I love 2 Timothy 3:16. So much so that I have made it my laptop screensaver to remind me. All Scripture is INSPIRED by God and useful to teach us what it true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives.

There are so many things that we can do to strengthen our intimacy with Christ and this serves as a reminder to me to really make sure I dig into The Word and the truth daily. As I reflected on this Scripture today, I really started to think about things I do daily to strengthen my walk with Christ and I had to share these with you.

Below are 5 things that you can start TODAY to develop and strengthen this most important and precious relationship. The highest priority of your life is intimacy with Christ. This to me is so powerful and I hope these 5 steps help you to develop this intimacy.

1. Study The Word DAILY. Ok, so I know this seems so obvious however, it is something that can easily slip through our busy lives if we allow it. Taking time to read and study The Word needs to be a routined habit and a part of each and every day. I personally have struggled with this at times during my life. It is so easy to get busy with life, family, business and goals that we shuffle Gods INSPIRED Word to the back burner. I do know however, that when I make this time to read Scripture and really study it, my whole day and outlook changes for the better. My suggestion is to carve out time  EACH DAY to study The Word. Make it a priority by waking a little earlier or finding a slow time during your day and literally designating this as your ‘special’ time in The Word. Even if its 30 min of focused time meditating on Scripture, it will compound its effectiveness in your life. You will be so pleased at what God teaches and reveals to you and how you open yourself up to GROW.
2. Prayer. I had to learn to pray. Truth be told, I would pray first thing in the morning or at night while still in bed and I would find myself dozing off. I would wake and think “Oh my goodness, I totally fell asleep mid prayer!” How would you feel if you were conversing with someone and they just conked out? It would be pretty difficult to communicate. The same holds true with our relationship with The Lord. I had to learn several things here; I had to be AWAKE when I talked to Him and I had to do it when my mind and body was alert. Now, I find that I can literally pray (talk) to Him at absolutely any time of day! I speak to Him while I’m driving and I pray with my husband during the morning devotional time we set aside. The key is to be alert and to pray with an awakened heart. He loves you dearly and wants to communicate with you. This is a big piece of developing intimacy with Christ.
3. Meditating on Gods Word. This sounds like it would go with #1 but true meditation is different than just studying Gods Word. Meditation requires us to get alone with God and to practice quiet stillness. We must practice LISTENING. What are His desires for us? What are His plans? How easy it is to practice studying The Word but to miss really connecting and listening to the WILL of God. So many times in our own chaos and fast paced life, we miss the most important piece of all. LISTENING to Christ and what He desires to tell us. Meditating daily gives Him time to really speak directly to our hearts.
4. Nurture Your Temple. As 1 Corinthians 6:19 says ‘Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself.’ WOW! I mean, this says it all. Taking care of your body and your temple is just another way to honor The Lord and to develop your relationship with Christ. When you feel good and you have energy, you can better do His work. Alex and I so firmly believe in this that it is our life work to help people rebuild their health and bodies. It is not about vain conceit but about being functional and able to do the work that we’ve been called to do.
5. Take Account of Your Lifestyle. You know, when I really started to get serious about strengthening my relationship with Christ, it required me to look at my lifestyle. Every single thing from what I read, watched and participated in had to be filtered through one single question”Is this something that will honor Christ?” Each thing that you allow into your mind and heart is either used to build up His Kingdom or to break it down. Our world does a great job of grossly skewing our perceptions and we can pretty much justify anything. When you purify your daily walk, it purifies your relationship with Christ and allows Him to better get through to you.

In conclusion, I want to make sure you understand, we are not saved by works. As Ephesians 2:8-9 states ” For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith-and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God- not by works, so that no man can boast”

Nothing you can ever do in this world will buy you salvation. It is your faith and belief in Christ alone. Accepting His FREE gift and allowing Him to reside in your heart.

These 5 things above are ‘purifiers’ that allow us to really grow into the strong faith filled Christians we were MEANT to be. They have helped me to personally transform my relationship with Christ from just something I have read or heard about to someone I KNOW DEEPLY and LOVE WHOLEHEARTEDLY.

I pray that you are able to incorporate these things into your daily life and to develop a rich, meaningful intimacy with Christ unlike anything you have ever experienced. Just know, He knows YOU and He knows your heart. He will meet you right where you are.

In His Love,

Ashley Poptodorova