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We are frequently told over the pulpit that we need to develop a personal relationship with our Savior. As frequently as I have heard that, it does seem to be stylish to say it, but I have never heard a definition of what it means, nor advice on the means of acquiring said relationship. I am guessing others feel the same way, and the frequent result is simply some nagging guilt about yet another thing that should be, but isn’t. Part of me says that this concept generally means building up an ‘imaginary friend’ based what we know or what we individually interpret from the scriptures. I don’t intend for the imaginary phrase to be a hot point, because I’m not necessarily saying that Jesus is imaginary, but I’m saying that my feeling is that no one REALLY knows him, so we have to build up some sort of persona in our mind in order to feel like we do. Then how do we communicate with him? I know the simple answer is prayer, but I am not finding myself all that successful at this.
I’m interested in the opinions of this august and insightful group.
It’s interesting but some 20-30 years ago Elder McConkie made a trip to BYU to denounce a religion prof who was promoting the personal relationship thing. I asked a CES teacher some years later about it and he said that our relationship is to be with the Father. I’ve never assumed that meant to make Him my very best friend but at least get to the point where I believed in His being there and willing to hear and answer my prayers. I’m interested in what other’s have heard. For myself, I find it critical to establish a personal relationship with God. But your post made me ask what that meant, and to be honest, I don’t think of it as an imaginary friend or even a friend…I don’t treat it the same as relationships here on earth with my family or my friends. I guess I think of it as a divine relationship and something that drives me to want to be better and develop God-like characteristics. So it does involve prayer, scripture study and meditation to think about God and my Savior, and how I worship them and respect them. That is my relationship…but it is not like a buddy I hang out with or talk to about sports…it is divine.
Thanks. The Imaginary Friend was kind of tongue in cheek. I know lots of people who seem to be able to talk out to Jesus all the time! 
I looked in the mirror one day to see my reflection, and it was Jesus Christ looking back at me with a bemused smile. I screamed at the fright. I rubbed my eyes to clear my vision. I shook my head to clear my thoughts, and then I looked again into the mirror. It was God staring back at me from the mirror with a knowing look of power and wisdom. But I did not scream with fright. I laughed … a good hearty, joyful laugh. I laughed for a week every time I thought of it. After seven days of laughing, I looked into the mirror again. I saw the frail, weary, blemished, aging, hungry, flawed human creature I first expected. Then I knew that I had a personal relationship with my savior. And I was friends with God.
Brian, You never cease to surprise me. I honestly didn’t know you were such a mystic. Thanks for sharing courageously!
Tom
That’s one funky mirror! 
Thanks, Brian. I appreciated that post.
I think that mirror used to belong to Snow White’s stepmother. 😆 It’s interesting that this is one of the main point that mainstream “Christians” use to point out that Mormons aren’t really one of them. Not believing that God and Christ are one and the same, we differentiate between the two and therein lies a HUGE difference. To mainstream Christians, worshipping Jesus IS the SAME as worshiping God. There is no difference. For us, we see them as two distinct and different personages and then it gets a bit tricky as to who or which one we should be spending more time cultivating a relationship with. The way I see it–my Heavenly Father is who I pray to–he knows and loves me unconditionally and it is because of Him that I exist. But Christ is the key to our salvation–he will advocate for us. If we don’t have some kind of a testimony and/or relationship with him, then we are lost. Not only that, but if you believe in the Bible, it is Christ words (okay, so God speaking through Christ) that we look to for comfort and direction.
My belief in Christ is actually greater than my belief in God at this time (I know that sounds really weird) because at least I know that Christ actually lived on the earth and can be proven to have existed. Lame, but I’m going with what works right now. LOL
I actually feel that Mormons don’t focus ENOUGH on Christ and his atonement. We rely too much on our own works (and focus way too much on Joseph Smith, but that’s another post).
…Maybe it would be a lot easier if we just up and adopted the Nicene Creed and simplified the whole thing.
🙄 So, I got thinking this week, if I’m an rank-and-file employee of a corporation, I do not need to know the CEO in order to do my job. If I know the corporate and local organization goals and my role in it, that is enough. Maybe it’s a week analogy, I don’t know. The requirement to know God, or Jesus or both probably largely stems from John 17:3.
I thought it would be interesting to point out that the story I told of the mirror is absolutely true; but the literal, factual details of the story are made up (like poetry). That did in fact happen to me, but there wasn’t literally a magic mirror. It was the best way to communicate something transcendent, something very hard to put into words. The best language was symbol and metaphor. So … with an experience like that, how does it make me feel about the First Vision story, and the fact that some details changed in different tellings?
💡 💡 💡 Brian, I feel exactly the same way. Joseph Smith, or anybody else for that matter, could tell the story of a vision a thousand times a thousand different ways and still not exhaust the deep truth of the experience. Every telling is a woefully lacking approximation, and a thousand tellings put together are still only an approximation, though a lot better one than a single account. My current path, totally a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. I do love God, because Christ calls me to that role. I also love my fellowman. I used to call Jesus my elder brother. I don’t do it anymore. My connection has grown much deeper. Now I worship him, finding Hope and Grace in his goodness. I have older brothers. I respect them, but I don’t worship them. I don’t “always” even listen to them. Mostly this new devotion has evolved with my reaching three score and ten. Christ brings peace and calm to my soul. He is all I need. “Building a testimony on the foundation of a sincere, personal relationship with our Heavenly Father and His Beloved Son, Jesus Christ, and on our faith in them, should be our highest priority.” Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin, Spiritual Bonfires of Testimony
I have posted additional quotes from general authorities at:
http://scripturalteachings.wordpress.com/2012/01/26/developing-a-personal-relationship-with-jesus-christ/ ” class=”bbcode_url”> http://scripturalteachings.wordpress.com/2012/01/26/developing-a-personal-relationship-with-jesus-christ/ It wasn’t until towards the end of my mission when I began to develop a relationship with Christ. The teachings of the Church have helped me with this, although I do believe sometimes the Church doesn’t preach of Jesus Christ and his atonement often enough.
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