Love to spend time with God

"From afar the Lord shows himself to me: I love you with everlasting love, therefore I keep you kind." Jeremiah 31.3

Perhaps you think you are doing good deeds, but have you wondered about your motives ? If they are not pure, you are guilty of the same religiosity as me once. When you do good to someone only to receive something in return, for others to see or love you, your motivations are not good.

God wants to live a love relationship with you.

Religious people do not know how to appreciate their relationship with God. For them, it amounts to a number of obligations which they must fulfill in order to be accepted and loved by God. They do not see God as their heavenly Father, but rather as a demanding foreman who takes account of everything they do and makes a judgment on the least of their actions. They impose a heavy burden !

For religious people, everything seems to be a question of laws. They are unable to appreciate the time they spend with God, being too busy trying to scrupulously follow their list of obligations. They enact strict rules about their practice or what they eat (or do not eat). They take a legalistic approach in all areas of their lives, from housekeeping to praying and reading the Bible. They do everything by obligation. They feel obliged to act in such and such a way to be a "good Christian" or to retain God's favor.

The truth, unfortunately, is that none of us will ever be good enough. Under the weight of the rules we impose on ourselves, we are doomed to failure. We are not able to follow all these religious laws. This type of legalism leads us into a dead end.

This is not what God wants for you! He wants to live a love relationship with you. Everything he does in your life flows from his unconditional love for you. And he wants it to be the same for everything you do for him. He wants you to seek justice, not to obey a set of rules, but because of the immense love you bear him.

A Truth for Today

Once you succeed in freeing yourself from the slavery of religion, you can truly begin to love God and serve Him with a pure heart. You no longer need to strive to look good in the hopes of attracting the sympathy of others. And you will never again doubt the acceptance of God.

Joyce Meyer

Source (The Thought of the Day)