew 22:37). God doesn't just want part of you, he wants ALL of you. When you are committed to someone, you are committed to giving your whole being to that person to please them, to make them happy, to let them know you are there. That's what God wants from you. He wants your willingness and commitment to him. He'll never make you do anything you do not want to do, but he gave you free will. He just wants to see how much you really love him and how committed you actually are to this relationship you barely claim. Sometimes, lovely ladies, you will experience some times where it just seems like God is not there or he doesn't seem to be answering your prayers, but just know God is ALWAYS there for you. God works in mysterious ways remember????? (; Dry spells are common for every genuine relationship with God. Trust me, I've had them. Sometimes it felt like God wasn't there. I wasn't really feeling him in praise and worship. But that is when I held onto God the most. Dry spells do past, but you also have to be aware of the enemy. Satan. Because he will try to lure and tempt you back into your old sinful ways, but you make sure you tell Satan NO! Let him know that you are a child of God, and that you have ALREADY won the victory through Christ Jesus who ALREADY conquered the grave! So you telllllll Satan to SWERVEEEEE and rebuke him in the name of Jesus Christ!!!!!!!! Put some attitude and bass into your voice! Because when you call on the name of Jesus, Satan has to FLEE! Resist him!
7. ENJOY:
Pretty young classy ladies, in this relationship and journey with God, just restttt my darling. Enjoy your life with God. Enjoy where God is going to take you. Be happy in the Lord, and rejoice in him always. Always give thanks for who He is, has, and is doing in your life. Life with Jesus is FUN, and it surely is worth it. God proves himself to be faithful and he will not delay. So don't rush. Take your time. And enjoy the life God has given you, and the life you get to spend with God. "For the word of the Lord holds true, and we can trust everything he does." (Psalm 33:4).

So, after saying this ladies, I charge you to return to your first love Jesus. Don't be discouraged if you feel like you have done wrong. Simply, repent, ask for forgiveness, and start fresh with God. Jesus loves you so much and He just wants the best for you.

P.S. Corresponding video coming soon! Stay tuned and spread the word!!
Always keep it calm, cool, and collected...for Jesus!

Ayanna Tillman