LB:
doing Hashem’s Will instead of making Hashem fit what we want.
+1
In order to truly develop a relationship with Hashem, we need to honestly figure out what it is that He truly wants us to do, based on what He has told us and based on the teachings of those who have gotten truly close to Him.
Projecting our own personal pre-conceived notions/beliefs/feelings (which are often based more on the society around us than on any objective criteria) is not only intellectually dishonest, but also perverts the nature of our relationship – we would then be trying to mold God into our image, instead of trying to mold ourselves into God’s image.
As you correctly observed, staying true to Hashem and His Torah is what has sustained us through the ages and through all of our travails. All of the various movements that have attempted to edit Judaism to fit their own ideas instead of Hashem’s everlasting and unchanging will have fallen and faded into history. Because it is our connection with Hashem, on Hashem’s terms, that keeps us going.