Experiencing God

Experiencing God-Chapter One-Knowing God by Experience

Question 1. Are you certain you are a child of God, that he has forgiven you of your sin? If not, stop right now and settle that matter with God.

Yes, I am a Child of God and I know that he has forgiven me of my sins. However, there are times where I have my doubts. I do not deserve God’s forgiveness, mercy and love. When I have these doubts, I need to trust in the Lord God.

Question 2. What in particular would you like to see God do in your life as you study Experiencing God? Do you long for a deeper walk with him? Do you need victory over a particular sin in your life? Do you desire more profound times in prayer reading God’s word? Would you like a deeper sense of joy in your life or to better understand God’s will? Ask God to address these specific issues as you read.

I want to improve my relationship with God. Sometimes I feel that it is nonexistent. I have so much on my mind-such as finances, family issues and work issues-I tend to forget that God is with me. I want to change that to a continuous, existing and thriving relationship.

I can also describe my relationship as at a plateau. It is neither growing nor declining. I want to grow as a Christian each day. I want to learn new things by studying the Bible and other books, praying, and talking to God

I want my relationship to be exciting, joyful and powerful. With this type of attitude, others would want to get to know God better.

Question 3. What are some characteristics of God you have come to know by experience?

He is caring, loving, all-knowing, all-powerful and trustworthy.

Question 4. Which name of God currently seems most significant in your life? Why is that?

I have to say that God's name is Provider. Mostly it is because of my financial situation. My husband and I find ourselves struggling week by week getting our bills paid. However, when all seems lost, God always come through for us.

Question 5. What is one aspect of God’s nature you would like to experience more fully in the coming days?

I want to experience his trust. I know that God is trust-worthy. I just have to learn to trust him in every situation in my life. Whenever something happens in my life that I do not like, I cannot n=blame God or ask him “why me?” He allows things to happen for a reason. When I begin to trust him more, I can understand why he allows things to happen. The bad things always have a good thing behind it. Good always come out of the bad.

I will share an example of his trust. The car I was driving had 280,000 miles on it. It was at the point where it had one mechanical problem after another. Since I had a seventy-five mile commute back and forth to work, the car was not reliable for my commute.

My husband and I looked around at cars and found one with low mileage at a decent price. However, after we applied for a loan, we were declined. Our credit was not good, we were already in the trap where we were spending more than we made.

Needing a car to get back and forth to work, my husband allowed me to use his truck. He used the car, since it would be fine for local travel.

This is where I needed to trust in God. The car we were looking at, even though the price was excellent, was not reliable. Through consumer reports, this type of car was known to have a list of mechanical problems. If we were able to get approved for a loan, the payments would have been almost $300 a month. We were struggling as it was; I am not sure if I would have been able to keep up with the payments. The timing was not perfect for this type of car. It was the beginning of winter. The car I was looking at was not reliable in the snow. We did have a rough winter that year. Driving my husband’s truck made me feel safe since it had four-wheel drive.

It was six months later when I realized that God was working for me and not against me. Our financial situation improved somewhat. We were able to get approved for a car payment. I had something trustworthy , safe in the snow and reliable. My initial disappointment in God turned to understanding of why God did not help us the first time.

Experiencing God: Knowing and Doing the Will of God, Revised and Expanded
Experiencing God: Knowing and Doing the Will of God, Revised and Expanded