The first step to getting closer to God is prayer. You can pray in your own words, you don't have to pray "Our Father". Talk to God to share your problems and be grateful for His blessings. Consult with the priest for an explanation of how to pray and read the scriptures. Get involved in church activities and uphold honesty through thoughts, feelings, and actions.
Step
Method 1 of 2: Pray
Step 1. Get to know or draw closer to God by taking time to be alone in a quiet and distraction-free place
Step 2. Free yourself from the burden of thoughts by breathing deeply
After that, start praying by saying: “Yes, Lord, at this time I prostrate before You. I beg you, let me feel Your presence and speak to me.” At first, this prayer may feel a bit strange, but trust that God is really listening and caring for you. Remember Jesus' message, "Ask and you will receive." So, ask God to speak to you.
Step 3. Calm down and tell your problem like you are chatting with a good friend or someone close to you
Also talk about fun things that just happened, for example: your team won, your crush asked you for coffee, or you just met a new friend. Do not hesitate to tell everything because God always hears and understands everything you say.
Step 4. Don't brag/brag or pray to sound great
You can tell great things, make requests, ask for help, or develop wisdom. Don't pray just for your own sake.
Step 5. Trust that God always plans the best at the right time
Maybe your request was granted in a different way because God does everything for reasons we don't necessarily understand.
Step 6. Confess sin to God
When you pray, talk about the problems you are facing and the things that are very important in your daily life. In addition to praying, you may keep a journal to record your requests and answers from the Lord.
Step 7. Pray as often as possible
We have often heard messages saying that we need to pray several times each day. Pray with words that come from the heart. Imagine that you are kneeling before God while witnessing and praising His glory. God wants to be your best friend in justice and righteousness. God is the holy Supreme Judge because He is perfect Love. God wants you to be able to pray in the spirit and understand what it means. The Lord also expects you to pray for others that they will repent and have their lives restored.
Step 8. If you don't know how to pray Christianly, ask a Christian friend or look up information online
Method 2 of 2: Approaching God in Other Ways
Step 1. Imagine that God is always by your side because He is always with you like a close friend
In this way, you will be closer to God by talking to Him more often. Apart from that, you will get other benefits from always praising God and being filled with the Holy Spirit.
Realize that God is able and will speak to you through your daily life. Sometimes, He speaks through your feelings when you pray in a way you don't know, through someone else who doesn't know you're praying for them, or through a very extraordinary event. God will answer more often if you ask “Why” instead of “What” or “When” and will probably answer: “Yes”, “No”, or “Later”
Step 2. Ask your church leader, pastor, pastor, or faith-building teacher
In general, they have studied the Bible and asked the same questions. Ask anything you want to know about God.
- Why did God give us free will to sin?
- Why does God allow humans to suffer, why is it difficult for humans to do good.
- Why did God allow His children to suffer, be tortured, and die on the cross to atone for the sins of mankind.
- Why did Jesus have to return to the Father in heaven.
- Why did God send the Holy Spirit, etc.
Step 3. Study the Bible
Read God's word, which is the word of God written in the Bible so that you can draw closer to God after getting to know Him better. Try to understand what God wants and doesn't want? What makes God happy, sad, or angry? What is precious to God? What is vain in the eyes of God? Read the bible every day because you can find answers to these questions and get detailed explanations.
- Purchase a Bible reading program at a bookstore or search the internet and choose the one that's right for you. The program explains bible verses in the context of everyday life and provides a wealth of knowledge!
- Buy the book “Pearls of Faith” or read daily devotionals on the internet to enjoy God's endless promises, especially when you are facing difficulties. The reading directs you to the scriptures that are a source of strength to overcome problems in everyday life.
Step 4. Don't make promises that you can't keep to God
If you don't keep your promise, admit your mistakes and restore your relationship with God. Maybe you should also apologize to the other person. As you pray, observe how you feel so you can better understand what God wants. Open your heart and be honest with God because He knows what's in your heart. So, be honest about everything. If you lie, you are only lying to yourself because God knows the truth.
Step 5. Focus on attending church services
Apart from gaining a lot of knowledge, attending worship mindfully makes you feel more connected to God.
Don't forget to write down important things during worship so you can read them again. Use the notes to learn how to apply God's word in daily life
Step 6. Participate in church activities
Worship is not enough if you only sing along and perform certain movements (bowing your head, standing, sitting, etc.). Do various activities so that you become a person who blesses and is blessed, for example by joining as a volunteer, doing social activities to help others, etc.
Step 7. Be honest in your thoughts, feelings, and actions
Try to live a holy life because God is the source of holiness. God will open your heart and give you the things you really hope for if you always keep your heart and mind pure.
Step 8. Avoid violence and fights
Read the bible which teaches how to control yourself so that your life is always calm and peaceful in truth.
Step 9. If you are Catholic, receive the Sacrament of Repentance every 2-3 months
In this way, you can become a better Christian life and get closer to God.
Step 10. Join a religious community
Whatever your age, interact with people of faith to grow and strengthen your belief in God. Moreover, God will answer when 2 or more people pray in Jesus name. However, you do not need to distance yourself from those who do not share your faith. When praying, trust that God has already provided what you asked for. With strong faith, you will be closer to God so that you can live your daily life according to the words of Jesus.
Tips
- Be calm and believe in God. If the burden of your life feels very heavy, calm down and try to accept God's plan because His plans always bring good, not bad. “Be faithful… Trust in the LORD and do good…” (Psalm 37:3). “Have I not commanded you: be strong and firm in your heart? Do not be discouraged or discouraged, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go” (Joshua 1:9).
- Don't pray with words that don't match your heart. God wants you to communicate with Him as a friend, not just say meaningless words.
- You don't have to be a pastor, deacon, or pastor to be close to God. You can experience this by praying privately using words that are easy to understand with a child's faith in his father or actually being like a child!
- Jesus said: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and love your neighbor as yourself” (Luke 10:27).
- Join meetings and retreats for youth or adults to ignite a new spirit within you. Focus on God. Never forget God, even though He is easily forgotten. Seek God while you can meet Him. In joy and sorrow, you should always be grateful, praise, and glorify God for all that He has done and will do for you.
- By actually blessing others, abundant blessings will flow to you so that they overflow and bless more people. Bless others with all your heart, instead of just wanting to go to heaven or achieving certain desires. While this may be difficult to do, you will receive real and wonderful feedback.
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You must seek and know God first in order to please Him because “without faith it is impossible to please God”:
"For whoever turns to God, he must believe that God exists."
“God rewards those who earnestly seek Him” (Hebrews 11:6).
- It's normal to be angry, but don't get angry to the point of committing a sin, for example: getting into a fight that injures other people or damages things around you. Don't hold on to anger until it's bedtime. Finish as soon as possible on the same day. Try to control your anger. People who get angry easily seem to lack faith in God. If you feel angry, try to calm yourself down.
- Reading the bible every day plays an important role in getting you closer to God. If you don't know where to start, read the book of John. Before reading the Bible, ask God to open your heart, soul, and mind to the things He wants to show you. Read 1-2 chapters per day, one chapter in the morning and another in the evening according to your daily schedule. Think carefully about what the author wants to convey. If done every day, reading the scriptures while praying and discussing the meaning of each verse with God is the best way to get closer to God.
- “Rejoice in the LORD; then He will give you what your heart desires. Surrender your life to the Lord…” (Psalm 37:2-5). Ask God to help you in times of trouble. Maybe you'll get the best solution, even if not in the way you want. Jesus said: “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you” (Luke 11:9). However, don't use God to get what you want. Value God as you would a friend, family member, or someone who means a lot to you!
- “Let not your heart be troubled” (John 14:11). Show humility by surrendering and prostrating yourself before God so that He will exalt you. Be a child of God or a human who is similar to God's image, namely a human who always hopes and acts right so that his life is blessed by God. Ask God for forgiveness of sins if you have ever done something wrong.
Warning
- "Then the righteous will answer him, saying, Lord, when did we see you hungry and we fed you, or thirsty and we gave you water?" (Matthew 25:37). On the day of judgment, Jesus will say: “Behold, whatever you did to one of the least of these my brethren, you did to me” (Matthew 25:40).
- Allah says: "Pride precedes destruction and pride precedes fall!" (Proverbs 16:18). Think of various good things for others, for example: being more helpful, being polite, and caring for others to share God's Love with them.
- Do not be arrogant. Pride of humility and success without appreciating the goodness of God and others is the wrong attitude of humility.
- In general, children or adolescents are not able to prevent parental separation or household breakdown if the husband/wife makes the decision, for example because they want a divorce. Be a parent who is worthy of being imitated by children by living in harmony and harmony as a way to get closer to God.
