Let that sink in.
Roll it around a time or two.
Is that you?
Are you getting by on the knowledge you have of God's Word without diving in and letting it spark a fresh hunger and fire within?
And why on earth is having a consistent, daily time set aside for scripture reading and purposeful prayer and sitting quietly before God so stinking hard to fit in? We KNOW how much better life is with Jesus at the center, giving Him our day before we start racing through it and yet, rather than run to Him, we just... well, we don't.
And what would it look like if we did?
Who would you be if you let God have more of you?
What if you let Him have all of you?
Think about that. Picture it.
So, what holds you here? Are you stuck? Afraid? Holding too tightly to things of this world? Not willing to let go of cherished sin? Maybe you haven't realized how long it's been since you carved out some quiet time and talked to the Lord?
Maybe you feel like it's been so long that maybe it's too long? Really? Too long? For Jesus? That may work on the surface, for the enemy to tell you that lie to keep you away, but if you think about that... it's been so long since I've been where I need to be with the Lord that it's probably been too long and He's given up on me.
Given up on you? Over a few months, many months, a year, 2 years, 5 years that have passed without you even realizing it... and yet you think it's been too long? Well, how long is too long? 2 months but not 3? 1 year but not 2?
Surely the arm of the LORD is not too short to save,
nor his ear too dull to hear. --Isaiah 59:1
You know those moments in life when someone makes a statement that you know will be with you forever? We were in our Connect Groups one Sunday after the morning service at the church I used to work at in Virginia. We were all sitting around the table talking about something similar to this topic and my dear friend, Mina, who incidentally is so full of wisdom and timely words of encouragement I can hardly stand it... she said something to this effect... The Bible doesn't give us 10 steps to getting back into the groove with God. It doesn't talk about us earning our way back to the "sweet spot". What it does talk about is God saying "Return to Me", and about a Prodigal Son being IMMEDIATELY, ENTIRELY, FULLY welcomed back to the Father. He didn't shame him for being gone and wasting the money. He didn't look on him with disappointment. He hadn't stopped caring as time went on.
What does the Scripture say?
First, it doesn't tell us how long he'd been gone. "When he came to his senses." (Luke 15:17)
"But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him." (Luke 15:20)
Ok, I won't preach a sermon BUT...
"While he was still a long way off": The son made his way back. Can you imagine it? Shoulders slumped, dejected, feeling unworthy, guilty, shameful, embarrassed... just coming upon his father's land maybe coming up over the farthest hill to be possible to be seen.
"his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him": He was waiting and watching. He didn't care how much time had passed, he always longed for his son to return.
"he ran to his son": This part can make your heart stop. This is the only time in Scripture when God (because this is a parable, the father is representing God) is seen RUNNING. Are you ready for this? The son was a long way off, had decided it was time to come back, to come home, the Father was watching and waiting and as soon as he saw his son, the father took off running to him. He could have made the long trek worse by making the son pay his penance, feel the weight of his guilt, endure a few more steps of shame, but no. He would have none of that. The Father bridged the gap. He more than met him halfway.
He removed the distance.
Isn't that what we sometimes need?
We feel the distance.
We want it removed.
But we feel so bad for being gone so long, we don't know how to get back to where we'd once been.
There is no magic formula.
It's simple: Begin your journey back. Open the Bible. Talk to Him, tell Him you want more of Him... that you're ready to return. And He'll do it for you, too. He'll remove the distance.
Keep your eyes wide open so you don't miss it: He'll run for you, too.
Click Here to listen to an AMAZING song sung by Phillips, Craig & Dean called "When God Ran"
This post was a God-thing. I sat down to blog tonight to tell you I couldn't really blog tonight and this is the direction God took it. I love Him so. And He adores you. If you're feeling the sweet nudge of His spirit drawing you, then know He did it for you.
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