When God Seems Distant: Part 2 — A ‘Time With God’ Audio Devotion

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Transcript

Good morning. As we head into Tuesday, let’s just think about our topic for this week, which is questions to ask when God seems distant. And maybe for you that question even seems a little odd because God always seems distant, and the idea of having a personal relationship with God just seems a little odd to you.

God is about going to church, it’s about trying to do what’s right, it’s about what the Bible says, but actually knowing God as a real relationship seems a bit odd to you. Well, I want you to know that the act of going to church and being religious is not the kind of Christianity that Jesus Christ died on the cross to purchase for you.

What he wants for you is to introduce you to a real relationship with God. And if you don’t have that, then probably you need to talk to God in your heart, even right now while you’re listening, and say, God, I want a real relationship with you.

I know there’s things in my life that offend you – have kept me from that, and I want to ask your forgiveness and invite you to begin a real change in my life and a personal relationship. God will answer that prayer and start that personal relationship with you. But if you’ve been in a relationship with God and God has become distant to you, then here’s the second question you need to ask.

Yesterday we asked, have I moved away from my relationship with God and become distracted with other things so that God has gotten squeezed out of my life? The second question is:

Am I giving the relationship with God what it needs in order to grow?

Listen to what James says to us in the Bible in James chapter 4 verses 7 and 8. Here’s what he says.

Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. And then listen to verse 8. Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you.

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What a promise.

Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. Am I giving my relationship with God what it needs in order to grow?

Well, just think about relationships and how they work. Think about your relationship with your girlfriend or boyfriend or with your husband or wife. What does it take for that relationship to grow closer and more meaningful and intimate?

Well, what’s necessary for every relationship. Number one – time together, right? You have to spend time together for a relationship to grow. In fact, if one of you gets a job in another city and has to move there, it’s a real challenge to the relationship, isn’t it?

And when two people are in love and they’re distant from each other, they’re burning up the phone lines. They’re constantly talking, even though they’re not actually being together physically. It, it takes that, doesn’t it?

And if you have not been spending time with someone in your life, then I can guarantee you the relationship is becoming more distant. Isn’t that right? Wouldn’t you have to say yes to that?

Well, it’s the same in your relationship with God, you have to spend time with him. It’s not one of these things where there’s a microwave relationship with God, you just push a button for a few seconds and boom, you’ve got a great relationship with God. No sometimes we think, well, I’m doing the right things in my life and being a good person, well that doesn’t mean you have a good relationship with God. You have to spend time with him.

The second thing that’s absolutely necessary for any relationship is communication, right?

Communication. Listening to a person, interacting with what they say to you, sharing what’s on your heart with them.

Asking them for help when you need it, helping them when they need it. Well, this is relationship, right, communication. Are you communicating with God on the personal level, right? Not just saying some formula prayers that you read on the screen in church on Sunday, but in your personal life, praying to God, talking to Him, sharing life experiences with Him.

As you journey through life with Him, well, when you give your relationship with God what it needs in order to grow, you’ll find that God is no longer distant.

I’m John North.

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