FLOURISH | FLORESCER | FLORECER | FLEURIR

Congratulations on your new life in Christ! Jesus referred to this experience as "born again" in the Bible (John 3:3). Just as a newborn requires certain things to grow and blossom into maturity, Christians also need specific things to mature spiritually. Here they are, in a nutshell:

1. Pray. - connect with God regularly, and expect God to hear you and respond. Don't know what to say? Just pour your heart out! God is your best Friend. He hears your prayers and loves you very much. Here is an excellent site with prayer insights.
2. Read - read your Bible. As you do, think about what it says about God, yourself, and others. Do what the Bible instructs, and stay away from what it warns you against.
3. Connect - join a group of believers who read the Bible and follow its teachings. This is likely a church, but if the church is large, you may want to consider joining one of its small groups to connect more intimately with others. You need a church for teaching, community, encouragement, and help to get or stay on track. Here is a list of only a few of the many congregations that you might try.
4. Share - God has given you a new life! He wants you to share this with others so they can discover the new life they can have, too. Help them grow in these same four ways as well.

Here is a guide with more information about these steps and their potential impact on your life. 

Sometimes, it seems daunting to create a connection with God and feel His presence like we do at church. We can encounter roadblocks when trying to recreate an experience, or we allow frustration or overwhelm to creep in. It doesn't have to be that way. God wants to connect with you. He offers you a very special promise in His Word (the Bible): if you seek Him, you will find Him. You just have to do it wholeheartedly. 

First of all, set aside your worries, your concerns, and most importantly, your expectations. You don't need to recreate an experience you've had before. God has a fresh experience awaiting you every day, and He's going to meet you where you need Him most. He wants to curate a fresh encounter with you that is unique to you. You mean a lot to God. He never offers a cookie-cutter experience. So, set aside everything that hinders, and ready your open heart to approach the throne of God. 

Next, reach for your Bible. You don't really need anything else. If writing or listening to worship music helps, you can add that at some point. But keep it simple. Go into the Word of God and read it. This is the best connecting space for encountering God. Just as you experience a person while he or she is talking to you, you will experience God as He speaks to you in His Word. 

As you read, you may not know what to pray. That's perfectly fine. Just come to God in worship. Focus on His holiness, His goodness, or something else that you have noticed in the text - what has jumped out at you in your readings.

Finally, wait on the Lord. Get into the Word, and worship God. Again, if you don't know what to do, just worship God. Keep your heart open to God's voice so you can train yourself to tune into what He is saying. The transformation of these moments will change your perspective and your life. They are going to become what you relish most in life.

A follow-up note: if you honor God, He honors you. So, if God speaks to you in worship, take a note and follow up on it. That way, you will grow in obedience to God and strengthen your connection with Him. This is how you grow strong in the Lord and the strength of His power. The children of God are led by God. This is the first step to that journey.

Please leave us a note if you enjoyed this, or if you have questions. We love to help people grow and flourish in the things of God. May you flourish...for life!

The Lord bless you and keep you; 

the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; 

the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.

- The priestly blessing, Numbers 6:24-26, NASB