Cindy Powell

“Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.”  – James 4:8 NKJV

Draw near to God. Draw near—closer than you’ve ever dared to come. Draw near to His heart. Nestle into His arms. Lay your head on His chest and hear His heartbeat. Feel the strength of His embrace. Gaze into His eyes of love.

Draw near to God and He WILL draw near to you. He WILL draw near, because He is already there waiting. The invitation is to all. His arms are always open. The cross closed the gap and filled all the space. There is no separation.

Drawing near isn’t about feelings. It is about facts. It is about truth. It is about the truth that He IS there waiting. Jesus’ death tore the veil. We have access to the throne of grace—now, always, and forever. We just need to believe it. Regardless of what we see. Regardless of what we feel. We CAN rest in the finished work of the cross. We CAN rest in His embrace.

Perhaps that is why earlier in James chapter 4 we are exhorted to humble ourselves before God (James 4:6). To lay our “stuff”…our weakness…our inadequacy…our fickleness…at His feet. That is a part of what it means to submit to God (James 4:7). “Submit” may sound like a scary religious word because so many have misused it in an attempt to force the “sheep” into submission to their religious ideas, rather than as a means of drawing us into His presence. But submitting to God is really about acknowledging that He is God and we are not. When we recognize who He is, we have the grace to “resist the devil, that he may flee.” The devil flees when we KNOW who God is…and who we are to Him.

And who are we to Him? We are His beloved. Accepted. Adored. Chosen. Highly favored. Firmly held. Forever loved.

When your life feels uncertain, draw near to the One whose intentions toward you are always certain. He went to great lengths to reveal His love. That has not changed and never will.  So draw near to God … and He WILL draw near to you.

Jesus, thank You that when I choose to draw near, You are already waiting. Help us to lay aside the weighty lies and hindrances that keep us from resting in Your love. There is so much fear in the atmosphere, but it doesn’t change who You are or what You think of me one bit. Let Your perfect love draw me to Your healing presence that I might be strengthened in Your embrace. ~Amen

I hear Him saying: Let the favor of My face shine upon you!