How Does Prayer Develop A Relationship with God?

The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. Psalm 145:11(NIV)

 You’re searching for answers; you want to know how a person can develop a relationship with God.  You’ve heard people attribute their close connection with God to prayer.

You want what they have. You want to share intimate moments with God every day. But first, you need to know the link between prayer and being close to God.

You’re on the right track. There is no better relationship in this world than our relationship with God in Christ.  You may be friends with some of the most influential people in the world.

And much as those relationships are good,  having a relationship with God through Jesus Christ is better.

The Bible says that though my mother and father forsake me, the Lord will receive me (Psalm 27:10). This means that people, even your family, may forsake you at some point. But God will not. He is faithful until the end.

Why is it Important to have a relationship with God

It Determines where you’ll Spend Eternity

Did you know that the kind of relationship you have with God on earth determines where you will spend eternity?  Yes, how you relate with God through his son Jesus right now will determine whether you will enjoy eternal life or not. That is why we are encouraged to seek God first.

A relationship with God lasts forever

Unlike all other earthly relationships, our relationship with God is one that will last forever.

Even if your parents go to heaven and you meet there, they will not continue to be your parents. When we go to heaven, all of us become children of God. We become one great family. It means that our earthly relationships end the day we die.

It is good to be committed to your earthly relationship, but your relationship with God should be given first priority. No one on earth should ever take the place of God. He will continue to be God and king of your life when you go to heaven.

A Relationship with God will equip you to deal with Spiritual Matters

We cannot understand spiritual matters with our carnal mind (1 Corinthians 2: 14).

To understand the things that happen in the spirit realm and how to deal with them, we need to be spiritually minded. It is through prayer and reading the word of God that you are able to become spiritually-minded.

When we pray, we connect to the Holy Spirit, who starts dealing with our hearts and minds. When he does that, we start walking in line with the things of God. The Holy Spirit also opens our spiritual eyes and ears to see and hear things in the spirit realm.

We should not be ignorant of what goes on in the spirit world. Ignorance will cause us to live in defeat. God says in his word that his people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.

A relationship with God will cause you to gain knowledge about the kingdom of God. And the privileges that you have as a kingdom child. If you’ve been asking: how does prayer develop a relationship with God? You’ve come to the right place.

Also Related: How Can I Connect With God Through Prayer?

 How Prayer Develops a Relationship with God

Prayer Brings Us Close to God

We all have that one person that we enjoy talking to. We can spend hours chatting with them without getting bored.  These people know us inside out and vice versa because we spend a lot of time talking to them.

The same is true about God. When we spend time talking to God and listening to him, we become close to him and end up developing an intimate relationship with him.

People who are deeply in love and obedient to God spend time each day talking to Him. They always ensure to give God the first priority. People in the early church spent time in prayer, which is why they were able to grow in faith (Acts 2:24).

It is through prayer that they were able to get close with God and enjoy a deep relationship with Him. No wonder these people were not afraid of persecution. They knew who they believed and were ready to worship him to the point of death.

Prayer Causes the Holy Spirit to Take Charge of our Lives

None of us can have an intimate relationship with God without the Holy Spirit. We need the Holy Spirit to convict our hearts and teach us the things of God. But for him to be active in our lives, we need to let him in.  The best way to do that is by praying.

Now, it is not enough for us to just say a one-time prayer and then leave it at that. We need to be in constant communication with God through his Spirit so that he can teach us about the ways of God. When we know God intimately, we fall deeply in love with God and develop a strong relationship with Him.

Prayer causes God to draw near to us

God never forces himself on any human being.  He has given us free will so that we can choose how to relate to Him.  He did not create us to be his robots. We were created to have a relationship with him but out of the willingness of our hearts.

For us to develop a relationship with God, we have to draw near to him first.  It is when we go to God in prayer that he draws near to us The more you pray, the closer you draw to God, and that causes him to also draw near to you.  If you’re looking for a way to develop your relationship, start with a simple act of prayer.

Maybe someone told you that only people with a special calling can have a close relationship with God. But that is not true at all. We are all beloved children of God, and he wants us to enjoy being close to Him.

Go to your prayer closet and tell God what is in your heart. Tell him that you have a desire to know him more. Ask him to reveal himself to you so that you can enjoy an intimate relationship with him.

God reveals secrets that Draw us Close to Him through Prayer

Have you ever shared a secret with someone and they just blurted out everything to other people. You felt embarrassed, angry, and regretted why you trusted this person with your secret.

This experience made you realize that you did not know this person as well as you thought. If they were a real friend, they would not have gone around revealing your secrets to everyone.

Our heavenly Father does not share the secrets of the Kingdom with just anyone.  Jesus told his disciples that the secrets of the kingdom were given to them. This means that the secrets of the kingdom of God are given to God’s children (Matthew 13:11).

God will reveal his secrets to those Christians who truly seek him in the word and through prayer. When our heavenly Father reveals his secrets to us, we end up trusting him more. This causes us to draw closer to him, and our relationship with him becomes strong.

God’s Answers to our Prayer causes us to Trust him More

When we spend time in prayer and present our request to God according to His will, he answers us. These answers act as a source of encouragement to us. They motivate us to continue seeking God with all our hearts because we know that he is a faithful God.

Maybe you’ve not developed a habit of prayer, and you are wondering why your relationship with God is not strong. Know that it is through prayer that God proves his faithfulness to you.

When he does that, you’re able to trust him for bigger things. Note that you don’t have to ask God for big things. It can be something as simple as asking Him to show you how much he loves you.

The more he reveals himself to you, the more you will want to know him more. You will start to have a longing in your heart to seek God. And as you do that, he will reveal things about himself to you that will lead you closer to Him.

Prayer allows us to talk to God anytime

As we’ve already seen, great relationships are developed through excellent and constant communication. Since prayer is how we communicate with God, we can talk to him anytime we need help or guidance (1 Thessalonians 5: 16).

It is through prayer that we can question God about some things that we do not understand. We can express our thanksgiving to Him, and God can explain to us the verses that we have read but have not understood.

Jesus was close to his Father because he spent time with him in prayer. It didn’t matter how busy he was, Jesus would find time to pray. It’s through prayer that God showed him how to deal with issues. It is also by talking to God that he was able to remain within his Father’s will.

Talking to  God anytime enables us to build a personal relationship with Him.  It shows us that God is not far away from us.  He is near us whenever we need him, and it’s only up to us to turn to him.

It also enables us to know what lies ahead of us and how God wants us to tackle it. When we know what God wants, and we follow through, we become fulfilled in our lives. And this causes us to experience spiritual growth.

Also Related: Top 14 Benefits Of Connecting With God Through Prayer.

It is through prayer that we know God’s voice and follows his leading

While God speaks to us in so many different ways, he loves to talk to us in a still small voice.  Prayer enables us to be sensitive to the voice of God. Throughout the Bible, we see God likening his children to sheep. And he calls himself the good shepherd.

When Jesus was on earth, one sheep pen in Israel could accommodate sheep belonging to different shepherds. But the interesting thing is when a shepherd came to get his flock, he would call them out, and the sheep belonging to that particular shepherd would follow him while the rest remained behind.

The other sheep belonging to other shepherds would never leave the pen until the rightful owner called. Why is that? It is because they didn’t know the voice of a stranger.

Jesus said his sheep hear his voice and follow him (John 10:27-28).  It is when we spend time in prayer that we can know how God speaks to us. God speaks to each one of us differently. But we can only know how God speaks to us when we are in constant communication with Him.

Remember, the enemy likes to imitate God, and since he is after your soul, he may try to lead you astray. Prayer will develop our relationship with God to the point where we can differentiate the voice of God from Satan’s.

In short

Our heavenly Father cares about us, and he wants to have an intimate relationship with us.  Yes, he is holy, and we are imperfect human beings. But God has made it possible for us to access his throne of grace in time of need.

It is up to us to develop a relationship with God, and it all starts with a simple act of prayer.

It’s through prayer that we can hear the voice of God and follow Him. Prayer allows us to talk to God anytime. When we talk to God, he reveals his secrets to us, and this causes us to grow closer to Him.

It’s through sharing intimate moments with God that we get to understand who he is and who we are. God is always ready to listen and help you in every season of your life.  He is the God that leaves the ninety-nine to look for the one that is lost.  Trust him with all your heart.