CONNECT TO GOD
God, is that You? Discovering that God is always present The life, death and resurrection of Jesus shows us that God desires a relationship with us. He longs to set us free to live within the ethos of love— to know Him and ourselves as we are; to experience communion with Him and community with each other. He is willing and faithful to do whatever He can so that we can truly live. This includes being active in our lives and guiding us towards light, freedom and love. While God most certainly longs for deep, abiding relationship with us, it seems that He doesn’t want this relationship to be one-sided. Just as He has chosen each of us, He longs for us to choose Him. Like any relationship, the more we want to spend time and get to know God, the more we will.
by Kathy Gust Kathy is a spiritual director and led a workshop on different types of prayer at our 2020 Women’s Conference. You’ll find the video on Baptist Women’s YouTube channel 6
live • September - October 2021
Storyblocks.com
The first step in recognizing and being guided by God’s presence is found in our desire. The second step is reaching out and asking God to help us recognize Him. What comes next? Once we’ve asked God to help us notice Him, how can we know when something we’re experiencing is from God? Sometimes the knowing is obvious, like fireworks going off all around us. Most times, however, God’s movement is subtle and requires discernment. Discernment Discerning God is an art that takes practice and matures over time. Happily, there are some basic guidelines we can use to help us. Here are a few:
