Me and God

I am so excited to be back into OBS.  I've continued Bible study while we've been on a break, but nothing compares to the OBS experience! 

Today I've chosen to my blog-hop topic on:

"What is holding you back from going deeper in your relationship with God?"

I was thankfully raised in a wonderful Christian household, so I really don't remember a time when I didn't believe in God.  He has always been a part of my life.  But my relationship with Him didn't start to really mature until I was an adult.  Thanks to OBS, my relationship has grown even more!  But there is always room for improvement.  
I feel like I have a deep relationship with God, but not as deep as it could be, but to be honest, I never want it to hit that point.  I always want to be longing for a deeper, more meaningful relationship with God.  I do believe that fear is one of the things that holds me back from God...Fear that God will want me to do something that I can't see myself doing...Fear that if I go down the path of God's plan that I will mess something up, or something will occur that I can't deal with.  
Time can also interfere with my relationship with God.  I'm usually the first one up and the last one down, simply because as a mother and a wife, that's the only time I have to just be with myself (I say as my 3-year old angel yells for me from the top of the stairs).  I do my OBS first thing in the morning, but if sleep to long and miss that window, it's hard to find another time throughout the day to devote to it.  I like to get the most I can out of the study, so I can't do it when I have kids running around and commotion going on in the background.  I pray to God throughout the day no matter what environment I'm in.  But I need that true one on one time with Him every morning...just me and Him...so that I can start my day right.  I know you all will believe that BIG difference between start the day with God than without.  What a blessing it is to start my day with the Lord.  

"The revelation of God is whole and puts our lives together.  The signposts of God are clear and point out the right road.  The life-maps of God are right, showing the way to joy.  The directions of God are plain and easy on the eyes.  God's reputation is twenty-four carat gold, with a lifetime guarantee.  The decisions of God are accurate down to the nth degree.  God's Word is better than a diamond, better than a diamond set between emeralds.  You like it better than strawberries in the spring, better than red, ripe strawberries.  -Psalm 19:7-10 MSG

I had never read this Bible verse before, and it has brought such a blessing to my life.  This verse just lays out for you what God has promised us if we just believe.  

•    God promises to point us toward the right road...we just have to open our hearts and our minds so we don't miss His signposts.
•    God has a life full of joy waiting for us...we just have to ensure that we're follow His life map and not our own.
•    God's directions for our lives are clear and easy...we just need our eyes and our hearts to be open to Him, and not the rest of the world. 
•    God's very existence is flawless and eternal...we just have to believe.
•    God's Word is the perfect guide for our lives...we just have to fill our hearts and minds with as much of it as we can.

God promised to never leave us nor forsake us, and I believe that with all of my heart.  This week has been a very tough week for my family as we lost one of our dearest friends, and heaven gained another angel.  There have been and will continue to be lots of tears shed as we miss her, but never a doubt of God's presence.  Though it has been hard to get through our day to day, God has been with us every step.  He never promised us that life would be a easy.  He never promised that we wouldn't experience loss and sadness.  But He did promise that through it all, He would be right here with us.  His arms are firmly wrapped around all of this and He is holding us tight as we remember the wonderful person who touched our hearts for so long.  For this, I am so thankful.  He is our strength.  He is our comfort.  He is our salvation from life.