Someone in an online forum asked the question, "What does God mean to you?" This was my response. The site admin subsequently featured it as an article in the "Spirituality" board on the site.

I can remember a time when Sunday morning Baptist church service was how I viewed God. I can still hear the mournful, sedate groaning of hymns sung by bored worshipers awaiting a sleepy sermon from a weary man of God. The excitement when it was over and you knew there was fried chicken and chocolate cake waiting in the fellowship hall.

I was a child, then. Now, He is a friend that I talk to at the drop of a hat. He is that feeling I can only get at sunrise. The surreal, quiet, perfection of that time of day can only be described as God. He sends me blessings and watches to see if I praise Him for the gift or try to take the credit myself. Then, He rewards me according to his riches and MY attitude.

He is that ever-present voice that tells me when I'm not following His path and gently nudges me back onto it. I do not tell Him my troubles, He already knows, so we just talk about things. Where to go? How to react? What to say and when?

As I matured, I wanted to increase my spiritual knowledge and began to seek out the truth within His Word. The verses I had "labore" to memorize in childhood now stuck in my mind without all the labor. Now, they had clarity and meaning. This is how God works. "Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things will be added unto you." (Matthew 6:33)

Do you want to better understand how God works and what he wants for your life? Do you need to escape the pomp and circumstance of a church so caught up in its traditions and ritual that it has forgotten the Word? Are you looking for clarity and meaning in your spiritual walk? You MUST read and study the Word to find your answers. You must find a pastor who is teaching the Word and not just drawing a paycheck. Your relationship with God is like any other relationship. You have to spend time together and get to know one another. There must be communication and it's going to take some work. It doesn't just happen.

Don't wait for someone to drag you into Heaven. It's up to you. Do your homework and listen to those that are teaching the truth as it is written.