How to Get Closer to God, Even If You Feel Unworthy

For years I tried to earn my way to God. I started being a good guy in hopes everything would work out, and I was just playing it by ear. I didn’t even realize I needed saving, because I’d already given up on the idea.

You can’t earn it, and you don’t have to

One night after a church meal, a man I’d never met asked me if I knew, without a doubt, that I was going to heaven. He showed me there’s nothing you can do to earn your way in. All you have to do is believe in your heart that Jesus Christ is Lord and Savior and confess it with your mouth. It took a few weeks to sink in, but when it did, I was freed. What I’d spent years trying to accomplish had already been done for me.

You are worthy because of what He did

A lot of people feel too guilty to run to God. I did too. I was a slave to guilt and couldn’t believe I was forgiven. But your worth doesn’t come from what you did. It comes from what He did for you. That’s the whole point of the sacrifice.

Prayer isn’t magic, it’s a relationship

I don’t think I can light a candle and recite rhymes to fix my life. But I know that if I live right and pray, God is there to help, and He’s there anyway. The more effort I put into my faith, the more evident He became in my life. In my times of dismay I’ve prayed in desperation, and He has always answered.

Thank Him when things are good, too

It seems the best way for us to forget how good God is to us is for God to be really good to us. When things are going great is exactly when to thank Him the most. That’s how you stay close.

Don’t walk alone

I used to sneak into church after it started and leave before anyone could talk to me. Then an older couple stopped me and invited me to dinner, and slowly church started to feel like home. When my anxiety got so bad I couldn’t function, I went to the front and asked a deacon to pray over me, and over the next few weeks it started to lift. Where two or more are gathered in His name, He is there. Find your two or three people.

Just try it

If you feel like God hasn’t been there for you, or you’ve never thought about Him playing an active role in your life, you have nothing to lose. Just try it.