As a pastor for 33 years now, I have seen a trend in America that answers why we don’t see God moving in our lives like we would like Him too. We want God to move in our lives, and I have great news, God wants to move in our lives too.

I tell people all the time that I hate religion. I want to have a relationship with Jesus. A relationship with God is key!

Religion is you A, B, C, and God then must A, B, C. It is like a formula, contract or a box. A relationship is when you do something for the one you love because you love them and then they are free to show that love back to you however they want. God wants to be in a relationship with you, and God really wants to move in your life in ways you never expected, to surprise you with His love.

The key in the relationship is deciding to spend time with Him. Time is something we all hold dear, and we don’t want to waste it. God wants to know what we will do with the time we have.

The so-called experts say that one hour is the best length of a church service. When it lasts over an hour, people are wondering when it will end.  Out of 168 hours in a week, we are only giving God one hour of it, and if it gets close to that hour and we are wondering when the service will be over, we are actually giving God less than an hour of our time.

On top of that, many people think it is okay to arrive 15 minutes late to church.  Wow, now we are giving God less than an hour of our time, and we are saying, "God, you are not important enough to be on time for".  

Yet, we want God to move in our lives when we need Him, but our actions in the relationship don’t say, "God, we need you", and worse yet, our actions don’t tell God that we actually love Him.

God said that He wanted one day a week set aside for Him, and we have boiled that down to an hour, and in many cases less than an hour.  We even think that it is okay to skip that date for weeks or months at a time. Then we wonder why God does not show up in our daily lives.

In the early church, God moved mightily, and they spent that one day, not just an hour, a week together. Those two things are directly related.

In any relationship, time together is what proves love. Can you give up your time to the one you love? You can’t buy love. You can’t just say you love them; you need to show it, and that is why God gave us church. Not because we need church to learn about God, but because when we go and we choose to spend time with Him at His house, God realizes that we really do love Him, and then God is motivated to move in our lives, just like He did in the Bible.

It is becoming popular to say, "I am a “fill in the blank” Christian".  The problem is with what people use to fill in the blank. Sometimes it is good, but more often than not, the "fill in the blank" is a creative way to say that one is a Christian even though they don't really want to be a Christian.

Acts 11:26 states, "And when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. So it was that for a whole year they assembled with the church and taught a great many people. And the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch."

Today, people want to qualify what kind of Christian they are.  The thing is, it should never be qualified.  A true believer follows Jesus in all they do.  When people try to say they are this or that type of Christian, they are doing one of three things.

(2)    They are trying to be more accepted in the mainstream.  They are compromising the Gospel message in order to fit in.  I got news for you.  You only need to be accepted by Jesus.  Jesus says that the mainstream will never accept the message of Jesus.  So, don’t go there.

(3)    The third thing is that they want to call themselves Christians so that they can justify sin.  If the Bible says it is sin, and you are openly doing it, and then calling yourself a Christian, I don’t want to be in your shoes when you meet Jesus.

I think that all three of the above people are in trouble with their eternal soul.  This is also why revival is hindered in most churches, because this has become acceptable. 

These people need to be shown that being a Christian is when you freely give your entire life to Jesus.  You give Him complete control, and you do it willingly.  Then Jesus sees that, and is now responsible for you, and will move in your life in ALL the WAYS, you have wanted Him to.

If you are a Christian, simply be a Christian.  Be like the early church, which is how the church was always supposed to be. Live your life so that people look at you and call you a Christian, not because you are a Bible thumper or holier than thou, but you are simply in love with Jesus, and Jesus shows up in your life on a regular basis where others take notice. 

When that happens, you can know a couple of things.  You truly are on the road to heaven with no doubt, and nothing in this life can stop you, because Jesus will make sure of that, because you truly are a Christian.  It really is quite simple.