Closer Than We're Far Away
By: Kristen L. McNulty
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"We are never alone…
His promises are true he's always,
Closer than we're far away."
By The Tree- Far Away
I don't know about you but I often fear I've messed up one time too many. I've wanted too far, I've sinned too much, and I've gone just over the line of grace.
But thankfully I've come to realize that 'His promises are true, He's always closer than we're far away."
Even though I've wandered like a prodigal, God is still standing looking across the horizon, just waiting for me to come back home into His open arms.
You see friend, there is no limit to the grace of God! Even if I've done the same sin over and over again, He's still waiting and willing to forgive me. Now that is grace!
Don't get me wrong though, just because He will forgive me doesn't mean I should sin. There is always consequence for sin, but there is also always forgiveness.
So no matter how far you've wandered away from God, why don't you come back to Him tonight? He is standing, waiting for you to call on His name. Maybe you're still stuck in sin, that doesn't mean you have to clean up your life first before approaching Him. Remember the story of the lost sheep? The Shepherd went out to find the sheep where he was, and our Shepherd Jesus Christ will do the same for you today. That's how much He loves you- He's always closer than your far away.
So tonight why don't you call on His name? Even if you're weighed down in sin, even if you've blown it again, even if you don't feel worthy of forgiveness. God hasn't asked us to understand why He would forgive us; He's just asked us to accept it. So tonight why don't you accept this precious gift?
Even if you've never accepted Christ before, maybe tonight is your night! Why don't you pray with me:
Father God,
I know that sometimes I feel so far away from You. I know that the weight of the world often pulls me away from You and Your presence, but I don't want it to be that way.
Please forgive me and wipe away my sin. Strengthen me and help me to walk in your ways. I invite you to come into my heart tonight and make it Yours.
In your precious name I pray.
Amen
To close off, I'd like to read an illustration:
In A Forgiving God in an Unforgiving World, Ron Lee Davis retells the true story of a priest in the Philippines, a much- loved man of God who carried the burden of a secret sin he had committed many years before. He had repented but still had no peace, no sense of God's forgiveness.
In his parish was a woman who deeply loved God and who claimed to have visions in which she spoke with Christ and he with her. The priest, however, was skeptical. To test her he said, "The next time you speak with Christ, I want you to ask him what sin your priest committed while he was in seminary." The woman agreed. A few days later the priest asked., "Well, did Christ visit you in your dreams?"
"Yes, he did," she replied.
"And did you ask him what sin I committed in seminary?"
"Yes."
"Well, what did he say?"
"He said, 'I don't remember'"
What God forgives, He forgets.
This devotional was aired as a part of the Making A Difference Christian Radio Show.