We have an innate desire to love and be loved. That is why personal relationships matter to us and why we sacrifice our time and energy to keep them healthy. Effective two-way communication and service provide fuel for our relationships with family, friends, and associates. The same is true of a relationship with God.
A relationship with God is different from our relationships with the people in our lives. For instance, those people may seem easier to reach. However, while we may not talk to God face-to-face, we can each have a deeper, more loving connection with Him than we can with anyone else.
Talk to Him through Daily Prayer
The greatest way to create and maintain a relationship with anyone, including God, is through communication, and we use prayer to communicate with God.
God wants to hear from you, and He is always available to listen. He wants to hear about your day, he wants to hear what you are grateful for, and He wants to hear how He can help you.
Gordon B. Hinckley said, “Never assume that you can make it alone. You need the help of the Lord. Never hesitate to get on your knees in some private place and speak with Him. What a marvelous and wonderful thing is prayer. Think of it. We can actually speak with our Father in Heaven.”
Read the Scriptures
Quality conversations are not one-sided. Each person takes time to talk and to listen. Are you willing to listen for God’s responses to your prayers?
Richard G. Scott described his experience with receiving guidance from God:
When I am faced with a very difficult matter, this is how I try to understand what to do. I fast. I pray to find and understand scriptures that will be helpful. That process is cyclical. I start reading a passage of scripture; I ponder what the verse means and pray for inspiration. I then ponder and pray to know if I have captured all the Lord wants me to do. Often more impressions come with increased understanding of doctrine.
Do you wonder if what you’re feeling or hearing is from God or from your own mind? You can trust that anything that makes you want to draw closer to Jesus Christ and live the way He taught comes from God.
Serve Others
One of the best ways to express your love to God is by serving others. If that sounds counterintuitive, remember that God is a Heavenly Father who cares about His children. He is grateful when we share His love with each other.
This story of a group of men who have spent years serving one woman in need may inspire you to reach out too. The men were reluctant to help at first, but over time they found that being selfless did more than make God happy—it made them happy.