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10 Ways To Get Closer To God Every Day

Barrett BoganDecember 4, 2017Knowing God

Closer to God

If you want to grow closer to God, think of Moses in the tent of meeting, Mary at the feet of Jesus, and
Jesus Himself, constantly stealing away to be with the Father. Every great leader and hero of the faith had
this one thing in common: they never considered themselves close enough to God.

Take Paul in his letter to the Philippians:

Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting
what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which
God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

-Philippians 3:13-14

It’s really all of Chapter 3, so you should go read that for sure. But basically he says that even he hasn’t
come to a place where he can relax and kick back.

But instead he has this intense desire to press on, to push closer, to know Christ more, to grow closer
and more intimate, more fellowship. Even Paul, the writer of most of the New Testament, wanted to get
closer to God.

We definitely need this encouragement, this attitude, this heart posture.

Want to grow even closer with God (even if you’re close already) and learn how to grow closer with Him
every single day from here on out?

Click Here To Download My FREE “Get Closer To God Workbook” So That You Can Start Growing Closer
With God Today!
What is your heart posture?

Praise God that He is patient with us and that He loves us, His Church, even with our blemishes. But if we
are to truly walk closer to God, we have got to realize that true love is ever-pursuing, ever-increasing,
ever-responding, and ever-growing closer every day.

It doesn’t stay put. It goes with God… it moves… it follows… it pursues.

Jesus is in the process of preparing and purifying us, His bride, more and more, so we should be engaged
in that process as well.

That being said, there is a deep, disgusting disease in the Church today that we definitely need a cure for.
It is unseen and unspoken of, and it is rampant throughout our churches and our hearts. It is the posture
in our hearts that we are close enough.

We might never say it out loud or even realize it sometimes, but it plays out in how we spend our time. It
plays out in our worship services. It plays out when there is an altar call, and the majority of us don’t go
up. And mostly, it plays out in our hearts.

“I’m good”, or “give me more?”

We sit back thinking, “I don’t need that. I’m good. I don’t want people to see me going forward. What
would other people think of me?”

Whatever we’re thinking, it’s not, “Give it to me! Show me your glory Lord. I want more of you, so here I
come.”

Instead of staying put if there is an invitation for prayer, we, the people of God, the ones who have spent
the most time at church, should be the ones that are up at the altar most often.

The altar should be full of us; the altar at church, the altar in our homes, and the altar in our hearts. We
should live in close pursuit and die daily. Daily laying our lives at His altar and letting Him prune and
shape us more into His likeness. It should be a pursuit, and a passionate one at that.

Almost everyone in the whole church should be up there seeking more of Jesus, every time, any chance
we get, every day. We should be seeking more of Jesus, every week, all the time, Sunday after Sunday,
every other day too, in our homes, in our living rooms, with our families, with our friends, with each
other.

Imagine what kind of atmosphere our churches would have if God looked down and saw passionate,
longing hearts instead of indifference.

Imagine with me

What if He saw us at the altar instead of in our chairs?

If He saw pursuit and desperation and love in our hearts?

What would God do if He looked down and saw everyone in your church up at the altar, over and over,
and over again each week? I guarantee you He would match that pursuit and meet you in power!

“I’m good!?!”

Why would we ever say that to God?

Again, we don’t realize we are saying it, but we are. We are giving God the stiff arm. We are saying,
essentially, “I’m close enough. I don’t need to go any further. I’m good right here. I don’t need any more
of you. I’ve done that. Jesus cleansed me. I’m thankful. But now I’m good.”

If God is offering something, I don’t care if it’s something we’ve already received from Him before, we
should want more of it, more of Him, every time. That altar should be full of all of the people that are
hungry for more of Him.

I fear though that it already is. We’ve got to stoke our hunger for Him again.

Want to grow even closer with God (even if you’re close already) and learn how to grow closer with Him
every single day from here on out?

Click Here To Download My FREE “Get Closer To God Workbook” So That You Can Start Growing Closer
With God Today!

Rekindle the fire

We have got to rekindle that fire inside of us and be hungry for Him again.

We have got to recapture that flame, that heart ablaze, that worshipful spirit that is thankful, and
grateful, and awestruck, and in love, and can’t for the life of us get enough of Him.

You see, we don’t completely push Him away. We make sure to keep Him within reach, but definitely an
arms length away. You know, just in case we need Him for something, but on our terms.

We keep God at an arms distance.

It’s as if we don’t need more cleaning and don’t need Him anymore. Like we’ve forgotten and are no
longer enthralled and hungry and thirsty and in love.

I do this too. It’s easy to get to the point where you just want to be comfortable AND God’s. But that’s
not exactly in the cards bro.

I mean, He is our great Comforter. But we don’t really want Him to be our comforter because that would
mean that the circumstances He allows us to be in are UNcomfortable, and we definitely don’t like that.
If we’re really honest with ourselves, we want the situation to be comfortable already.

On the contrary though, God says that our flesh will die when we are close to Him.

“But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live.”
-EXODUS 33:20

Come up the mountain

God is inviting you up the mountain to be with Him, to come closer, to know Him more intimately than
you ever have. Will you come up the mountain and come closer to God?

Will you recapture that love and fire and pursue God again? It may be painful. There may be some dying
and some burning, but hardness produces goodness, and He is making us more Holy.

Death is always the required course for resurrection life.

As far as what side of the fence to choose, there have always been people on both sides of passion and
jade. But Jesus wants us to come back to Him. He spoke to it in Revelation.

I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked
people, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. You
have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary.

Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first. Consider how far you have fallen!
Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your
lampstand from its place. But you have this in your favor: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which
I also hate.

Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who is victorious, I will
give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.

-Revelation 2:2-6

There have always been people who have been in love with Jesus, and there have always been people
who have hated Him. But the group that Jesus had the biggest issues with was the group that claimed to
love God, but was actually quite far from Him.

A Man after God’s own heart

Let’s be honest. Most of us have experienced a season of decreased passion and fervency in our walk
with Christ once or twice before.

David expressed it too.

Create in me a pure heart, O God,

and renew a steadfast spirit within me.

Do not cast me from your presence

or take your Holy Spirit from me.

Restore to me the joy of your salvation

and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.

-PSALM 51:10-12

Even King David, the man after God’s own heart, had lost it somehow.

He had lost the joy and the enthrallment. He had lost the zeal, the worship, the pursuit.

This is the same thing that we struggle with today. We have lost the pursuit. Our posture is no longer one
of pursuit and hunger for the Lord. And we have got to recapture that pursuing heart!

It’s as though we have forgotten or grown accustom to our freedom and have started to take it for
granted. But you only stay truly free when you stay close to Jesus every day.

Who Will You Be?

Will you be the Israelites, who stayed away from the mountain? Or will you be Moses, who desired to
meet with the Lord face to face?

Will you be Martha, who considered the dishes and house chores to be more important? Or will you be
Mary who put all that aside to be with Jesus?

Will you be the Christian who is comfortable with how close you’ve come? Or will you be the Jesus
follower who is passionately pursuing Christ and coming closer to God because your heart is so
enthralled and can never ever be close enough?

10 Ways to get Closer to God

Whether you’re just getting to know the Lord or you’ve been following Him for years, getting to know
God closer is actually quite simple. That’s because He has made Himself available to us.

If you’re looking for more ways to get closer to God and spend more time with Him, here’s a list of 10
easy things you can do to engage or re-ignite a passionate and thriving relationship with Jesus.

1. Pray

Just talk to God like you would any other person. Pray out loud. Listen for Him to answer you. He has
made Himself incredibly available to us through prayer. No matter where you are, talk to Him, and He
will talk back to you. And when He does, it will change your life.

Want to grow even closer with God (even if you’re close already) and learn how to grow closer with Him
every single day from here on out?

Click Here To Download My FREE “Get Closer To God Workbook” So That You Can Start Growing Closer
With God Today!
2. Go on a walk together

This is what Jesus did. There’s something about going on a walk or a hike OUTSIDE with God. Out in the
breeze, out in creation. You get out of whatever you were in and you meet with Him. The important
thing here is that you get up and move with Jesus. It helps you put your life in His hands instead of just
sitting there stuck in your own head and circumstances. It very practically gets some motion in your life
and really helps you keep moving with God. I even do this at Church during worship sometimes. Just pray
and pace a little as you seek Him. You don’t have to move to pray, but it can definitely be really great and
extremely helpful sometimes.

3. Read the Bible

This may be obvious, but there are too many of us that don’t dig into Scripture on a regular basis. God
will without a doubt reveal Himself to you through His Word. Read the Bible and you will get to know
Him more and more. If you want to get to know somebody, you talk to them. Between prayer and
reading the Bible, these are the 2 best ways to talk to God and get to know Him. But read with an
expectation to hear from God! His Spirit is ready to speak to you through His Word. Pick it up today and
come alive with the Lord’s voice in your heart.

Want to grow even closer with God (even if you’re close already) and learn how to grow closer with Him
every single day from here on out?

Click Here To Download My FREE “Get Closer To God Workbook” So That You Can Start Growing Closer
With God Today!

4. Fill Your Life With Worship

There are so many things we put into our lives these days. But we may not realize the affects they have
on our spirit. Just like junk food to our bodies, certain things can have a negative affect on our spirits as
well. The fact is that God has said multiple times in Scripture that worldly things separate us from Him.
So if you want to get closer to God, cut out some things you normally do, watch, listen to, and think
about, and fill your life with worship.

Become a worshipper of God. Spend time in the car singing and praying and talking with Jesus. Spend
time worshipping in your living room. Filling your life with worship will have a MASSIVE affect on your
relationship with God, and it will have an ENORMOUS affect on your entire life. If you need a list of great
worship music, I’ve got a list of some of my personal favs here on my website to get you started.

5. Find A Good Church

There are some places in the world where there are literally churches on every corner. And other places
where you can’t even gather legally together as Christians. But the fact of the matter is that Godly
community is a HUGE blessing for growing in Christ. Find a Church where people really know God, really
love Him, and really love you. Get involved. And eventually, make sure you’re not just there to get but to
give and serve as well.
Want to grow even closer with God (even if you’re close already) and learn how to grow closer with Him
every single day from here on out?

Click Here To Download My FREE “Get Closer To God Workbook” So That You Can Start Growing Closer
With God Today!

6. Talk To a Pastor or Godly Mentor

God has equipped everybody for specific service to others. If you’ve got a great Church and great
Pastors, get to know them and spend a little time together. They can make some of the best mentors.
Other than that, find someone in the Church that is older and wiser than you who you can meet with
and chew on life together.

Also, if you want to get mentoring from me, I do have some 1-on-1 coaching packages available you can
check out HERE. You can be anywhere in the world because we meet over video chat, and I will help you
maximize your potential and pursuit of Christ and grow as a leader as we spend 1-on-1 time together. All
you have to do is be hungry and ready to invest in your personal, spiritual, and leadership growth.

7. Get An Accountability Partner

Talk To a Close Friend Who Knows God. You may not share everything with everybody. But it is extremely
healthy to have one or two friends who know pretty much everything about you. And I mean the good,
the bad, and the ugly. Find someone you can trust and grow together. Confess sin, confess temptation
even before sin to stay out of sin, pray together, pursue God together, have fun and live the adventure
together.

When God gives you a really great friend, they can end up becoming even closer than a brother. But to
get a friend, you’ve got to be a friend, so make sure you are the kind of friend to them that you want
them to be for you in return. Meet regularly and talk about what the Lord is teaching you. Challenge
each other and grow closer to God together. And always keep it same sex when you’re dealing with
accountability. (Side note: if you struggle with purity & sexual sin, don’t stick with just an accountability
partner. Get help from a Pastor/mentor as well who can help you overcome and get healthy.)

Want to grow even closer with God (even if you’re close already) and learn how to grow closer with Him
every single day from here on out?

Click Here To Download My FREE “Get Closer To God Workbook” So That You Can Start Growing Closer
With God Today!

8. Read A Book

I’ve never really been a big natural reader. But over the years I have learned to love it. As I look back on
some of my most intimate seasons with the Lord, I was reading the Bible in the mornings and reading a
challenging book at night before I went to sleep. Mostly some sort of Christian self-help type book on life
with God, who He is, etc. If you need a list of great books to read, I’ve got a list of some of my personal
favs here on my website to get you started.

9. Take a Course

It’s incredible what we can learn from people whom God has appointed to help show us the way. There
are lots of great online courses out there about all different topics. But if you’re looking for online
courses on walking with God, building confidence, finding your contribution, leading well, or making the
difference in the world that you were born to make, then check back here often as I am constantly
putting together courses for your growth and walk with the Lord.

Make sure you’re subscribed to my email list so you get updates about new courses before they drop.
And also, I’m always looking to tailor my content to your specific needs, so hit reply on any email I send
you and come chat on Facebook or even right here on any blog post in the comments. I would love to
hear back from you and get to know you so that I can know what you’d like help with most and how I can
help you grow.

I love helping you grow closer to God and grow as a leader, and I have made sure to put only the best,
most actionable content into my courses so you get incredible results from every course you take. If you
follow the steps I lay out for you in my courses you will without a doubt get closer to God & grow as a
leader. It’s one of the best ways to go deeper, take things to the next level, and to grow together.

Want to grow even closer with God (even if you’re close already) and learn how to grow closer with Him
every single day from here on out?

Click Here To Download My FREE “Get Closer To God Workbook” So That You Can Start Growing Closer
With God Today!

10. Drop Me A Line

My absolute passion is helping people just like you know and walk closer with God every day. I am here
for you, so if you ever need anything, have a question, or just need someone to pray for you or help
show you the way, you can drop me a line right here in the blog comments or even here on my Facebook
page. I would love to help you any way that I can.

These 10 things have absolutely changed my life so much that I could write a whole book on each one.
Well, the first 9 I guess

Here they are again to recap.

Pray

Go on a Walk Together

Read the Bible

Fill Your Life With Worship

Find A Good Church

Talk To a Pastor or Godly Mentor

Get An Accountability Partner

Read A Book

Take a Course

Drop Me A Line

Walking with God is an absolute treasure, one that nothing in this world could ever match in a million
years. Not in a billion kajillion years could anything in this world measure up to living life with Christ. His
Spirit and His love and His life and His Words are everything we truly crave. And it is just so satisfying to
walk with Him that you could never be close enough.

We have got to re-spark that passion and come closer to God.

The closer you get to Jesus, the more you just want to get closer and closer and closer, because He is so
infinite and amazing.

No one else can make you strong. Only Jesus is strong in your weakness. And only He sees all of you AND
loves you more than you can even imagine. Trust wholly in Him & put Him first before everything else. It
will change everything in your life.

I’m praying for you

Lord draw us close. Forgive us of our apathy and distance. Give us clean hands and pure hearts. Show us
the depths of your love for us, and create in us a deep desire to respond to you with passion and pursuit
and love right back. We dare to pray the dangerous prayer that asks you to burn away our flesh, meaning
our self, if it means we can be close to you and be fully alive in your Spirit. Restore to us the joy of our
salvation. Give us sight Jesus. Heal our hearts. Come and be our first love again. We love you Lord, and
we want more of you. Lord draw us close.

Want to grow even closer with God (even if you’re close already) and learn how to grow closer with Him
every single day from here on out?

Click Here To Download My FREE “Get Closer To God Workbook” So That You Can Start Growing Closer
With God Today!

“Closer To God” Discussion Question:

What are some other things that you do to grow closer to God? Share it with me in the comments below,
and let’s grow together. // Also, let me know in the comments below what you want me to cover in
future blog posts/videos & I’ll do my best in the coming weeks to cover it. Here’s to growing together!
God bless! // (Comments section is just below the KEEP ON WATCHIN’ & Tags sections )

Emre Karatas – Photo in featured image by Emre Karatas on Unsplash

KEEP ON WATCHIN'...

Welcome to my new blog! 5 Powerful Scriptures To Help You Finally Read The Bible More 7 Ways to
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Tags:closer to God, faith, faith in God, growing in Christ, hearing God's voice, intimate with God, knowing
God, pursuing God, pursuit of God, reading the Bible

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