5 Ways to Have a Relationship with God

by Deborah Ruck

“Daddy!” That’s what I heard during worship one Sunday morning. I stopped singing immediately because I realized that even though I’d known Jesus for almost 10 years, I couldn’t call God, “Daddy”. I couldn’t relate because my relationship with God was weak at best.

I’d been a dedicated Christian, serving on the worship team, volunteering at every opportunity, doing all I could for God. But my walk with God had hit a plateau. I was going through the motions and wondering, “Is this all there is to the “Christian” life? I yearned for something more.

For all those years, I was operating out of religion instead of relationship. I thought the works that I did were what God wanted. But what He wanted for me to get to know Him.

Do you know God? I mean, do you really know God? Whether you’re a new believer wondering how to relate to a God you can’t see, hear, or touch or you’re a seasoned believer yearning to go deeper, this post will show you how to draw closer to Him.

The Importance of a Connection with God

God wants to connect with you. He created you for intimacy with Him. That intimacy was broken when Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden. Jesus died so that all creation could have that intimacy with God again, and we can now boldly go before the throne of Grace, no longer separated, free to build a relationship with God just like Adam and Eve did in the Garden.

I don’t know if you’ve noticed but Adam and Eve were naked in the Garden. They were naked before God and they were not ashamed. Intimacy with God gives us the confidence to strip ourselves bare before Him because there is no judgment. No flaw or failure could ever change the way He sees us or loves us. We can be our most vulnerable with Him and He will never take advantage of our vulnerabilities. If there is one person we can trust, it is Him.

Having a closer relationship with God leads us to a place where we can trust Him fully. It’s where we discover His unconditional love. A love that doesn’t ebb or flow depending on how good or bad we are or how much we do for Him. He’s always loved us, yes, even when we were sinners. When we understand this, we know we can open up to Him completely.

Now, let’s see what the Bible says about having a relationship with God.

Relationship with God Bible Verses

God desires true intimacy with us, His children. Not a master-slave relationship where we are afraid of His punishment but one where we see ourselves as His sons and daughters. One where we can call Him Father. 

Here are 12 Bible verses showing how to strengthen your relationship with God. Meditate on them. Ask Him what He wants you to learn from them and how you can apply them. 

• Romans 5:8 (ESV) – “… but God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
• Romans 8:15 (ESV) – “For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’”
• Proverbs 3:5-6 (ESV) – “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make straight your paths.”
• 1 John 4:18 (ESV) – “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.”
• John 14:6 (ESV) – “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.'”
• Ephesians 1:17-19 (ESV) – “… that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which He has called you, what are the riches of His glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His great might “

• Psalm 145:18 (ESV) – “The Lord is near to all who call on Him, to all who call on Him in truth.”
• Jeremiah 29:12-13 (ESV) – “Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will hear you. You will seek Me and find Me when you seek me with all your heart.”
• Romans 8:38-39 (ESV) – “For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.“
• John 10: 27-28 (ESV) -”My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of My hand.”
• John 14:26 (ESV) – “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.”
• Psalm 63:1 (ESV) -“O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.”

What Does it Mean to Have a Relationship With God?

As children, we often follow our parents’ rules out of fear of punishment, obedience driven by the consequences we face if we break those rules. And many of us start our spiritual journey with God similarly with our actions and obedience coming from a fear of God’s punishment. This was my experience during the first decade of my walk with the Lord. I earnestly tried to meet what I believed were His expectations of me, yet often fell short.

But, just as a parent-child relationship should mature and transform as those children grow into adulthood, so does our relationship with God. When my children became adults, I realized that my role as a parent changed from leading them (sometimes forcefully 🙂), to guiding and walking alongside them as they made their own decisions. This reflects how God wants to have a relationship with us.  

The AMPC version of 1 John 4:18 says, “There is no fear in love [dread does not exist], but full-grown (complete, perfect) love turns fear out of doors and expels every trace of terror! For fear brings with it the thought of punishment, and [so] he who is afraid has not reached the full maturity of love [is not yet grown into love’s complete perfection]”.

Our aim as our relationship with God develops is to reach that place of full maturity of love where, instead of obeying because we fear His punishment, we do so because we value and honor the relationship we have with Him. Before making a questionable decision, we ought to consider, “How will this affect my relationship with my Heavenly Father?”

Before making a questionable decision, we ought to consider, "How will this affect my relationship with my Heavenly Father?" – Deborah Ruck Click To Tweet

How to Have a Relationship with God – 5 Ways

So how do we reach that point of mature perfect love? It comes from a desire to know Him more; to go deeper into His love. Let’s look at 5 ways to deepen your relationship with God.

Ask Him to Reveal Himself to You

In Ephesians 1:17-19, the Apostle Paul asks the LORD to give the Ephesians the Spirit of wisdom and revelations in the knowledge of God. You can ask the same for yourself. Ask Him to give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation so that you can know Him better. Tell Him you want Him to reveal Himself to you so you can have a deeper relationship with Him; that you want to know what’s on His heart. 

Because of Jesus, we have the Holy Spirit in us, and the Holy Spirit knows the thoughts of God. Ask the Lord to open the eyes of your heart so that you can see and hear what the Holy Spirit is telling you about the Father. 

God draws near to those who seek Him (Ps 145:18; James 4:8), and if you seek God with your whole heart, you WILL find Him (Jer 29:13). It’s a guarantee. 

Surrender to His Love

One key to building a relationship with God is learning to rest in His love. Sometimes we’re so concerned about all we THINK we have to do for Him, that we don’t allow Him to love us. Father God loved you before you ever did anything for Him. While you were still a sinner, He sent His Son to die for you. And then Jesus on the cross, looked into eternity and saw every wrong thing you’d ever do and still chose to die for you. 

You didn’t have to do anything to earn God’s love before you were saved and you don’t have to do anything to earn it now. No matter what happens, no matter how overwhelmed you get, no matter how much of a failure you feel… you can rest knowing that He loves you and His love for you will never change. 

There’s nothing that can separate you from His love (Rom 8:38-39) and when you understand that, you can let Him into your deepest, darkest places knowing He won’t reject you. 

{Related: “5 Scriptures To Remind You of the Father’s Perfect Love“}

Learn the Ways He Speaks to You

As you build your relationship with God, you might wonder if it’s His voice you’re hearing. Jesus said, “My sheep hear my voice… (John 10:27-28).” There is no “maybe.” If you are Jesus’ sheep you WILL hear His voice. The key is learning the ways He speaks to you. 

God’s word is the primary way He communicates with us. Reading His Word is how we get to know Him more. Go beyond the surface-level devotional. As you’re reading the Word, if there is something you don’t understand, ask the Holy Spirit to make it clearer. He’s your helper and teacher (John 14:26). You can take that literally.

But beyond scripture, God also speaks to us through dreams, visions, an audible voice, impressions, music, art, etc. While He might speak to me using dreams and visions, you might hear from Him more through spontaneous thoughts, impressions, art, or music. As you nurture your relationship with Him, you’ll better understand the unique combination of ways He speaks to you. 

Record the Things He says

Scripture encourages us to write what we hear from God (Hab 2:2; Isaiah 30:8). When you hear God speak, don’t just listen to what He says, record it. Journaling is one of the best ways to do this. You can use your written journal or an online journal, whatever you’re most comfortable with. 

If you’re struggling with a specific situation, you can ask Him about it then journal what He says or write out prayers for yourself, loved ones, and friends. Or you can write about something that brought you joy, express gratitude for how He helped you through a specific situation, or even thank Him in advance for what you’re trusting Him to do. 

You can journal your dreams too. God often uses dreams to tell us His plans. When I journal my dreams, I often remember more details or get further revelation as I ask the Holy Spirit to help me interpret something I don’t understand.

Involve Him in Your Everyday life

King David had an everyday relationship with God. He referred to Him as “my God” (Ps 63:1) and actively sought His counsel in all areas of his life. He didn’t limit his conversations with God to when he was in the Tabernacle (the church), or a specific quiet time, or by reading the scriptures and attempting to do what they say in his own strength, but by conversing with God. 

When all his family and possessions were captured at Ziklag, David immediately turned to God to ask what to do. He let God know what was on his mind–his thoughts, his pain, his pleasure, his gratitude, his sorrows–because God was his friend and he could share the pain in his heart with Him. And God gave Him a solution for rescuing all that was lost for himself and the people he was leading. 

Embracing the Heart of the God

Looking back on that Sunday morning, I realize how my relationship with God has changed. No longer do I see my walk with God as a checklist of duties but as a meaningful journey as I get to know Him more deeply in a genuine relationship.

To those of you longing for a deeper connection to a God you can’t see, hear, or touch, remember it’s less about what you do for Him and more about heartfelt intimacy with Him. Your relationship with Him is nurtured in the whispers of prayer, the reflective moments spent in scripture, and the conscious acknowledgment of His presence in your day-to-day life. May your journey be as transformative and fulfilling as mine has been, drawing you ever closer to the heart of God.

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