Come Near to God

“⁷ Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. ⁸ Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”

James 4:7-8

Most of us live in a world that is dominated by people that do not know God at all. Our families, friends, teachers, and the people we work with are not saved. If we truly are, God calls us to a higher accountability. Somehow, we need to figure out how NOT to blend in with the rest of the world. We are supposed to look different than those that are un-saved in a mighty way.

1 Peter 3 :15 says, “But just as He who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do.”

How do we do this? God, always gives us the answers, we never have to guess with Him! In order to be like anyone, we simply need to spend a lot of time with them. In this case, let’s spend some more time with God.

James gives us a pretty simple formula. Step one, submit yourselves to God. Surrender your whole life into the hands of the One who created you! Ask Him to lead your steps in the morning, to lead your conversations, and to put the desires in your heart that He would have you carry out.

Step two, resist the devil! Temptations will always come, it is up to you to walk away, to say no, and to stop putting yourself in situations that are likely to cause you to stumble or sin.

Step three, come near to God. Read His word, meditate on it in utter quiet, pray to Him all throughout the day, and WAIT for His answers!

The closer that you reach for God, the closer you will get to Him. He will reveal to you so many things! Sacrifice time spent elsewhere, and invest it in time with God. Find a small group, be sure to attend a church regularly, and always participate in doing good deeds for others in the name of Jesus Christ.

Think about a typical day in your life. How can you change up your schedule so that you can start spending more time with God and His family? If you have to set alarms on your phone so that you can remember when to pray and read the bible, then do it. Nothing is stopping you but YOU!

 

 

Lord,

You created the heavens and the earth and everything all around us. You love to spend Your time with Your creation. Can you please show me how to spend more time with You? Change my heart so that I long for your presence and your voice in my daily life. Help me to establish a habit of putting You first, and seeking Your help.

Amen.