If God is real, how can we communicate with Him? How can we have a meaningful, interactive relationship with the God of the Bible?
Communicating with God is among the strongest desires for people with faith - or a desire to have faith in God. How can people talk to God? How can people pray to God or have conversations with God? How should people listen to God?
The Christian Bible asserts that the universe was made by and is continually supervised by an all-powerful, all-knowing Supreme Being. And this God desires a deep, personal relationship with each and every individual human being - both now and in the afterlife.
These rather audacious assertions clash with the stresses, frustrations, and anxieties of everyday life in which people search for answers to life's problems and a relationship with the God who is supposed to be there watching over them.
Faith: The Fundamental Requirement for Successful Prayer
The book of Hebrews says that "without faith it is impossible to please [God], for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him" (Hebrews 11:6, NKJV). In other words, you have to believe in God in order to pray to God and have Him answer.
For many people, this becomes a Catch-22. How can they believe in God if He doesn't reveal Himself to them? And, if they don't believe in God or if they are tormented by doubts, He apparently will not hear them or respond to them.
Anyone who finds himself or herself in this predicament should consider some basic evidences for the existence of God, which can bolster one's confidence in the Creator's existence.
God as the Divine Cause and Intelligent Designer
The universe is finite, and therefore it must have had an ultimate “first cause" or divine originator. Three basic arguments affirm this:
The universe is expanding, which indicates that it began at a fixed point in space and time.
The universe is running down -- i.e., it is literally running out of usable energy. This means that it can’t be eternal. Otherwise, it would have already run out of energy.
Based on insights from the fields of mathematics and philosophy, an eternal universe (and with it an eternal number of moments) is logically untenable. Says philosopher William Lane Craig: "An infinite can never be traversed - it has no end (or beginning). But since the moments before today have been traversed - that is, we have arrived at today - it follows that there must only have been an finite (limited) number of moments before today." In other words, time had a beginning!
Accordingly, the overwhelming view of modern science that the universe began to exist (most scientists estimating that origin to be roughly 14-15 billion years ago). Given the fact that the universe began to exist, it must have had a “cause” that originated it.
The cause of the universe would be its ultimate cause. Only an independent, infinite, uncaused, eternal, and omnipresent cause is sufficient to account for the universe. Therefore, such a being must exist. If it does not, then the universe doesn't exist. Since the universe does exist, it can therefore be safely concluded that an independent, infinite, uncaused, eternal, and omnipresent cause also exists.
Why can't we "see" and "feel" God?
According to the Bible, God is Spirit (John 4:24). Indeed, the Genesis account of Creation identifies the “Spirit of God” (Genesis 1:2) as the driving creative force for our universe. This makes sense, given the fact that only a spiritual or supernatural being is capable of serving as the ultimate, first cause of a universe characterized by time, space, matter and energy.
A human being interacts with the world through his or her main senses: touch, taste, smell, sight, and hearing. God operates largely outside of those senses, making Him largely "invisible" and (to some) "unreachable." (The Bible does record rare instances in which God stepped into the natural, physical world to interact with humanity - such as the voice from Heaven at Jesus' baptism and, for that matter, the incarnation of Jesus himself).
So....how can someone bridge the gap between the natural and supernatural - and reach God in prayer? Future articles will explore that question in more depth. In the meantime, please consider the following books:
Prayer: Does it Make Any Difference? by Philip Yancey (Zondervan, 2006)
Reaching for the Invisible God: What Can We Expect to Find? by Philip Yancey (Zondervan, 2000)
Cries of the Heart: Bringing God Near When He Feels so Far by Ravi Zacharias (Thomas Nelson, 2002)
How to Listen to God by Charles Stanley (Thomas Nelson, 2002)
And....of course...talk to your pastor. If you are not in a church, seek one out. They are there to help you.
**This article has been written from an evangelical Christian perspective. Disagreements, questions, concerns, etc. are welcome in the discussion forum.
The copyright of the article Communicating with God in Protestantism is owned by Brian Tubbs. Permission to republish Communicating with God must be granted by the author in writing.
. Your articles rouse curiosity; but, discussion is not encouraged. . Too bad. . .
Oct 9, 2007 9:51 AM
Brian Tubbs
:
I welcome discussion. It's just that, after a while, I feel some of the discussions here go round-and-round - and end up back where we started. Surely, you've sensed that as well. I don't think I'm expressing a frustration that's unique to me.
Oct 9, 2007 11:10 AM
Pink
:
. <i>I welcome discussion. It's just that, after a while, I feel some of the discussions here go round-and-round - and end up back where we started. Surely, you've sensed that as well. I don't think I'm expressing a frustration that's unique to me.</i> . Generally, discussion is discouraged when reasonable questions are ignored or just put off. Like yesterday's threads for example. .
Oct 9, 2007 12:22 PM
Brother_Jones
:
<i>I welcome discussion</i>
I agree with your article and I think some head knowledge about the hows and whys of Intelligent Design can go a long way to prevent atheism. Also, kids need to get outside and do some exploring of nature. Not everyone gets a chance to hunt or fish, but it seems like most every parent could take long walks in the park with their kids. The creation speaks of God and nature brings a person to grips with how large our God really is. We need to shut down the TV and computer for a night or two and spend time at the dinner table just talking and laughing. No wonder folks can't relate to prayer. If a child is struggling with whether his/her parents have any deep thoughts about eternity, they are apt to think that spirituality is some sort of a church game, instead of a way to reach out to God. In the old days, folks took turns reading to each other and telling stories. Now we just sit and watch football and wait for slick entertainment. It is the role of a parent to guide a child into a deep relationship with God. But so many have punted the ball and given the church that responsibility. My advice at the next family time or reunion is to take a long walk and spend time talking about getting involved in helping someone in your family or town community. Then talking about God becomes second nature because there are so many problems in the community that need His help.
the oldtimer.
Oct 9, 2007 2:20 PM
Pink
:
. Good post. . You wrote, <i>Now we just sit and watch football and wait for slick entertainment.</i> . You forgot to mention that they're drinking beer while they sit there and wait--that's what it's all about for millions. .
Oct 9, 2007 2:35 PM
Brian Tubbs
:
Thanks, BrotherJones. Not that there's anything wrong with football, though.
Go Redskins! :)
Oct 9, 2007 4:16 PM
Migisi
:
<i>Since the universe does exist, it can therefore be safely concluded that an independent, infinite, uncaused, eternal, and omnipresent cause also exists.</i> . Since, like the universe, everything has a cause - what/who caused the 'originator'? You attempt to use logic to make your point: <i>"Therefore, such a being must exist. If it does not, then the universe doesn't exist."</i> If everything has a cause and is finite, doesn't 'infinite, eternal, uncaused' violate that logic?
Oct 10, 2007 12:40 AM
redback
:
I'm almost sure I've read these points before in earlier articles or in resultant discussions? The universe is expanding...into a pre-existing space??? The universe is simultaneously running out of energy...so maybe its <b>rate</b> of expansion is reducing and measurable? Our water is permanently drying up...or being 're-allocated' elsewhere in the universe?
I'm probably going to have to leave that to the experts.
There is an apparently related issue re prayer. I agree with Brian...God has to exist and one has to believe in God before any belief in prayer has any chance of being functional. Then whether an answered prayer is a deserved reward for that belief...or an 'evidence' that God changes his mind or actively intervenes in our lives...is of no great moment if in fact prayer IS answered. That turns to our relative understanding of what an answered prayer "looks like".
True story: A Muslim tells me today a PowerLotto win tonight means God has blessed him...and if he doesn't get the 30 million on offer, his $15 goes towards another's blessing.
There is some truth in Brian's caution about getting into palindromic discussion. For me, his article is worth the reminders there are dots to connect.
Oct 10, 2007 8:37 AM
Migisi
:
. <i>...reminders there are dots to connect.</i> . An ancient someone stared into the sky one night, and selected and connected certain twinkling dots to outline the form of his gods(desses) - the heavenly controllers of his life. When someone traces an astrological constellation in the night sky for me, I ask "Where? I don't see it." I guess I'm just not good at connecting celestial dots. Sigh. . The Big Dipper is not a dipper to everyone. In the UK, it's known as the Plough or Butcher's Cleaver; in Russia, it's called the Big Mother Bear (a bear?); in Germany, the Great Cart; in France, it's the Casserole (saucepan). What do Aussie's call it?
Oct 10, 2007 2:11 PM
Brian Tubbs
:
Migisi, I am familiar with your objections to the argument of an uncaused cause to the universe. Redback is right in that this is another example of what I'm talking about. We've been round and round on this and other issues.
I respect your right to keep making your points. You need to understand, though, that I'm still going to make mine. You haven't persuaded me that this universe can just spring up uncaused - therefore, I'm going to continue hammering that point home in blogs and articles.
I understand that you are not convinced that a finite universe automatically translates to an infinite Creator-God. So be it. But there are others who read my articles. :)
However, for the sake of repeating earlier points....
God is a Spirit, and, as such, is exempt from the physical universe requirements of every effect needing a cause. God needs no physical or chemical or energetic cause, since He is outside of and superior to the space-time universe that we inhabit.
I realize that you and other skeptics will see this as a 'cop-out,' but it is the only plausible explanation. We pretty much know that physical, chemical, energy-related effects within our space-time universe require a cause. And an infinite regress of caused causes makes no logical sense. It doesn't solve the problem for you or anyone else.
The best solution is to believe that there is a cause which transcends the space-time universe within which we live.
I know this won't persuade you, but again, there are others who read these discussion, blogs, and articles. :)
