He is Near

Written by Laura Spurlin

I have felt God in the highest of highs and the lowest of lows.

I have felt closer to Him than ever before, and I have also felt the furthest from Him than ever before.

I have walked with Him over the mountaintops and through the valleys, but God is just as present on the highest mountain as He is in the lowest valley.

Friend, God will only feel as close as we allow Him.

“You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”
Jeremiah 29:13 NIV

When we seek Him with all of our heart, we will find Him. 

Many times, all the weight I am carrying is so hard to put into words. But, friend, we don’t have to have the words. We must have the willingness. The willingness to call on the name of the Lord. The willingness to surrender our control (or really, our lack of) to the One who holds the bigger picture. To the One who sees the other side of our pain and suffering. To the One who knew we were worth dying for.

Just prior to the previous verse, God’s Word says,

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you.”
Jeremiah 29:11-12 NIV

This verse is one we have probably all seen. Especially when someone is graduating. But friend, this is not just a verse to write inside the card of a graduate. His plans for us are always good! Are they hard? Absolutely. Do we feel alone at times? Yes, but God is always working for our good even when we can’t see it or feel it. 

“The Lord is the one who will go before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or abandon you. Do not be afraid or discouraged.””
Deuteronomy 31:8 CSB

The same God who worked within the lives of those in the Bible, within the stories we learned as children — that same God is working within us. He is just as present for us.

Just as he said in Jeremiah 29:12 — When we call on Him, He will listen.

We don’t have to wait for the right time to call on Him. We don’t have to wait until the kids are settled, the demands are met, or the chaos quiets. We can call on the name of the Lord in the midst of our storm and in the midst of our heavy burdens.

When we seek Him, He is there.
When we call out to Him, He is listening.
When we invite Him into our moment, He is close.
When we rest in His presence, we are held.

All we have to do is simply invite God into our moment and allow Him to do the rest.

Find Laura here

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Written by Laura Spurlin

Laura is a nurse who boxed up her scrubs to be a stay-at-home-mama to her two kiddos. In this season of motherhood, her anxiety hit a soaring peak and her depression hit a deep low. With this battle came a stronger, deeper, and more surrendering (on her end) relationship with Christ, and a love for writing what He places on her heart about mothering, marriage, and mental health.

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