Top 5 Bible Verses to Meditate on in a Relationship with God

Many people worship the Lord without knowing who He really is. They love the Lord, but don’t know His character, His nature, His power or really understand what God’s love looks like in hard times, trials, and seasons of testing.

Without a spiritual balance of wisdom, knowledge, and understanding about the things of God, it is easy to become shipwrecked in your faith when storms come.

The most important relationships in life are the most intimate ones and it is no different with the only true God. That’s why you connect with the Lord in your prayers, seek Him for your own understanding of the Word of God, and spend time in His presence through praise and worship.

The most important relationships in life are the most intimate ones and it is no different with the only true God.

~Alicia Purdy

These are spiritual acts of commitment and faith that will create a close relationship with the Lord that grows deeper over time. 

Being involved in any meaningful relationship takes work. If there are never any days when your closest relationship don’t take work, effort and sacrifice then you are doing it wrong!

Of course relationships have their seasons as well:

• winter seasons when things feel barren or dry or even dead
• spring seasons when everything feels new and fresh
• summer seasons of warmth, when you can relax
• autumn seasons when things drastically change 

As bad or as good as thing get in an intimate relationship, one of the things that will cause the most damage is routine. It’s the same in your relationship with the Lord! Routine kills passion.

What is a Relationship with God?

A relationship with God is similar to a relationship with anyone you love deeply.

• committed
• faithful
• honoring
• respectful
• preferential
• loyal
• growing
• dynamic
• protective
• invested into
• togetherness

That’s what the love of God looks like to His people. That’s why He sent His own Son, Christ Jesus, to give His own body for suffering, death, and resurrection – and everlasting life for His people. There’s no greater love than that!

By looking at the entirety of the Bible, it is clearly shown that God has many emotions toward human beings such as:

• It is clearly stated that God has a steadfast love, a deep and unconditional love. (Lamentations 3:22-23)
• God feels anger. (Psalm 30:5)
• God has jealousy. (Exodus 34:14)
• God is moved with compassion. (Matthew 14:14; 15:32)
• God wants friendship with His people. (John 15:15)

Jesus warned that “…the love of many would grow cold” (Matthew 24:12) because of wickedness, but routine, disappointment, exhaustion, busyness, bitterness, unanswered questions, and seasons of drought can be just as harmful.

Think about it this way: If your relationship with the Lord isn’t hot- it’s COLD- not because you intended it to be, but because you didn’t intend for it not to be. Choosing to walk with the Lord is not a one-time decision, but a daily one.

How Can You Know God?

It’s one thing to know God through His Word, but it is entirely another thing to know God from your first-hand experiences with Him in His presence – and both are crucial to a strong faith in the Lord.

“Many are the afflictions of the righteous” (Psalm 34:19) and “…in this world you will have tribulations”, Jesus said. (John 16:33) 

Sometimes that’s how it feels – that life is all afflictions and tribulations, but the people of the Kingdom of God see things differently!

It’s one thing to know God through His Word, but it is entirely another thing to know God from your first-hand experiences with Him in His presence.

~Alicia Purdy

“…but the Lord delivers him out of them all…” (Psalm 34:19) and “…be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33) 

For the children of God, all of life is seen through the lens of the mighty hand of God that guides, protects, delivers, strengthens, supports, provides and “works all things together for the good of those who love God and are calling according to His purpose.” (Romans 8:28)

Knowing God through the descriptions of God in the Bible is a primary way believers deepen their understanding of His character, and each description comes alive to you through the Holy Spirit at the exact right time, place, and season in your life.

Once you have submitted yourself to Jesus Christ, the journey of your life from that point on will be centered around these main objectives: 

1. To know the Lord
2. To make Him know
3. To invite Him to know you

It really is that basic, and everything else you walk through in life will fall under those three umbrellas. While it will take the rest of your life to get to know God, He wants you to know Him more and more. How does that work?

The best way to know God is through His Word, which is “living, and active” (Hebrews 4:12) through the Holy Spirit. 

​You must give Him more of YOU – by making time for deeper Bible study, by making time for personal praise and worship, and by making time to speak alone with God in prayer – and as you do, you will continually get to know Him more as you He reveals more of Himself to you along the journey of your life.

Top Bible Verses to Meditate on in a Relationship with God

Bible Verse 1: Isaiah 43:21 – You were created to praise and worship a God you know

“This people I have formed for Myself; they shall declare My praise.” (MEV)

Everyone in the world has an inherent, innate desire to know God – even if they don’t perceive it. That’s because all of humankind was made to praise God – even if they choose not to. Those who do not praise and worship God are living a life disconnected from their true purpose and calling. 

Many seek God in the wrong places such as, within their own minds and reason, or they are looking to another person, or even their local church, and many they think they already “know” God because of their own opinions, experiences, conversations, research, and even pain.

…many they think they already “know” God because of their own opinions, experiences, conversations, research, and even pain.

~Alicia Purdy

In reality, God and His power are easily seen in the revelation of Jesus Christ, who is shown and known throughout the entirety of God’s Word. (Hebrews 10:7)

In Matthew 15:8-9 Jesus said:

These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me. In vain they do worship Me, teaching as doctrines the precepts of men.” 

Praising and worshipping God out of routine or tradition is missing the point. You were created to worship the Lord. It is your true calling and purpose.

Praise and worship are relationship-building, life-giving, faith strengthening, spiritual acts of sacrifice, thanksgiving, and obedience to God – but there’s more! 

Aside from developing and maintaining the intimacy of personal praise and worship, another aspect of your purpose and calling in the Kingdom of God is to make the Lord of Lords known, as the Apostle Paul did, to reveal who He really is to those trapped in darkness.

Then, they too can walk in the fullness of their true purpose and calling – to praise the Lord!

Bible Verse 2: Acts 17:23-24 – Are You Worshipping UNKNOWN GOD?

In Acts 17:16-31, Paul was traveling through Athens and noticed that the people were seeking a spiritual connection by worshipping… everything! And he said to them:

“Men of Athens, I perceive that in all things you are very religious. For as I passed by and looked up at your objects of worship, I found an altar with this inscription: TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Whom you therefore unknowingly worship, Him I proclaim to you.”

The men of Athens worshipped the unknown God and were well-intentioned, but spiritually ignorant. As a result, the “Unknown God” they worshipped was simply another an empty, formless deity without any power who was lumped into the mix of their idolatry.

The Athenians blended the “Unknown God” into the mix because they didn’t see a difference between Him and the other gods they worshipped- because they did not know Him.

Here are some important things to think about:

• If you don’t really know the Lord thy God, you’ll end up worshipping “something” without any true power and as a result, you’ll never experience the true power of God in your life
• If you don’t really know the King of Kings, you’ll eventually bow your knee to someone or something else.
• If you don’t really know your Heavenly Father, you’ll never truly the peace of God, know His great love nor perceive the daily mercies of God, nor exist within your living hope (1 Peter 1:3) of eternity through the everlasting love of Christ.
• If you don’t really know Jesus Christ, you’ll never walk in the life, the truth, the freedom, nor the spiritual authority His blood bought for you.

The idols of the nations want your reverence; the Great King Above All Gods wants your relationship.

The Unknown God is a Ruler without Relationship

Many people worship “the unknown God”, as the Apostle Paul said. In fact, plenty of believers praise and worship a God they do not really know! That’s why so many people fall away in their faith, as the Israelites did at Meribah, or they never see the power of faith in their lives.

You must know who the Lord is in order to walk according to His will by daily offering a daily, willing, sacrifice of thanksgiving for what He has done in you, through you, and for you. 

The Apostle Paul wrote, in Romans 1:21:

“Because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him or give thanks to Him as God, but became futile in their imaginations, and their foolish hearts were darkened.” 

If you know who the Lord really is, you have endless reasons to praise. You were never meant to worship the unknown God! 

BIBLE VERSE 3: Psalm 24:8 – WHO IS THIS KING OF GLORY?

“Who is this king of glory?” David wrote. “…The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle… The Lord of Hosts, He is the King of glory.”

From the days of the garden of Eden until now, the Lord has made it clear that He is a God who desires relationship with His people. Yet, God’s people have not always had the same desire.

In the Old Testament, when the Hebrews were led out of Egypt, they were culturally Egyptian, with hundreds of years of exposure to pagan culture and no knowledge of the One True God.

Even after they left Egypt, they still suffered under the spirit of slavery and did not trust the God who had rescued them even though they had seen His wonders, His provision, and His mercy. That’s because they did not know Him- even Moses didn’t really know yet!

“Moses said to God:

“I am going to the children of Israel and will say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you.’ When they say to me, ‘What is His name?’ what shall I say to them?” And God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM,” and He said, “You will say this to the children of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’ ” God, moreover, said to Moses, “Thus you will say to the children of Israel, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is My name forever, and this is My memorial to all generations.’” (Exodus 3:13-15, MEV)

Eventually God’s people grew to know His nature, His character, His authority, His statues, His promises and beyond, but until they knew Him – all the good works He had done went unnoticed. God will reveal Himself to you in His Word and if you seek Him there, you will find Him.

“…Who is this King of Glory…”?

Whether or not they realize it, the lost and dying world does want to know the answer to this question – and you have it! How would you respond? David recognized the question everyone was asking in their hearts, and he gave them the answer from His own testimonies! How would you answer it? 

God will reveal Himself to you in His Word and if you seek Him there, you will find Him.

~Alicia Purdy

Thousands of years later, when Jesus was preaching the Good News and teaching in the synagogue people questioned who Jesus was. (Matthew 6:2-3) When Jesus asked His disciples, “Who do you say that I am?” Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”

Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven.” (Matthew 16:15-17)

If you don’t really know Jesus Christ, the Son of God, or your Heavenly Father yourself, or if you cannot discern how the power of the Holy Spirit has moved in your life, how can you ever effectively tell someone else?

“He who remains in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit,” Jesus said. (John 15:5, MEV)

“…Who is this King of Glory…”?

In Psalm 24:9, David showed that the King of Glory only enters by invitation when he said: “Lift up your heads, O you gates; lift up, you everlasting doors, that the King of glory may enter.” Praise and worship create an atmosphere of spiritual invitation and habitation for the Lord because He “…inhabits the praises of His people.”

The answers David and Peter gave came from their faith and knowledge of God – and a closer relationship with Him is always available to everyone!

BIBLE VERSE 4: Luke 24:5-6 “Why Do you Seek the Living Among the Dead?”

When Jesus was born, no one expected the King of the Jews to arrive into such unassuming, humble circumstances, even though the manner of His coming was prophesied of hundreds of years beforehand. (See Isaiah 9:6-7, for example)

The world missed the coming of the King because they had their own, preconceived ideas of what He would be like and what He would come to do!

In the same way, many still expect the Lord’s coming to look a certain way in their lives, situations, and troubles so they miss what He is doing because it didn’t meet their expectations for the timing and how it would all unfold. 

“Where is the One who has been Born King of the Jews?” 

Here is what is so stunning: 

The wise men from Persia and Babylon had traveled thousands of miles to find the Messiah based on the prophecies (Matthew 2:2), yet the leaders of the Jewish people – who had all the same access to those prophecies that foretold of His coming and had studied them for hundreds of years – wouldn’t even walk down the street to see if any of it were true! 

…many still expect the Lord’s coming to look a certain way in their lives [and] they miss what He is doing because it didn’t meet their expectations for the timing and how it would all unfold.

~Alicia Purdy

It wasn’t that the Jewish religious leaders were ignorant – far from it! They were indifferent. Why? Because their worship was stale and man-made, filled with regulations and spiritually dead. (Mark 7:7-9) And they didn’t see themselves in need of a Savior. (Mark 2:17) Even Herod was more interested in finding the King of the Jews than the Jews were! 

Bible Verse 5: Matthew 28:2-7 – “You are looking for Jesus…”

In order to truly know God, in order to truly bow before the King of Kings, you must recognize and acknowledge Him in your life. Reading the Bible and communing with the Lord in prayer are necessary and significant, but praise and worship help fix your eyes and your heart and your thoughts on Him. 

Your gratitude is the first spark of igniting worship. Gratitude to the Lord is the point of origin for starting on a journey toward Him (Psalm 100:4) fueled by sacrifice and the destination is the presence of God. (Psalm 22:13) 

Worship has no point without a point of origin – and that is thanksgiving (Psalm 50:23).

If your heart is fixed on blessing God, start there and don’t stop. The King has come! Smart men are still seeking. Wise men worship.

“Why Do you Seek the Living Among the Dead?”

You serve a living God, and although Christ Jesus died – He didn’t stay dead! That is why you have a “living hope” of eternal life through your personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

The “wages of sin” is death, under the “law of sin and death” that was written when sin entered into the world. But “the law of life in Christ Jesus” has set you free from the law of sin and death!

“Do not be afraid. For I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here. For He has risen, as He said…”

The Lord God sent His Son to suffer and die – and rise from death through the power of the Holy Spirit. “You are looking for Jesus” the angel said… He has risen as He said…” 

Once you accept the spiritual salvation Christ paid for, you are spiritually reconfigured into a new creation. It is then through your living sacrifice of praise in the presence of the Lord, spending time knowing Christ in God’s Word, and developing an intimate relationship with Christ in prayer that you “find” Jesus every day of your life on a personal level and in a fresh, new way.

Thought for Today: Every Bible Verse is About Jesus Christ

One of the things that set David apart from anyone else was his heart for worship. Even under the restrictions of the Old Covenant, which prevented anyone except the High Priest from entering into God’s presence, David wanted to draw near to the Lord so he figured out a way around the old laws. How? David determined that he would draw near to God from within his own heart, a place that no man could govern! 

Only a revelation from God can show the world that Jesus Christ is Lord, that He is the answer to all their questions and the solution to all their problems.

And yet, “How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?” (Romans 10:14) That’s where you come in!

In Psalm 37:17 David wrote, “The righteous cry out and the Lord hears…”

If your relationship with the Lord needs help, if you want to better understand His perfect love, or find a place of greater intimacy, or walk in the authority Christ Jesus paid for, you can!

Just like any relationship needs a consistent investment of time spent together, your relationship with the Lord does too!

For someone whose heart desires to draw hear to God, there is nothing standing in the way – because of Jesus Christ. But there’s more! David wasn’t content to simply keep his love and intimacy with God to himself – no! He wanted the world to know about the goodness of God. God’s mercy. His faithfulness. His strength and refuge, His protection and more.

“But you, beloved, build yourselves up in your most holy faith. Pray in the Holy Spirit. Keep yourselves in the love of God while you are waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ, which leads to eternal life.” ~Jude 20-21 (MEV)

To keep your relationship with the Lord fresh and filled with newness, there must be effort and it can never end, even though it is easy to grow comfortable in the routines of religion!

Just like any relationship needs a consistent investment of time spent together, your relationship with the Lord does too!

~Alicia Purdy

It is fine to read  devotions, listen to sermons online, put on some worship while driving to work, go to church and Bible studies and similarly beneficial actions- but where’s the fire? 

Those things bring growth, but if you want passion– that has to come from within! 

• Why did you choose to follow the Lord, all the way back to that first day? 
• Why did you weep, fast and pray, become desperate to know more of God? 
• Way back when you were filled with passion in worship- why did you want more? 
• Why were you compelled you to get up early and pray? 
• Why did you once get your knees and worship? 

Just like in any important relationship of value, you must continually work to keep things fresh and vibrant and alive. If you’ve struggled in your faith, or if you’ve grown cold, or if routine has replaced revelation – your flames may need tending!

“…Restore to me the joy of my salvation,” David wrote in Psalm 51:12. God desires more of you, but He will never take what you don’t want to give.

If you’ve lost the joy of your salvation, if your praise and worship have become stale, routine, or even dead – draw closer to God – don’t run away! 

Worship Him anyway since worship isn’t about you, but is ministry to the King of Glory. “Lift up” your eyes to Him, your hands, your heart and your voice so that “the King of Glory may enter.” – AND HE WILL.