Drawing Near

Awhile back, I was sitting around doing nothing and actually just being bored. I didn't want to listen to bad news on the TV. So there I sat. All at once I thought maybe I should read my Bible for awhile. So I found my bible and opened it, and immediately saw the verse in James 5:8 which says; “Draw near to GOD and He will draw near unto you.

A similar verse I found in 2 Chronicles 15:2; “The LORD is with you, while ye be with him; and if ye seek him, he will be found of you;”

And then I opened my Bible again and saw Hebrews 4:16; “Let us come boldly to the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in the time of need.”

I thought is this just a happenstance or perhaps it is divine direction. I mused on this for awhile, and came to the conclusion that I'll just go up to the throne room and see what happens.

By now my mind was in fast mode, I thought, I should take one more look at James 4:8. This time a closer observation revealed a second step which is; “Cleanse your hands you sinners and purify your hearts, you double minded.” Now I didn't think that applied to me but just in case I asked the LORD to forgive any wrong I might have done.

Having prepared myself, I was ready to enter the throne room and once there I thought what should I do now? So I began to bless the Lord and praise Him but every thing was quiet. I didn't know what else to do so I continued to worship.

After some time I was beginning to get nervous when all at once I heard this awesome voice, it wasn't the loudness of it - - but the sound of absolute authority. When I got over my fright I heard the voice saying; “What do you want?” After some time I found myself saying, “Oh nothing, I wanted to hang out here for awhile.” The voice then said, “AND” I had never heard the word “AND” said exactly like that.

I thought I had better answer but what should I say? Being somewhat of a Wise Guy, I thought, “And - - what?” Well I decided not to say that. Instead I said: “To draw near so you so you would also draw near to me.” I thought that was a good answer! The voice spoke again and said “AND.” By now I began to freak out from that word, “AND.”

It was scaring me. I tried once again, mustering enough courage to say, “I'm here to get some grace and mercy.” All the time I was thinking to myself please don't say, "AND" again. This prayer was answered; when the LORD spoke again saying, “Was there anything else?” Quickly I said, now that you mention it there is a couple of things I could use some help on - - - !

Not all these events happened as portrayed but when you need to access GODS grace there are some things the born-again believer must keep in mind. First, you are going to address your awesome GOD and give Him the respect that is due Him. When you draw near Him He will draw near to you but chances are he will give you the same respect back to you that you give Him.

There are several other things I could list for you, but you will need to learn them for yourself. There is a maturing process needed for each individual to personally go through to learn draw near to God!