Billy Graham: Relationship With God

Q: I hear people talk about having a personal relationship with God, but I don't understand what they mean. I believe in God, but I can't say I feel like I'm particularly friendly with Him. -- Mrs. M.D.

Confirmation bias, wishful thinking, and possibly a bit of delusion mixed in for good measure? What people mean when they say that they have a relationship with God varies. Some just feel a warm fuzzy feeling, while some think God is talking to them. But to be clear, none of them are an actual relationship in the literal sense.

A: Not only is it possible to have a close personal relationship with God, but He actually wants it to happen!

Easy! Then he should just reveal himself and make it happen!

Think of it this way. I note from your letter that you're married. How did you get to know your husband? Perhaps you'd heard of him before you actually met, or possibly someone introduced you. But whatever the situation, at first you only knew he existed; you didn't really know him. Then you spent time together and your relationship grew. Eventually, you committed your life to him in marriage, and since then (I trust) your relationship has grown even deeper. Now, you not only believe he exists but you also have a close personal relationship with him.

Pardon, but what the hell doe that have to do with anything?

This is how it is with God. Yes, you believe He exists, and that's good. But it's only the first step. Now, He invites you to discover who He is and how much He loves you through the pages of His Word, the Bible. Then, He invites you to commit your life to Jesus Christ by asking Him to come into your life.

Oh, I get it now! Billy's demonstrating that he has no idea what he's talking about!

You see, as much as he wants it to be the case, the two examples Billy gives aren't at all comparable. In the relationship with her husband, she knew he existed. She met him and interacted with him. She didn't just 'believe in him', she knew he was real. None of this reaches any form of equivalency in regards to God.

You can believe in him, and you can think he is real. But that's where the analogy is forced to end. The problem is that God has not been proven to actually even exist. Believers haven't actually met God, and interacted with him. At best, God is a blind date that is destined to disappoint since the only basis by which we are given to extrapolate his character are stories that claim he is perfect in every single way.

Sorry, but until God reveals that he actually does exist and  removes any doubts that Christianity is just a myth there is not having and actual relationship with God. Because at present, he can't even be considered a pen-pal, since he never actually writes back.

-Brain Hulk

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