When God Seems Distant: Part 4 — A ‘Time With God’ Audio Devotion

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Transcript

Good morning. You know the best way to start your day is to take some time with God, right?

Not a cup of coffee.

Not a morning shower. Not your breakfast. All those things are great… but the best thing about starting your day is taking time with God, because when you take time with God at the beginning of your day, it does something that the Bible calls setting your mind on God for the day. It creates a tone for your day, a way of thinking, a way of approaching your day.

Because you’re thinking on God’s wavelength about your day. And our topic this week is questions to ask myself when God seems distant. I wonder if that’s you today.

We’ve said already this week, the first question we need to ask is, have I moved away from my relationship with God and been distracted by other things. Secondly, am I giving my relationship with God what it needs in order to grow? Just like any relationship, it needs time, communication, shared experiences.

Third, yesterday we asked the question, am I becoming close friends with the world, because that puts a definite strain on my relationship with God. And today here’s the question we need to ask if God seems distant.

Am I obeying God? Am I obeying God?

That question might grate on your ears. I remember about 10 years ago my son as a teenager wore a t-shirt that was a meme. Back then, the T-shirt just said obey.

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And kind of making light of the idea, and old-fashioned idea of expecting obedience, but this is so central to your relationship with God.

Remember, He’s God, right? He’s not just a concept, not just someone up in heaven waiting, and you’ll see Him when you die at the pearly gates, not just someone up there judging everything. He’s God. He designed this world. It’s built around His sense of morality, and He has shown us in the Bible how to have a good relationship with Him.

We think of the rules in the Bible, God’s commands. You know, when Jesus talks about what’s really important in the Bible, he says there’s two commands that are the most important of all, love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself.

And Jesus then goes on to say – every other command in the Bible is just a description of how to do those two things, how to love God and how to love people.

So don’t get all hung up that the Bible’s so legalistic, it’s so negative, God is a killjoy, and all of this. God is giving you a picture of how to please him and how to love the people around you.

So listen to what Jesus says about how to get close to God, and for God not to be distant in your life. In John chapter 14, starting in verse 21, this is what Jesus says.

Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him. Judas, (not Judas Iscariot), said to him, Lord, how is it that you will manifest yourself to us and not to the world? Jesus answered him, If anyone loves me, listen, he will keep my word. What’s the result? And my father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.

Wow, isn’t that such a beautiful picture of the life God wants for you? The Father and Jesus will come to you and make their home with you. Well, that doesn’t sound like a distant relationship with God, does it?

That’s God being so close to you, so involved in your life, and what’s the one thing Jesus says? When you love him, you will keep his word. You will obey his commandments.

Here’s the question to ask if God seems distant in your life today. Am I obeying God?

I’m John North.

To go deeper in your faith, visit AFCI.com.au.

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