God Isn’t Far Away: Experiencing the Nearness of a Close-Up God - iBelieve Truth: A Devotional for Women - October 29

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“Come near to God and He will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded”-- James 4:8

What is your relationship with God? Do you know Him from faraway or up close?

Do you know He longs for us to draw near to Him because He isn’t a faraway God like some may believe? He is a close-up God, wanting to have us near to Him, and the nearer, the better.

Scripture reveals this truth about God, which many may brush over at times, not considering how He longs for our nearness and closeness to Him.

David grasped God’s desire to be near us and also understood how His nearness benefits us, as Psalm 73:28 describes, “But as for me, the nearness of God is good for me; I have made the Lord God my refuge, so that I may tell of all Your works” (NASB).

A Close-up God

Just think about it. God sent Jesus, who came and lived among us, and then He sent the Holy Spirit to live within us. How much closer could God be?

As 1 Corinthians 6:19 confirms, the Holy Spirit living within us, “Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own.”

Consider how God is so willing to be near to us? As Psalm 145:18 explains, “The Lord is near to all who call on Him, to all who call on Him in truth.”

As God’s word confirms, God is a close-up God who has desired to be near us since the creation of humankind.

Boldly Draw Near to God

Yet, many of us may not know how to draw near to God? Or what it looks like to do so? 

In looking at God’s word, we discover He calls us to come boldly, as Hebrews 4:16 urges, “Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (NKJV).

In Genesis 18:23, Abraham drew near to God. “And Abraham came near and said, “Would You also destroy the righteous with the wicked?”

He was boldly drawing near to God, negotiating with Him about sparing the life of Lot. Still, in his boldness, Abraham came to the Lord in humility, as recorded in Genesis 18:27. “Then Abraham spoke up again: ‘Now that I have been so bold as to speak to the Lord, though I am nothing but dust and ashes.”

Boldness, in humility, is how we can draw near to God.

When God Feels Far Away

When God feels far away, consider what Jeremiah 23:23 states, “ Am I only a God nearby,’ declares the Lord, ‘and not a God far away? Who can hide in secret places so I cannot see them?’ declares the Lord. “Do not I fill heaven and earth?”

It’s not too late to draw near to God, even when it feels like He is far away, because He hasn’t lost track or forgotten about them. Psalm 139:7-12 describes how we cannot go too far from God. 

“Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast. If I say, ‘Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me, even the darkness will not be dark to You; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to You.”

Romans 8:38-39 assures us that even when situations and circumstances cause us to feel like He isn’t there, it can’t separate us from His love. “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Let’s Pray: Dear Father, we thank You. You are a close-up God who wants us to draw near You. Help us, O Lord, to draw nearer to You daily. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Join the iBelieve Truth discussion. Share how today’s message spoke to your heart and deepened your faith.

Photo credit: ©GettyImagese/SergioYoneda

Lynette Kittle is married with four daughters. She enjoys writing about faith, marriage, parenting, relationships, and life. Her writing has been published by Focus on the Family, Decision, Today’s Christian Woman, kirkcameron.com, Ungrind.org, StartMarriageRight.com, and more. She has a M.A. in Communication from Regent University and serves as associate producer for Soul Check TV.

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