Day 12 - I'm as close to God as I chose to be.

 Quotes from the book:

continuation of 6 Secrets to becoming God's Best friend:

I must choose to be honest with God. He doesn't expect you to be perfect, but He does insist on complete honesty. Can God handle that kind of frank, intense honesty from you? Absolutely! Genuine friendship is built on disclosure. What may appear as audacity God views as authenticity. God listens to the passionate words of his friends; He is bored with predictable, pious, cliches. To be God's friend, you must be honest to God, sharing your true feeling, not what you think you ought to feel or say. It is likely that you need to confess some hidden anger and resentment at Him for certain areas of your life where you have felt cheated or disappointed. It's encouraging to know that all of God's closest friends -- Moses, ABraham, David, Job and others -- had bouts with doubt. But instead of masking their misgivings with pious cliches, they candidly voiced them openly and publicly. Expressing doubt is sometimes the first step toward the next level of intimacy with God.

I must choose to obey God in faith. Everytime you trust Him and do what He says, even when you don't understand it, you deepen your friendship with Him. We should obey Him, not out of duty or fear or compulsion, but because we love Him and trust that He knows what is best for us. True friendship isn't passive, it acts. We are often challenged to do "great things" for Him. Actually, He is more pleased when we do small things for Him out of loving obedience. They may be unnoticed by others, but God notices them and considers them acts of worship. Great opportunities may come once in a lifetime, but small opportunities surround us every day. Even through such simple acts as telling the truth, being kind, and encouraging others, we bring a smile to God's face.

I must begin to value what God values. This is what friends do - they care about what is important to the other person. The more you become God's friend, the more you will care about the things He cares about, grieve over the things He grieves over, and rejoice over the things that brings pleasure to Him. What does He care about the most? The redemption of His people. He wants all His lost children found! To be a friend of God, you must care about all the people around you whom God cares about.

I must desire friendship with God more than anything else. The truth is you are close to God as you choose to be. Intimate friendship with God is a choice, not an accident. You must intentionally seek it. There is nothing - absolutely nothing - more important than developing a relationship with God. It's a relationship that will last forever.

 Question to Consider:

What practical choices I will make today in order to grow closer to God?

ps: I know I have been slacking off. My excuse?. I'm doing it in my own phase >.<