More From Bob LaForge

The thing matters most in determining the stability of our spiritual and emotional lives, in determining our desire to lead righteous lives, and in determining whether we will still be walking with God many years from now is how well we know and understand God. If our Christian walk is based on how well things are going in life at the moment, we will flounder when our circumstances turn sour. So much can turn on a dime, including our health, finances, and relationships. But God is constant, stable, and immutable. Though the mountains fall into the sea (see Psalm 46:2), God is there for us. When friends and family are gone, God is there for us. When we are crushed, confused, or despairing, God is there for us.

The best way to know God is to read scripture, where God shares God’s heart. We can also read what God thinks about us in scripture. It is good for us to read the Bible every day. Job tells us that if he had to choose between eating and reading God’s word, he would read God’s word. “I have not departed from the commands of his lips; I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my daily bread.” (Job 23:12, NIV).

Another way to know God is to pray. We can go for a long walk alone and just spend time with God, talking to God, adoring God, and pouring out our hearts to God.

When I was going through a rough patch in my life, I realized that the key to get me out of it was to know God better. So I got a three-ring notebook and put in page separators. On each page separator I wrote an attribute of God: Omniscient, Omnipresent, Eternal, Holy, Love, Mercy, Patient, etc. Then as I read the Bible, I paid special attention to any passages about who God is. Then I would meditate on that passage and write my thoughts on that attribute of God in my notebook. By the end of the year, when I had read the entire Bible, my notebook was filled with meditations on God. But my heart was also filled with trust in God. My feet were no longer on the slippery path of circumstances but were on the solid rock of God.

Whether we are in a rough patch or life is skimming along smoothly, I would recommend we all do a similar study. It has the power to change our lives, stabilize us spiritually and emotionally, give us the desire to lead righteous lives, and give us greater assurance that years from now we will be walking with God.

I have a website: www.disciplescorner.com. Please visit it. Thank you.