Nearer
Share your fears and worries with God, and tell Him your deepest needs. Draw near to God, and He has promised that He will draw near to you (James 4:8).
What a wonderful promise of God this verse reveals to us! God promises to ALWAYS be with us, to “draw near” whenever we need Him. As we feel overwhelmed and exhausted, frustrated and frightened, sad and perplexed – God’s strength and comfort are available to us.
Whenever I read this verse, I remember singing Nearer My God to Thee in worship as a child. And even as a child, I found the hymn comforting. I recently learned the story behind this hymn and thought it was very interesting.
Sarah Fuller Flower Adams hoped to become an actress. But Sarah, who was born in England in 1805, was forced to abandon these plans because of poor health. Instead, she devoted much of her time to Bible study and writing. In 1840, as she was studying the Bible, she was particularly stirred by the story of Jacob and his dream about a ladder that reached Heaven. Overwhelmed with a desire to draw closer to God, she wrote a poem called “Nearer, My God, to Thee.”
Just like Jacob, Sarah felt like a wanderer. She cried out, “Yet in my dreams I’d be nearer, my God to Thee.” She wanted all of her waking thoughts to be bright with praise of God: “Out of my stony griefs, Bethel I’ll raise; so by my woes to be nearer, my God, to Thee.” She expressed her longing to be engulfed in God’s presence, spending eternity with Him: “There in my Father’s home, safe and at rest, there in my Savior’s love, perfectly blest; age after age to be, nearer my God to Thee.”
This hymn, understandably, has often been sung at funerals. But it has a powerful application to everyday life. Does every worry, each fear, and all hardships draw you closer to God? In times of trouble with the simplest prayer, we can ask God to make more aware of just how near He is. We can ask that He draws us even closer to Him as He transforms us to reflect the image and heart of His Son.
Today, remember that Almighty God is with you to comfort and guide you. He will use even the most difficult days to transform you and draw you close to Him.