7 Common Barriers When Trying to Connect to God
Constant, steady, and close – that’s how we all want our relationship with God to be. But even as devout Christians, there are times when we struggle to maintain a solid connection with God. And quite often, we are not even aware that there are a number of barriers stopping us from building a steadfast relationship with God.
As a Christian, if this disconnection with God has left you questioning faith, here are two things you need to know – first, you’re not alone in this journey, and quite a lot of us out here are struggling along similar lines. And secondly, connecting with God is not as difficult as it seems! Knowing the barriers obstructing your spiritual journey can help you overcome them and strengthen your faith and belief in God.
There are several examples in the Scriptures in which people have often faced numerous difficulties and common barriers when trying to connect to God. Nevertheless, their faith prevailed, and they found their way back to God, rebuilding their bond over again. If it was possible for them, it is possible for us all too. But for that, we first need to be aware of these emotional, social, and cultural barriers.
Here are some of the most common obstacles that disrupt our connection with God:
The Feeling of Worthlessness
Our inability to believe that we deserve love and are worthy of belonging is one of the biggest hindrances disconnecting us from God. A strong sense of love and belonging makes it easier for us to give and receive love – from God and others. Struggling with a sense of constant worthlessness will only hinder your relationship with God, pushing you further away from Him.
Constant Guilt
Quite often, when we do something against Christian values, we are left clouded with guilt and shame. With these negative feelings, the path to repentance, too, becomes difficult. However, the fact that we did something wrong does not make us bad people. Instead of trapping ourselves in negative emotions, it is best to focus on repenting for our mistakes and reconnecting with God with a guilt-free heart and mind.
Unwanted Focus on Religious Practices
The most important commandment we as Christians have to follow is to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. Following this simple commandment will bring us closer to God. But, instead of focusing on this, we entangle ourselves in unnecessary religious practices and religious rituals. As a consequence, we drift away from the prime task of enhancing our relationship with God. We need to set our priorities right and, rather than focusing excessively on religious traditions, spend our lives becoming better versions of ourselves and building a steady connection with God.
Excessive Pride
It’s no one but our own selves who get in the way of building a beautiful relationship with God. Pride is one such emotion that impacts our communication and connection with God. We think of ourselves as ‘ideal’ or ‘model’ Christians who follow all religious practices to the T. And then end up looking down on others who falter in their spiritual journeys. That’s not what Christianity calls for, and this ‘holier-than-thou’ feeling will keep you occupied in finding flaws in others when all you need to do is focus on yourself and build a strong relationship with God instead.
Personal Beliefs
Even though we are continuously guided by the Word of God and preachers who help us interpret the Word, we still come with our set of personal beliefs and prejudices. Unknowingly, these beliefs hinder our personal connection with God. We fail to understand why we’re struggling to build a steadfast bond with God when all we need to do is look inside, shake those personal beliefs, and change how we think about God and religion. After you get rid of the rigid personal beliefs, you’ll find that connecting with God is actually effortless.
Logical Barriers
Certain drastic incidents in our lives leave us questioning our faith and belief in God. Thoughts such as ‘Is everything mentioned in the Bible true?’ or ‘Why did God abandon me at this juncture in life?’ keep crossing our minds. And in our tryst to find answers to these questions, we wander away from God, and with every passing day, the connection with God we worked so hard to build slowly wanes away. Instead of looking for answers to such questions in testing times in our lives, we should focus on building a strong connection with God, and not let such logical barriers deter us from spiritual growth during such times.
Behavioral Obstacles
Christianity calls for us to live a holy life, which is not easy to practice. The very thought of giving up material or other things not in accordance with Christian values scares us. And instead of working on giving up these aspects of our lives slowly and steadily, we choose the easier way – giving up on God himself. We want to live our life by our own standards, even if these standards are not in line with Christian values. And these ‘behavioral’ obstacles become an impediment to building a solid connection with God.
Summing Up
We’ve listed the key aspects and common barriers when trying to connect to God. Understanding that these barriers exist and are resulting in an unsteady relationship with God is important. Realization is step one toward overcoming spiritual barriers, finding meaning in life, and ultimately, bringing ourselves closer to God.
Irrespective of the situations we face in life, we should not let them affect our faith, religion and spirituality. Constant prayer and medication can help us cruise through even the toughest times in life while maintaining a steady connection with God.
Our personal struggles with spirituality may be difficult to deal with, but knowing that God’s unconditional love is always with you can help you overcome these inner wars. It’s all about the effort we take – are you willing to overcome these barriers and build a strong connection with God?
We invite you to join us for Bible Study, where you can deepen your understanding of God’s Word and connect with like-minded individuals. Our Next Level Calling community is dedicated to helping you grow in your faith and discover your God-given purpose.
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