Our lives are shaped by the choices or decisions we make. Choices, even small ones, change the course of our lives in pretty significant ways.

In this post, I want to highlight the 1st of four choices that I believe could make all the difference in your life. These four choices are simple but powerful.

Choice # 1 – Love God

Choosing to love God really is the realization that we are made to live in a relationship with him. Relationship is key.

Many people see God as distant, as he’s far off. But he’s not. He designed you on purpose. He loves you unconditionally. And he has a “best” for your life.

So this first choice is taking a step towards God in response to the step he has already taken towards us.

Here are 3 ways to nurture your relationship with him.

Taking Steps Towards God

1. Spend Time with God

The more time you spend with someone, the deeper your relationship will be. This is true in our earthly relationships and this is also true in our relationship with our Heavenly Father.

A great way to spend time with God is to read the Bible every day and spend time in prayer every day. These are powerful habits. When we read the Bible, we are able to hear from God. When we pray, we are able to talk to God. This two-way communication strengthens our relationship.

2. Allow God to Shape You

As you spend time with God, allow God to shape you. Allow him to create his character inside of you.

I often tell people that God is an inside-God. What I mean by that is that he goes to work on the inside of us. That internal work can seem slow, but over time, it leads to visible results.

Don’t fight the process. Join God in it.

I ’m reminded of Pastor Carey Nieuewhof’s recommendation: work twice as hard on your character as you do on your competency.

It’s the reminder that WHO you’re becoming is far more important than WHAT you are doing. Don’t focus just on “what”. Focus on “who”.

3. Lean into your Unique Design

God created you with a unique design. In a similar way that Paul told his young protégé, Timothy, to stir up the gifts of God inside of him, I encourage you to do the same thing.

God has given you a unique personality with specific gifts for you to use for him. When you discover your gifts and deploy your gifts, the kingdom of God will get bigger and your life will be fuller and more fulfilled.

So I want to encourage you to choose to love God.

That’s what the early followers of Jesus did. In fact, Peter and John didn’t have a lot going for them.

“When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.” — Acts 4:13

That’s a great reputation to have: to be an ordinary person that has been with Jesus! That’s a great choice!