Spending Time with God Teaching Series: Session 1

Hello, I am Associate Pastor Terrelle George of I Am for Christ Ministries and the Great Commission Pledge. On behalf of our Pastor, Lloyd C. Glover, we welcome you to our teaching series, “Spending Time with God.”

This three-part series begins with a fundamental question: Are you spending time with God? It is essential to understand the importance of putting God first in everything we do. Below is an overview of each session:

Session Breakdown:

• Session 1: Are You Spending Time with God?

  • Explore the significance of dedicating time to God in our daily lives.

• Session 2: Falling in Love with God

  • Discover the joy and purpose of falling in love with God (Jesus), the greatest experience one can have.

• Session 3: Communicating with God

  • Learn about the authority and privilege of having a two-way communication with our Father God.

Opening Prayer

Before we dive deeper into this message, I ask again: Are you spending time with God? Let’s begin by putting God FIRST!

Let us begin this session with a prayer:

“Father God, we love You with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, as stated in Mark 12:30. Forgive us for any sins we have knowingly or unknowingly committed. Thank You, Lord, for Your grace and mercy. Thank You, Father, for granting us a brand-new day of mercies. We invite You in to give us a flesh revelation of Your word. We touch and agree with the words of this prayer and declare it done in Jesus’ name. Amen.”

You can press the pause button if you care to take a moment now to spend personal time with God, praying for your immediate needs and seeking a greater revelation of His word today.

Spending time with God should be our top priority. Here are practical ways to prioritize God in your daily life:

Here are steps to Strengthen Your Relationship with God

1. Daily Prayer

• Start and end your day with prayer to stay connected with God.

2. Read Scripture

• Meditate on God’s word daily to understand His will and grow spiritually. This helps you understand God’s will and draws you closer to Him. Worship Regularly: Attend church services or other worship gatherings.

3. Worship Regularly

• Attend church services or engage in personal worship to reinforce your faith.

4. Serve Others

• Acts of kindness reflect God’s love and align us with His purpose.

5. Seek God’s Guidance

• Make a habit of seeking God’s wisdom in all your decisions.

6. Practice Gratitude

• Give thanks for God’s blessings, keeping your heart focused on Him. Gratitude can help you stay focused on God and what He has done for you

7. Live Out Your Faith

• Demonstrate your faith through your actions and choices. Others observe and learn from your lifestyle. Let your behavior reflect your beliefs and values.

8. Surround Yourself with Fellow Believers

• Fellowship with other Christians to encourage and uplift your spiritual journey. Don’t give them a reason to questioned your faith.

9. Prioritize God in Your Schedule

• Set specific times for prayer, reading scripture, and worship.

10. Reflect and Adjust

• Regularly assess your priorities to ensure God remains first in your life.

By implementing these steps, you can strengthen your relationship with God and ensure that your actions reflect His guidance.

Below, we have included six short videos on the importance of spending time with God. Each video offers unique insights. Click on the play button to watch your selection.

Additionally, we have included a special video titled “Your Presence” to help you soak in God’s presence. Take time in your secret place to experience His love and deepen your relationship with Him.

Click on the play button to review your choice of videos. 

Afterward, please proceed to the next lesson on Why is Spending Time with God So Important?

Spending time with God is vital for our spiritual well-being. Here’s why:

1. We Tap into God’s Wisdom

• Spending time with God grants us access to His infinite wisdom (Acts 4:13).

2. We Seek His Guidance

• In our private time with God, we can ask for direction and hear His voice clearly. We can seek His guidance, direction, and answers to our prayers and questions. It’s a space where we can hear His voice clearly. Others will notice the impact on us, just as they did with the disciples of Jesus (Acts 4:13).

3. We Refocus Our Attention

• In the midst of life’s distractions, spending time with God helps us re-center our focus on Him. We can Refocus our attention on Him: Amid life’s distractions, spending time with God helps us refocus.

4. We Receive Renewed Strength

• Isaiah 40:31 reminds us that those who wait upon the Lord will renew their strength. Our secret place becomes a source of spiritual rejuvenation and a place of spiritual comfort and comfort and joy.

5. We Experience Spiritual Growth

• Consistent fellowship with God shapes our character and deepens our faith. Just as Joshua remained in the Tabernacle, our consistent fellowship with God leads to spiritual growth. 

6. We Find Comfort and Direction

• Through prayer and meditation, we gain peace, wisdom, and divine guidance. Our understanding of God’s character deepens, fostering trust in Him.

Even Jesus prioritized spending time alone with God (Luke 4:42; 5:15-16; 6:12; Matthew 14:23; Mark 6:45-46). Let’s follow His example.

Why is Spending Time with God so Important?

I have a couple of questions for you:

• Do you love God?
• Why is it so important for us, as Christians, to understand the benefits of spending time with God and the necessity of having a good relationship with Him?
• You say that you love God, but do you really spend time with Him?
• By the way, how is your relationship with our Heavenly Father?
• How would you rate your relationship with our Father—at a 1, 5, or a 10?
• Do you want a better relationship with our Father?

Here is a scene from a fictional Christian movie: This scene could easily reflect the everyday lives of many believers in Christ. I want you to play along with me.

Congratulations! You just landed the starring role in this movie, playing the part of the son or daughter in a Christian family.

Your family is quite wealthy and owns multiple businesses. A week after graduation, you ask your father for help to get started in life. In other words, you want a portion of your inheritance now so you can party, be your own boss, and live independently—away from your father’s businesses and rules for a while.

At first, your father hesitates to give you what you ask for because he wants you to stay and help with the family businesses. Nevertheless, he gives you a large sum of money to get you started in life. Armed with part of your inheritance, you move out the next day to live in a nearby party town, away from your family.

Why is it Necessary to Maintain a Good Relationship with Your Father?

Three years later, the movie picks back up with you reflecting on how fast time has flown. You realize that the only time your character has called, visited, or spent quality time with family—mainly your father—is on occasional holidays or when relatives visit from out of town.

Now, life is getting a little tough. You also realize that you have squandered all your inheritance on reckless living.

Yesterday, you received an unwelcome eviction notice placed on your door, indicating that you are two months behind on rent. You must pay the overdue rent within three days or face homelessness.

Now you have an emergency and an urgent need for help. You know in your heart and spirit that your father is the only person who can provide the money and support needed to prevent your eviction. However, you realize that you haven’t spent much time with him. You also recognize that your relationship with your father has not been great since graduation.

Father’s Unconditional Love

Now it is time to swallow your pride and ask your father for help again.

You visit your father and make your request. He pauses for a few moments, recalling the last time he helped you. He thinks to himself, Should I or shouldn’t I?

Being a good father, and because he loves you unconditionally, he says yes and gives you what you ask for.

The most heartbreaking part of this scene happens right after your character receives help. Sadly, you quickly depart, rejoicing as you walk out the door—never looking back, nor even saying goodbye or thanking your father for what he has just done for you.

This scene ends with a heavenly angel shouting in disbelief, “Stay tuned for the next scene. You know he will be back soon with another need from the father!”

What if the Scene Had a Different Outcome?

Every time we ask our father for something—regardless of how great or small—we expect him to say yes and meet or exceed our request.

But what if he says no this time?

Could his refusal be based on one of the following reasons?

1. He knows from experience that the only time you call or visit him is when you need something right away.
2. Your father is tired of being used by you.
3. He wants you to spend more time solving your own issues before he steps in to help.
4. He has limited resources and simply cannot assist you at this time.
5. He becomes frustrated and tells you to leave immediately, knowing that your relationship with him is not in a good place.
6. Finally, could it be that he refuses because you have not spent quality time with him?

How would this rejection make you feel? Could this be the catalyst that makes you realize the importance of spending time with and having a good relationship with your father?

Are You Guilty of Not Spending Time with God Until You Need Something?

How would you feel if you were the father in this movie and your child treated you this way?

The same thing happens far too often to our Heavenly Father.

Just like many Christians, any one of us could easily be the character in this story.

How many of us are guilty of only calling upon our Father God when we need something urgently? This makes us no different from the character in this movie.

By faith, we believe in our hearts that God is the only One who can meet or exceed our most urgent prayer requests. But please understand the point I’m making.

You are not God, but if you were, how would you feel?

The truth is that our relationship with God is only as strong as the private time we spend with Him. God loves you and desires a strong Father-son or Father-daughter relationship with you—not just when you need something, but all the time.

Read: (Proverbs 8:17), (Jeremiah 29:11), (1 John 3:1), (1 John 4:16), and (1 John 4:19).

Conclusion: The Parable of the Prodigal Son

Are you guilty of this too?

Do you only pray to God when all else fails or when a crisis arises in your life?

Don’t panic. You still have time to make things right and improve your relationship with both your earthly father and your Heavenly Father.

Do you remember the parable of the Prodigal Son? Please read (Luke 15:11-32).

This parable is a wonderful reminder of the many benefits of being a son or daughter in the Father’s house.

Life is full of mistakes, and we all make them. A loving father will always love you, forgive you, and welcome you back—regardless of your situation.

(Hebrews 13:5) says, I will never leave you; never will I forsake you.

It is so important that we spend time with both our earthly fathers and our Heavenly Father. Doing so strengthens our relationships and makes it easier to ask for and receive help in the future.

Read: (Matthew 7:7).

Amen.

Spending Time with God Series

This is the first session of our three-part teaching series on spending time with God. You can choose to continue with Session 1, 2, or 3, depending on where you started:

• Session 1: Are You Spending Time with God?
• Discusses the importance of having a good relationship with and spending time with God.
• Session 2: Falling in Love with God
• Falling in love with God (Jesus) is the greatest thing I ever did. This session discusses the purpose of falling in love with God.
• Session 3: Communicating with God
• Highlights the importance of understanding that you have the authority to have two-way communication with Father God. 

We would love to provide you with a Certificate of Excellence for spending time with us. Just send us an email at  iamfcpresident@iamforchrist.org. and we will email your certificate within a few days.

Thank you for sharing this meal with us from our Father’s table. Please proceed to your next session.

May God bless you! Amen.

We would like to provide you with a Certificate of Excellence for spending time with us. Just send us an email at  Let us know that you completed and you fully understand the lesson. We will email you your certificate within a couple of days.  

*We appreciate sharing this meal with you from our Father’s Table. Please proceed to either session below. Thank you in advance.  it is our prayer that this session was a blessing to you. Amen

What is Next for You?

Spending Time with God Teaching Series

Communicating with God

Session 3

Lloyd C. Glover
Pastor, I AM for Christ Ministries