Your God

You are my flock, the sheep of my pasture. You are my people, and I am your God, says the Sovereign Lord. Ezekiel 34:31

On the flyleaf of the Bibles I gave my children, I wrote a personal inscription that includes a story from the life of Anne Graham Lotz, daughter of world-famous evangelist Billy Graham.

The story tells of a time in Anne’s youth when she was struggling with her faith, and a wise youth leader said to her, “You have been looking at God through a prism; your mom’s, your dad’s, and the church’s expectations color your view of God. Look at God for yourself. Go on with God.”

Have you been looking at God through someone else’s eyes? You may need to get out of your comfort zone so you can own your faith.

Join a Bible-study group that doesn’t use any books or guides, just God’s Word.

Go on a missions trip, and trust God to use you in a new way.

Pitch a tent in the middle of nowhere, and take some time alone with God in nature. Take food and a map, and your spiritual food and map: a Bible, a journal, and a pen. Matthew 4:1 (NIV) says that “Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert” before his ministry started. It seems that even the Son of God needed his own alone time with God, not more time with the scribes and Pharisees.

Don’t borrow someone else’s beliefs and experiences with God—get your own.