Why people have difficulty establishing relationship with God?

Answer 1

There could be a number of reasons for this and comments can only be general here- for specific counsel to discern individual problems you should see the pastor of your church who hopefully knows the Lord personally, or another wise believer who may help you discern specific problems.

Generally this could fall into a number of broad categories. Number one would possibly have to be sin which always hinders a person knowing God, who is a Holy God and gives His Holy Spirit to believers, who can be and is grieved by sin. This needs to be acknowledged and confessed. This can include sins from a life before Christ which can include occult bondage or addictions which may need to be dealt with.

Another area may be either unbelief or unfamiliarity. By the former I mean that people may sometimes find it hard to conceptualize a God whom they cannot see but yet who is nonetheless real and wants to work in their life. Unfamiliarity with God's word can mean we don't really know the God whose word it is and has many 'precious and very great promises' many of which are specifically addressed to similar situations as discussed here. He has certainly promised to hear our prayers and to help us find Him if we seek Him with our whole heart.

The first point above regarding sin can lead to a problem which many Christians have around this whole area of self-examination. Christ is meant to be the center of our life, not ourselves and so it is not good to spend too much time looking at ourselves but at God and His power and greatness and goodness and His special love for each one of us. Sometimes we worry too much about how we're going and too little about what God wants us to do for Him today.

Finally, it is always possible that a simple physical ailment or stress of some kind can be causing this. Finney, during his involvement with revivals would often send people home to get some sleep - and then come back physically refreshed for more blessings the next day. Depression is very common among both men and women and may not have a spiritual cause at all - just life in the 20th century. This is often, unfortunately a no-no subject for some Christians to face, but it doesn't help to ignore reality, although we know that God can deliver if He wishes.