Drawing near to God

Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. James 4:8 NKJV

Deep within your heart is there a yearning to know God better, to draw near to Him, to feel closeness and intimacy? Have you ever considered the fact that what you feel – that deep longing to connect with Him – was put there by God Himself, not to make you miserable but to bring you to Him, just as thirst drives you to the clear, satisfying spring?

Some are driven to that point of wanting a closer relationship with God by need – say, an illness that makes you wonder if you are going to pull through, or a challenge to your safety or finances.

Some are pushed to that desire to know God better through guilt over wrongdoing. They know better, and looking back over a rather sordid page in their lives, they ask, “How could I ever have done what I did?”

Others get to that point of wanting to know God simply because they have found God to be good and want to see their love for Him increase and grow.

If God put that longing in your heart to draw near to Him, then how do you do it?

First, you need to overcome your fear of God. It is this that probably stops more people than anything else. Your feelings of guilt, your sense of inadequacy, your thinking that you aren’t good enough, can stop you from what God desires even for you.

The thirst for God in your heart is the magnetic pull of your soul that can be satisfied only by connecting with God. Thank God for that thirst that only He can satisfy.