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Saturday, November 16, 2013

Love is not self-seeking

Love is not self seeking. Now this is easy to see in others... Your watching a chix flick and there is that one person who is doing things to impress... for their own goals... It is usually pretty pronounced in the movies. In real life there are ones who do the same, they are good at putting on the charm... and good at doing things to pursue their own desires... Now I know that this example is toward romance; but it does not end there. Self seeking brings the thought of one doing things that would benefit them self. That you give a gift to someone for you know that one will be given in return, hopefully a better one. You have someone over for dinner because you know that they will have you over... You show love if you will because love will be shown back... Always looking at what will be given back... what is in it for me. Now sometime that what is in it for me would be praise. Yes, praise; let me tell you looking good... for doing something... is a good motivator for a lot of us. Praise, of men... Now let us not get to far to the left/right, having one thank you... is ok; it is when the line is crossed. What line? Say that you reached out in "love" by doing or giving to someone and they never thank you... Now here is the line test, how did you feel... and what do you think... would you reach out again? Did those negative feelings... boil up? The true test of love is that you do... with no expectations... and you are happy... that you showed/ demonstrated love... The joy of giving! One more thing; we must be aware of who we show love too. That we do not show partiality. An example, in a church I have attended there was a signup sheet for meals for people in need/ going through crisis... A family was on that list and there where meals signed up for weeks... and during the same time there was another family on the list; but very few would sign up... Calls were made to try to fill in the gaps... but still people were reluctant to help... saying they were helping the other family... Even now it brings tears to my eyes... Oh, it happens all the time in churches; oh yes it does. We are the church of the living God, how can this be? Let us all work on not letting this be in our lives. Now one last thing for men, so many times we do things for our wife... and guess what we sometimes do these things with expectations... and after a while when these expectations are not met we stop doing. Love does not stop doing. So keep on doing. Yes I know it is hard but don't give up.

Monday, November 11, 2013

Love is not rude, unbecoming

"Love does not act unbecomingly" , 1 Corinthians 13:5. For me it is still hard to get over of knowing what love is not. Is it only me, does it not seem that we need to know more of what love is? So we can do what love is. Well yes, but we need to know what love is not, for we tend to think that some of the actions of what love is not, is showing love... so let us dig in to this next concept. Unbecoming is talking about our conduct. Rude is a word used in some translations; but unbecomingly reaches beyond the meanings of rude. It has in its meaning the respect of person(s), no matter who they are, were they are and what ever station of life they are at, being age or rank or wealth(rich or poor)... As I was thinking of this I can relate to acting unbecoming toward the poor and also acting unbecoming toward the rich. How can that be? That acting unbecoming could reach so vast a people in me, in you? So here it is we need to watch that we do not act unbecoming, that is bad conduct, feelings, speech, ..., toward people. That we treat people with love no matter who they are... For when God reached down for us it was not that we were deserving, nor that we were noble, nor that we were good looking, nor that were bright, nor that were we better... He reached down to all of us because we all are His creation; and He loves us, His creation. He reached down to us by sending His son, to redeem us... For this was our first great need. Now one last thing, unbecoming/rude also implies the idea of one not preparing/ thinking it out... not learning how to love, as pertained to the individual/ groups... for we all are so different in our preferences... also with these words of what love is not; could suggest the deliberate act of being rude/ unbecoming. Hopefully that is not us and hopefully we will try to be more studious about how to love our spouse, children, family and others.

Thursday, October 31, 2013

Love is not arrogant

Love is not arrogant or love is not proud. One should not show or say or boast of how much they love. For love is an ongoing thing and not only is it on going, the opportunities of showing love are changing... and not only that, that as one grows his love should grow... When I think of arrogant, it makes me think of one thinking that they are better than_____. That their gifts... are better than.... What they do is better than... That no matter what for the most part you cannot compete with them for they are better than and do better than... And eventually this will make them think that the one being loved, shown love... should appreciate them more for showing such great love... We joke about this saying(s), "She is so lucky to have so and so" or "She is so lucky to have me." That just being associated with them, they are blessed... You see if we are only relying on our ability to love we have missed the mark; for we do not know how to truly love. Think about it! We think we know how to love but as time goes on we realize that we know so little... And when we want to truly love more... it somehow get's mixed up... and we find ourselves not doing the actions we want... You see for us to show love... we need God's help. We need Him to show us the way. We need Him guides us so we know how to love, when to love... and we need His strength also; for without Him our love is shaky at best.

Monday, October 21, 2013

Love does not brag

As we continue of what love is we are faced with another, what love in not. Love does not brag(1Corinthians13:4). This is good that we learn what love is not. Just like there are actions that show love; there are actions that do not show love. Some of these actions would surprise us as we look at them. Like the one before us now; love does not brag. Brag, to boast. That is to tell what one has done... Wow, doesn't that hit hard. Love does not boast. So when you do something that demonstrates love... don't brag about it. When you buy your wife a gift just because you love her, don't bring it up later... saying this shows that I love you... That when you start saying that, this demonstrates the love I have for _____. That really is saying that maybe your priority has been amiss. You see love does not need to be defended because it is an ongoing process. Passed deeds that show love, are void if new deeds are not present. Love is a continuing process that involves multiple deeds/things. Love is more than just feelings, it is action based. Action based, that would be actions based. It is not just many actions it is actions that continue in the future, thus being on going. Now that, that is said, those actions being done have to have meaning. Not just financial meaning, but meaning that is personal. Maybe actions that fit needs and actions that makes one feel special. Actions that are personal to the individual... Sometimes actions just because it seems nice.... If you find that you are bringing up past actions of love... to justify your love... maybe you need to take a hard look at yourself and ask have I been demonstrating love enough? Now if you are married, maybe we all need to ask that question more frequently. Did I say maybe? No we need to ask that question frequently! An to act; so many times I find myself wanting to do... but then I get tired... and .... and ... So let us do the actions that demonstrate love to our spouses, to our children and to the brethren...

Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Love does not ------ envy

We have been talking about what love is, but our next characteristic would be of what love is not. Love is not jealous. Jealous, hostile to a rival or one having an advantage. Another word used would be envy; this word seems to work a little better for us in our era. Envy, painful or resentful awareness of an advantage enjoyed by another with the desire to possess the same advantage, or an object of envious notice or feeling, also sometimes in its meaning is malice. Most people when we think of envy we associated with possessions. Envious of some ones car or the house they have... it is a feeling. Now some one can be envious of say a friend...who has a new nice car but instead of going to malice, he checks himself and becomes happy for his friend. The thing about envy that needs to be watched out for would be when we have malice (bad, evil intentions, thoughts verses good happy...). The thing about envy is that it can cause a lot of damage. For with our example about one is envious of a possession, car, one might go so far as to damage... the car. Or if something was to happen (stolen, damaged) they have that happy feeling about what has happened, they are happy that it was done to so and so. In the example above we used possessions but it is not the possession that is being hurt it is the person. Now some times we take our envy to people themselves; we are envious of how they look, their position at work..., their abilities, their influence, their achievements, their wisdom... the things they are doing... Here is where a lot of damage takes place. Remember associated with this word is malice. So in our society how does one show envy? It would be with the use of words, gossip if you will. The use of words to put one down... showing the little flaws in someone, their weakness... to try to over shadow the good... that the person does... Putting up negative words... to invoke negative feelings of others toward that person. One could even use resources that are different than what the person is about to tear them down. "To tear them down", that would be a good phrase. Now envy also involves a dislike of a person, it does not have to have a solid reason... it goes on feelings... It amazes me how we can dislike someone just in a few seconds... of seeing them. It amazes me how sometimes it is manifested, and how long it is carried out... Love does not envy.

Saturday, October 12, 2013

Love is kind

Love is kind. The second character of love. As we have mentioned before love is an action; so this character of love is also an action. There are some words that we can associate with what it means to be kind. The first would be gentleness, I am using this one first for it seems that if one is practicing being patient, then kindness would start manifesting itself, hopefully. So gentleness is more than refraining... It is that of be understanding and caring. Now here is an example, some people have that gentleness, calmness when dealing with animals, but remember it is a lot more than that. The next word would be compassion, to sympathize with someone. Now it is not only feeling bad about what has happened to someone but to be active in helping... Here is what I think about when I think about, kindness, when you hear someone say, " you were so kind to do that..." It's an action being done, even just being prayer. Another words that is associated with kindness would be mercy. This I am going to link to situations that arise from some ones wrong choices... Even though it is not limited to that... but sometimes one needs to be shown mercy for something they have done. That kindness needs to be there. Now this is when we need to work on kindness. You see it might not be affecting you... but you know about the "wrong" if you will and the feeling of resentment... comes. So put on kindness, fight all the other feelings and action. For our God is merciful to us, look what is said in Lam. 3:22 "The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, His mercies never come to an end. They are new every morning great is your faithfulness." This is a great verse about love and what we are looking at; just like God we need to be full of mercy, full of kindness. One more verse to demonstrate this, Matt. 9:36 "When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd."

Tuesday, October 8, 2013

Love is patient

We have been looking at the verse John 3:16 "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life." There is a very important word for why God would send His Son to pay the price for our short comings...sin. That word would be love. Now when we think of love, if you are like me, some things come into mind. Love for my wife, children, extended family and even some friends. We will think of romance, sex, love of certain foods, possessions and the love of certain activities. For us that use the English language the word love is used in a very broad way as mentioned above. But is that the way that the word love is used in our verse or better yet; how is it used in our verse and what does it mean? So first let me put out three Greek word used for love, The first would be, agape(agapan), the second philo(philien) and the third eros. Now the third eros, sexual love we will not deal with. The second philo means, brotherly love, freindship. Now agape, let's call this God's love, it is unselfish love, a love that is dedicated to something no matter what. So what is love is still the question; love is an action it is more than just words. So what actions show love? Remember we are not including eros. Now before we get to those actions that show love let us not confuse love with lust, a strong desire. The best place that describes love is found in 1Corinthians 13:4-7 let's include part of verse 8. Verse 4 "Love is patient" would be the first character, or part that makes up what love is. Patient is an interesting word, it involves a few meanings like not acting hastily, bearing pains and trails calmly, steadfast despite opposition, manifesting forbearance under provocation or strain. So here are the first actions that demonstrate love. Not acting hastily, some of us are in a hurry most of the time, go, go , go. And when something comes up or when someone (usually someone close) doesn't perform or do... what we think needs to be done.. or doesn't do it "right" ; you know what happens. For some it happens in a big way for others their inpatient is shown in a little way (their good at hiding it). Now those instances of not performing are part of everyday life of doing things, but sometimes things are done a miss, on purpose if you will or even unawares that test our patience. So patient is what we all need to do to demonstrate love. Instead of getting wound up stop and think... come along side help if needed and forgive if needed. Now do not think that this is something that is easy... that we don't react fast, we wait a few minutes... some time you might need to be patient for a long time,hours, days, weeks, or even years. Think how patiently God waited for you just for salvation to be accepted, never mind how patient He is for us now as we try to follow His ways. This first character of love is not easy to do but let us all make a big effort to be more patient.

Tuesday, October 1, 2013

One way into Heaven

We have been looking at John 3:16 "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him will have everlasting life..." We looked at grace and mercy but today I want to look at why we all need to believe in Jesus the Son of God. Now this might seem a little different if you will but keep on reading and hopefully it will make sense. As believers we look at this verse and come to the conclusion that this the only way to get into heaven. But many think there is another. That other is what most are trying to do! That would be to live a life without sinning too badly if you will. Now with that comes the idea that if we are a so called "good" person you can get to heaven... And also comes the idea if you do more "good" than bad you can get into heaven. There is a lot of rationalizing, bending of what is good, bending of what is good works and the rationalizing away what is bad. This is where a lot of people are, not many want to think of themselves as bad, no good... or needing a savior. If only the world will come to the conclusion that they need a savior, that savior being God's Son, Jesus. You see we all have the same thing in common. that we all have sinned and that we all were born with sin as part of us. Romans 3:23 "for all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God." Now this is simple, all of us have sinned; why is it so hart to admit that? Even as Christians it is hard to admit that, that we still sin. That we still need to go to Jesus for forgiveness. One last thing when we look at what is sin... we need to look at what God has said is sin, not what we think is sin; nor should we rationalize that there is no God so this issue does not matter. In the end it does! When we enter heaven and ask how did you get here? The answer will all have the same tune, "Jesus

Tuesday, September 24, 2013

believe: the bible is true...

Grace and mercy; are key to our Christian walk. It is also key to winning one to Christ if you will. You tell people of the grace of God and the mercy of God; which is seen and implied in John 3:16-18. Sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Now there are many ways of sharing, Christmas story, Easter story, Romans road... but there are not many listening... and the ones who are, are on the defensive. The other day another brother and I had the opportunity to talk to two people about Jesus, both were not followers. It was interesting for both had different back grounds, one didn't believe in God... and had had bad experiences when confronted about Jesus. The other had had some "religion" in her life but it never drew her to God... to believe. You see belief is the key factor for one to be saved; for one to be a Christian, for one to keep on walk through life as a Christian. One needs to believe in the one true God and His Son Jesus Christ and all that is said about them and all that They told us They will do... This is all found in the Bible! It is not my words or words of men that we need to believe; it is the words of God that needs to be believed. The bible is so key to our faith... it is what makes our belief sure. God's word says that the creation point to him or declares that God is... It gives us a starting point if you will to seek the one true God. The word of God is what gives us the direction/instruction... for us to have a relationship... with Him That why John 3:16 is so important, that is what gives us our firm conviction, that we all need Jesus. "Jesus loves me this I know for the bible tells me so... " this simple children's song is so true. So one needs to believe in the word of God as true and all that it says... Oh, if the masses would stop believing in the lies of men.. and come to believe the truth of the bible and to believe in the True God and His Son Jesus. 2Timothy3:16-17 "All scripture is inspired by God..." One more note one needs not only believe the bible as true but more important is that they believe in Jesus the Son of God...

Wednesday, September 18, 2013

God's Mercy

Last time we talked about grace, as something that Christians do. That we are to give grace as you give a gift. If we are really honest with ourselves, sometimes we only give gifts because we have to... or we give at a special time... Now with grace it needs to be given at times that are not conveniant. How is it that we give grace? Is there a right way to give grace? Now let me say that one should be giving grace no matter what. That sometimes we give grace even when we do not want to. Sometimes giving grace is a matter of obedience to our Lord. Which is ok. to begin with. But there is a better way. That would be that "love" is behind the giving. Now before we get to what love is let's talk about another important thing that Christians do; that would be mercy. Now mercy also has 2 components; one who asks for mercy and the one who grants mercy. Mercy has a few definitions, but overall it involves compassion to person(s). For example, beg for mercy or a merciful deed of kindness(helping...) We will focus on the first, for in the first; one who begs for mercy wants something... That one needs the mercy of a judge; so that the penalty will be lessen... What I would like to do is to walk through how this applies to us as Christians. We talked about grace last time, using John 3:16 "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life." That the gift of grace was God's son Jesus. So what do we do with this gift, the gift that we believe in? Well first we need to believe, yes too really believe... not to be well maybe... but to believe that Jesus is the son of God... Now we are opening the gift that God has given to us (you, me) with that belief and right away we are able to put it to use! For we see that we are sinners... and the penalty for sin is death. So we cry out for mercy, and we claim the gift of Jesus to the Judge( God), for the price of sin is death and Jesus paid that price for me, for you! So the Judge pardons... us, you , me not for what we have done but on what Jesus has done on the cross. If you read on further in the Gospel of John it says, " that he who believes in Him is not judged" You don't even have to go through the whole trial... Because you have Jesus, He takes care of it all! He sees your name on the docket and says this has been taken care of by Me. This is how salvation works but Jesus does a lot more for us, even now for He is a living God working... So grace is a free gift and mercy is granted because of what is in the gift, Jesus. Grace we receive and mercy is asked for and granted because of grace.

Wednesday, August 28, 2013

Grace

Now as summer comes to an end, that is summer marked by going back to school..., let's make more of an effort to go to Church. This summer we have been taking a look at noticing the battle. For the most part we view the battle as over there, if you will... But what we have been looking at is when the battle is upon us. That would be when we are not doing "Christian" things... That when we neglect such activities we give the enemy an opening. Or sometimes we get caught up in/with the worldly things. Giving the enemy an opening. So this last devotional on noticing the battle will be on grace. What is grace? Unmerited favor, undeserved favor, act of kindness... or one is graceful(the way one moves). So how does grace work for us as believers? What we do is look at some of the workings of grace. The first would be it is extended. Eph.2:8 "For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not of your own doing, it is the gift of God." Grace is a gift! That when one extends grace, it is a gift that is being given. It is not earned... or something we can purchase. So then as with all gifts... there is a cost that is paid by the one giving the gift. So when grace is given there is a cost. "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life." John 3:16. Now here we have God extending grace. That grace being the giving of His son Jesus so that we can have eternal life. Here is the deal grace is given to ones who have not been deserving... or to ones who have been acting badly... God extends His grace to the world. One big thing is that grace involves love. For if there is no love then grace would not be "pure" if you will. It would be tainted. Maybe not real. One more thing is that grace has to be received/accepted. That one must accept the gift! One must open the gift to receive the blessing that is inside. For us with God we need to believe in His Son Jesus; that is how we open/accept the gift, and is the beginning of the blessings that are found in Jesus. So many take the gift and never open it... not receiving what is inside. So just as God has given us bestowed on us grace, undeserved favor, we also are to give grace to others. Now the gift will be different but the act of giving it, grace, is something we need to be doing. And guess what, it may not be accepted/received every time. But just like God, we need to keep on giving grace. This is another thing that we as Christians should be doing to help them stay strong.

Saturday, August 24, 2013

Going to "church" or Church

Are you working on forgiveness? If you are not the battle is upon you! When one becomes "saved" things start to happen in one's life. One of those things is that one starts to go to "church"; which is a good thing. One also find that they are going to more "church" activities... But as time goes on something happens. It seems that it starts to get easier not to go to "Church". That something... be it about us or about the Church we attend... That the joy of going to "church" has ended. Sleeping in, doing yard work... almost anything seems to get in the way of going to church. Now there can be many things that can take us away from going to church. Yes many things. Now in this devotional we cannot address the many problems one has about going to Church, nor can we address the many problems that maybe in the individual Churches. What we will address is that one needs to go to Church. Heb. 10: 23-25 "Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and to good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near." Now I know it doesn't say/imply going to Church but going to Church is very important and yes it is where we should be getting encouraged... and loved... and yes it is much more to Church than that; not forgetung worship.  So going to Church is a good thing and assembling with Christians in other ways... is also a good thing. We all need to be loved upon and we all need encouragement. We all need to learn how to love more and more; we all need to learn how to encourage more and more. You see we can be blessed by other believers... and we can also be a blessing to other believers. Now if one does not go to "Church" , who knows what one might be missing? Think about it!

Monday, August 12, 2013

Another thing Christians do!

We have come a long way in our summer study. Noticing the battle. We did not say that when this happens... that that is where the battle is. But we took the approach of when these things are not being done, that there is where the battle is for us. Alright we started about seeing the battle around us, then we moved to telling the Gospel, praying when the Gospel is shared, sharing of the works of God, rejoicing when Jesus is proclaimed, to are you hiding from God... for Husband and wives doing more together... So now let's talk about the next thing that Christians do. That would be forgiveness. Forgiveness is right at the center of who we are in Christ Jesus. Just like sharing about Jesus; forgiveness is what we do. Let me say that again forgiveness is what we do! Matt. 6:14-15 "For if you forgive others their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions." Also see Col. 3:13. Now forgiveness has 2 basic components (not to say that there are only two... because forgiveness has many components and does many wonderful things...). The first of these components would be that of one asking forgiveness. One has done a deed/action... that was wrong. So what I would like to do is to go back to the basics of knowing what is wrong; that would be the ten commandments. Now the first half, if you will, deals with our relationship with God while the second half deals with our relationship with each other. When one sins, one needs forgiveness. When one sins one needs forgiveness, period. There is no way around it. So when one breaks one of the first half of the commandments one goes to God and asks for forgiveness...(the right way, true sorrow and repentance). Now to the second component of forgiveness; the one that is asked to forgive grants forgiveness. Now back to the example of one breaks one of the 10 Commandments that deals with God. The best way to put is to go to 1John 1:9"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." We confess to God and He is faithful to forgive and cleanse. Now if one breaks one of the 10 Commandments dealing with people one needs to confess to God (remember He is faithful...) and confess to the one whom you have committed the offense. Now here is the tricky part people are not always faithful; they may not choose to forgive...or maybe it may take some time. What happens is that there is a wedge if you will between the two... You see without forgiveness it opens the door for all sorts of bad things... You see without forgiveness we cannot get cleansed/washed. Some versions use healed. That we cannot be cleaned/washed/healed... that the relationship cannot be cleansed/washed/healed. Restoration would be a good word also to use. Forgiveness is a powerful thing when done right but being ignored... destructive forces if you will can come into play... Let us all choose to forgive. One last note choosing to forgive cost. When God choose to forgive us it cost Him His Beloved Son! But the cost of not forgiving for us can be more than one can imagine.

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

Marriage are you hiding

Last devotional was to have a second part, but half way through I decided not to include it. For it may have been a little much or too much. Just getting a handle on going before God the right way if you will is hard... confessing our sins... You see 1John1:9 is not only for salvation but a process for the rest of our lives. So let us continue with our keeping short accounts before our God. Back to Gen.3:8-9 " What I would like to address now is that not only that we go before God alone for fellowship... That when you get married you need to go and fellowship... with God together. Remember that when you are married you become one! There is a oneness that should be about you. A sharing of life... that brings you together as one. That even before our God we bring our marriage life... and we need to do this together. We praise God together, thank God together, pray to God together and share our lives with God together. For there is a oneness that is part of us, a oneness that most of us need to understand more. An openness that is part of our marriage... Alright this is for us as men, are you hiding? Seriously are you hiding things from your wife? Be it big sin if you will or just a temptation that you struggle with but not falling into... Hiding is not good! You see you cannot hide from God. Nor should one be hiding from their wife. Now for the wife; now if your husband comes a sharing (not hiding) bringing things to the open... in the right way. Try not or do not condemn... making the matter worst... You see forgiveness also has the aspect of healing... now how it works... that is what God does. Now remember that this process/principle is also for the wife. How blessed is a marriage that is open and forgiven and healed before our God!

Tuesday, July 9, 2013

Are you hiding

It is so easy to lose track of what or where... we should be/ doing. Now this is a hard a hard devotional for me to write. For I do ok in some ways but in others I fail. Sometimes I do well but then,____ you know what I mean. The topic will be prayer, better yet talking with God! You will understand more as this devotional goes. We sing songs about our interaction... with our God. If you are like me they touch my heart... But do I do what they are saying... "Early in the morning" yes part of a worship song. Do we start our day with God? Or do you get up and just start doing, Oh how I know too well about that. But all the while singing that hymn... hearing brothers teaching about starting your day... Or even making your day to be with God. Prayer/Praise/thanksgiving... Turn in your bible to Gen.3:8 "They heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden." So this happened after they have eaten the forbidden fruit. They had one commandment and bang they broke it. Just like us we cannot keep the ten commandments... So what happened God comes into the garden to fellowship with Adam and Eve; and Adam and Eve hide from God. No they were not playing hide and seek. You see sin, trespasses, iniquity in us separates us from God. For us we want to hide or keep it hidden(the sin). And 2 God cannot have sin in His presence, He needs to do something about it. So here we have it when sin is upon us... we tend to hide if you will. God wants to fellowship with us but sin needs to be dealt with for fellowship to be restored. This was done and is done at the cross of Jesus Christ. Now how does this work for us? A friend/ fellow believer in Christ told me to keep short accounts with God. That is confess your sins daily/ hourly/ minutely... For us that means not to hide them! For if you are hiding from God (like Adam and Eve in the trees) then you cannot fellowship truly with Him. But thanks be to God! 1John1:9 "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." Isn't that great, God through Chris Jesus restores us back to fellowship with Him. He wants to have fellowship with each of us. Yes each of us. So are you in fellowship with God? Or are you hiding? Do you talk to him throughout the day? Or are you hiding? Or are you to busy? Fellowship with God is much more than "traditional prayers" "traditional praise" traditional thanks" it has the personalized touch to it. The praises of Tom ,Harry ,Jane... new sounds, new thanks, new prayers and most of all the individual sharing of ourselves to God. He cares about each of us.