{"id":772,"date":"2017-03-10T22:01:03","date_gmt":"2017-03-10T22:01:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/yourmorningcupofinspiration\/?p=772"},"modified":"2017-03-10T22:01:03","modified_gmt":"2017-03-10T22:01:03","slug":"closing-gap-god","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/yourmorningcupofinspiration\/2017\/03\/closing-gap-god.html","title":{"rendered":"Closing the Gap Between You and God"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"nature-fashion-person-woman<\/a><\/p>\n

We are not meant to be separate from God. We are meant to have a relationship with Him that is part of our everyday life.\u00a0 When there is a gap between us and God, we become depressed.\u00a0 We make bad choices.\u00a0 We start asking, \u201cWhat is the point of it all?\u201d\u00a0 And we feel sad for reasons we can\u2019t explain.<\/p>\n

The good news is that God wants us to be in relationship with Him. This point is so beautifully illustrated in the parable of The Prodigal Son.\u00a0 My favorite part of the story is in Luke 15:20:<\/p>\n

\u201cBut while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.\u201d<\/p>\n

If you are a parent, you can feel the incredible emotion of that moment. If you have ever lost someone dear to you, imagine how you would feel if he or she returned.\u00a0 In the parable, Jesus clearly conveys how much God desires to be in a relationship with us.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, it is easy to get distracted from our relationship with God. Work, responsibilities, and human relationships take up our mental energy and can leave us with little time to give to God.\u00a0 And the less time we spend with God, the more \u201cout of sorts\u201d we feel.<\/p>\n

Below are some ways to close the gap between you and God. Try incorporating these approaches in your daily life.<\/p>\n

Prayer:<\/strong> Prayer is a wonderful way to connect with God.\u00a0 I\u2019m not a big fan of memorized prayers, like The Lord\u2019s Prayer, because we tend to say those prayers without thinking.\u00a0 Instead, I typically approach prayer in three steps.\u00a0 First, \u201cGod, I\u2019m worried about X, and I don\u2019t know what to do.\u00a0 Please guide me.\u201d\u00a0 Second, \u201cGod, I am so grateful for X.\u00a0 I can\u2019t believe that you have blessed me so generously.\u201d\u00a0 And third, silence.\u00a0 The silence step is important.\u00a0 It is the time when I settle my mind and just try to be open to divine guidance.\u00a0 It is the time when I am at peace because I feel that I am in the presence of God.<\/p>\n

Inspirational Reading:<\/strong> When we read positive, spiritual material, it puts us in the right frame of mind to be open to God\u2019s guidance.\u00a0 On my bookshelf, in addition to a New International Version study Bible, I have books by Joel Osteen and other Christian authors.\u00a0 I don\u2019t always agree with everything that I read, but that is OK.\u00a0 No one is going to view life in exactly the same way that I do.\u00a0 I simply find it helpful to read another person\u2019s point of view, so I perhaps I can think about life in a different way.\u00a0 Good authors from all religions can help you do that.\u00a0 For instance, Harold Kushner\u2019s \u201cWhen\u00a0Bad Things Happen to Good People,\u201d had a tremendous impact on me when I first read it.\u00a0 Try to find books and articles that make you think about life and God in different and more positive ways.<\/p>\n

Music: <\/strong> In the movie \u201cAmadeus,\u201d Salieri’s comment about Mozart’s music encapsulates my feelings about music generally.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis was a music I\u2019d never heard. Filled with such longing, such unfulfillable longing, it had me trembling.\u00a0 It seemed to me that I was hearing the voice of God.\u201d<\/p>\n

That is the power of good music. Listening to music can open our hearts to God like no other medium.\u00a0 Music has such a unique effect on the human psyche.\u00a0 If I want to calm my mind and connect with God, I will listen to all types of music, from classical to hymns to New Age.\u00a0 The key is to find the type of music that settles your mind and allows you to prepare to commune with God.<\/p>\n

It is so easy to neglect our relationship with God. Spending time with God tends to go to the bottom of our To Do List when life becomes busy.\u00a0 But our relationship with God is the foundation on which we can approach life with wisdom and maturity.\u00a0 Without it, we are like a rudderless ship on choppy water.<\/p>\n

If you feel that there is a gap in your relationship with God, try one of the above techniques to begin to close it. When you have regular, meaningful communication with God, life feels less frantic and random.\u00a0 God\u2019s hand steadies us.\u00a0 When He is part of our lives, we are happier, more relaxed and better to able to handle anything that comes our way.<\/p>\n

(Photo Courtesy of Pexels)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We are not meant to be separate from God. We are meant to have a relationship with Him that is part of our everyday life.\u00a0 When there is a gap between us and God, we become depressed.\u00a0 We make bad choices.\u00a0 We start asking, \u201cWhat is the point of it all?\u201d\u00a0 And we feel sad…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":593,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-772","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nClosing the Gap Between You and God - Your Morning Cup of Inspiration<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/yourmorningcupofinspiration\/2017\/03\/closing-gap-god.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Closing the Gap Between You and God - Your Morning Cup of Inspiration\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"We are not meant to be separate from God. We are meant to have a relationship with Him that is part of our everyday life.\u00a0 When there is a gap between us and God, we become depressed.\u00a0 We make bad choices.\u00a0 We start asking, \u201cWhat is the point of it all?\u201d\u00a0 And we feel sad…\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/yourmorningcupofinspiration\/2017\/03\/closing-gap-god.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Your Morning Cup of Inspiration\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2017-03-10T22:01:03+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/yourmorningcupofinspiration\/files\/2017\/03\/nature-fashion-person-woman-A.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Meerabelle Dey\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Closing the Gap Between You and God - Your Morning Cup of Inspiration","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/yourmorningcupofinspiration\/2017\/03\/closing-gap-god.html","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Closing the Gap Between You and God - Your Morning Cup of Inspiration","og_description":"We are not meant to be separate from God. 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