Do you desire to get closer to God as days pass by?
I believe that as a Christian, it is our ultimate desire to experience God more as we commit ourselves to walk the journey that God has intended us to have. This journey is not easy, but there’s an unexplainable joy in God’s presence.
Many of us probably have this desire but we are not sure where to start. Some have already started but along the way, they find it so hard to sustain and continue in their quest to get closer to Him. This may lead them to have a hard time enjoying the journey.
I have been a Christian for more than a decade and I had experienced so many low moments where I could not do anything but cry out to God. There is no secret to getting closer to God. He tells us in His word to “draw near to Him and He will draw near to us” (James 4:8).
Do we always find God along this journey? Why do we have those times when it seems that despite our efforts to get closer to Him, we don’t feel His presence? God does not lie. And, if we believe that His promises are constant, then we would know that if we “seek the Lord our God, we shall find Him, if we seek Him with all our hearts and souls” (Deuteronomy 4:29).
The reason is always within us.
What are the common stumbling blocks to being closer to God?
Inconsistent Quiet/Devotion Time
How does it feel like going through the day without talking to God? Every day, we face a lot of decisions to make, struggles to deal with, and problems to solve. Where do we get wisdom and strength for the day if it is not from God?
With many years of learning how to have consistent quiet times, I realized that having devotion is not actually for God but for me. I came to compare those times when I did not have morning devotion and the ones I had. There was a big difference throughout the day. Whenever I put God first, my day was lighter (though unpleasant events still came).
Bev Desalvo in her book, Return to Joy, expressed deeply the importance of spending time with the Lord:
“When we spend daily time in worship, something mysterious happens: Our hearts open up to the Lord in an astounding way. Although trials won’t magically disappear, the way we view them changes. Inexpressible joy well up within us as we become captivated by the Lord” (1 Peter 1:8).
We don’t know what lies ahead during the entire day. Having no devotion and time for God is like saying that we don’t need Him today. We go on and do whatever we know may seem right. On the other hand, choosing to commit in prayer and devotion will set things right for the day.
Worries and Anxieties
I struggled with worry and anxiety because I was used to calculate things. My mind was trained to think logically and figure things out. If I could not, there was a sudden attack of fear that paralyzed and stopped me from fully trusting God. As a result, I worked on my own. I planned. I assessed and executed things on my own terms and methods, so I could see the framework of what’s ahead.
Situations like this will also lead us to worry and be anxious. Of all the things that you worried about in the past, can you list down those worries that came to pass? I did this and so far, all those worries and anxieties did not come to pass.
We all experience worrying especially when things are not the way we plan them to be. But what will happen to us? Does fear benefit us?
The Bible reminds us how Satan is expert in whispering sugar coated lies to us because he is the father of it (John 8:44). Those worries and anxieties that we have are not from God.
We can resolve this by following the Bible’s prescription of “casting all our anxieties on Him because he cares for us” (1 Peter 5:7).
Worries and anxieties are the enemies of trust. The start of worries and anxieties lies where trust ends.
We cannot say that we trust God but continuously wallowing in worries and anxieties.
Do I not worry? I do. But every time I am tempted to worry, I hold on to Psalm 57:7 which says “My heart is fixed, Oh God, my heart is fixed: I will sing and praise.” David turned his fears and worries by singing and praising God. Like him, I recognized that I also need to do the same in my life.
Unconfessed Sins
Have you ever experienced having your devotion but you can’t just concentrate? You feel that everything is just a motion. You become numb. You read your bible but do not understand. You start uttering your prayers but your heart is so heavy that you always need to pause. Yes, I have been to this for how many times. And, one of the reasons is unconfessed sin. When we know that we are treasuring an “ugly monster” inside, we could not really enjoy God’s presence. The Bible tells us that if we regard iniquity in our hearts, the Lord will not hear us (Psalm 66:18).
James continued to say that in order for us to draw near to God, we must cleanse our hands and purify our hearts (4:8).
Restore the joy of our daily walk with Him by choosing to lay down our sins under his feet.
Unbelief or Doubt
One Sunday, one Pastor preached to us about completely putting our trust to Him.
A father and a son planned to go out but dark clouds are seen outside warning that it might probably rain. The father asked the son to pray that it won’t rain as they would go out. So, they prayed, “Father, please don’t allow the rain to come. We will be going out. Amen.” When they finished praying and about to go out, the father said to his son, “Son, bring an umbrella.” The son said, “Oh, I thought you prayed that it won’t rain.”
Doubt and unbelief will keep us away from fully experiencing closeness with the Lord. Whenever we doubt God, we tell Him that He is a liar and His promises cannot be depend on. This doubt will lead to unbelief, so then we remove God in the picture. Instead, we put ourselves in His position. The father in the story prayed but in his mind, it might rain so better yet, get an umbrella. Why does pray then?
When I heard this story, I laughed. But when I look at my life, there are times that I am like him. I pray for provision but I keep myself busy looking for money. That’s where I know God provides.
When God asked Abraham to offer His son Isaac, he did not bring a lamb that could replace his son in the event that God would not want Isaac to be the offering. Instead, he said that “God will provide the offering” (v8).
The story of Israelites unbelief will give us a glimpse on how we can see God’s miracle, and yet, our hearts are full of doubts and unbelief. There is no genuine trust to God’s mighty hand. The end result, after all of God’s deliverance and mighty works for them, they never had the chance to know God deeply and they never had the opportunity to get closer to Him because they were so much concerned with life that they did not mind the giver of it. To them, He was a God who could do miracles and perform wonders. I understood them as people who believe in what He could do, yet, their hearts are far from them.
Getting closer to God does not come naturally. It takes time, willingness, and the heart to fully commit our lives to journey with Him in good or bad times. Being closed with Him however, is the best relation we could ever have in this life.
Leave a comment