"Near at Heart"

"The LORD is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth." (Psalms 145:18)

  It might not make sense, but it really does not need to, because I know that God loves me! Whether you have been a Christian for decades or only a few days, if you have truly been born of the Spirit, you know exactly what this verse is talking about; because this what Jesus was sharing to the Woman at the Well, when He said, "But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him." (John 4:23) Does that mean that we have to be perfect and anointed with oil, or have some knowledge of how to properly pray and talk to God? Absolutely not! It means when come to Him as our Father; knowing that He loves and cares for us, and knowing that we are so needful of His mercy and grace! I have written in my Bible after this verse, "Not in Hypocrisy." Jesus gave many examples of what hypocrisy looks like and why it is not a kidding matter, because the Father knows everything there is to know about us, so saying one thing while doing another, just does no get anywhere with Him. But, when we come to Him with a humble heart and knowing our great need for His forgiveness, He is more than willing to not only listen, but to actually draw near and bless us with His presence! Don't you experience that too? If not, you should; because it is something that every believer should be able to experience, both personally and corporately. If I am praying and do not feel as though there is a connection with my Heavenly Father, I immediately take a moment and start confessing my sins; and if I still don't feel as though we are connected, then I will just start praising Him and thanking Him for all of His wonderful ways and His works; which is pretty much what was expressed in that last verse. The bottom line of what this is saying, is that you be right before Him! I did not say that you must be right, or wait till you are right; but that you are right before Him, just as you are and totally and completely right before Him: humbly in His presence and not hiding a thing! Why would we even think that was even possible? as if God cannot see what we might try to hide? If you are really not experienced with having fellowship with your Heavenly Father, then you really need to get right into His presence; which pretty much means that you need to come into the Light; or step out of the bushes! Think about what this says in relation to what happened in the Garden; because it was not Adam who called upon God, it was God that called upon Adam; there is a pretty big difference...

"Then shalt thou call, and the LORD shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am. If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke, the putting forth of the finger, and speaking vanity; and if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noonday: and the LORD shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, whose waters fail not." (Isaiah 58:9-11)