5 Ways to Draw Near to God When He Feels Far Away
You love God with all your heart and soul and mind, and then life happens. Whether it’s the busyness of life, or something painful happened in your life, it’s not hard to find yourself not connecting with God like you did before. God feels far away, and your desire to read your Bible or pray or go to church is no longer a desire of your heart but rather a chore.
I’ve been there. I kept waiting for something magical to happen, that I’d instantly feel connected with God again. The magical something never happened.
Nope, we have to be intentional about rekindling that relationship. It isn’t easy. It isn’t always fun. But it will be worth it!
God wants to have a personal relationship with Him. He wants us to talk to Him and praise Him and trust Him. As it says in James 4:8, “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.”
If you’re longing for God to draw near to you, here are five ways I have personally found to draw near to Him, especially when He feels far away.
Write a letter to God
When it’s hard to pray because you have no desire to, or you’re too distracted to focus on praying, I find writing a letter to God helps. Write your heart out. Share your disappointments and your struggles with God. He already knows them, but He wants to hear them from you. He wants that relationship with you and He delights in you taking this intentional step to connect with Him. And just like David’s psalms begin with him sharing his feelings with God but then they turn to praise, 9 times out of 10, my letters do the same. What started out as simply sharing my heart and worries and struggles leads to me seeing God’s love and concern for me and my family.
Listen to Worship Music
While driving in your car or doing work around the house, have Christian worship music playing. There’s something about the music that reminds your heart of God’s goodness, even if you’re not seeing it in your life and circumstances, and the worship will restore your confidence in God’s presence in your life. Before long you’ll be singing along, joy and praise filling your heart and your mouth.
Read a Christian Book
Christian fiction or non-fiction it doesn’t matter, but there’s something about seeing how God is working in the lives of the people you are reading about that restores your desire to have something similar happen to you too. Read something fun or something encouraging and inspirational and you’ll find your heart a little lighter as you’re reminded of God’s love and goodness. If you need idea of a good book to read, check out this list of my favorite Christian books. :)
Get Into Christian Fellowship
When God feels far away, that’s when you need fellowship with fellow Christians the most. If you stopped going to church, determine to go next Sunday. If you stopped going to small group/Bible study, or never got involved in one, find one to go to, and go. I find I reconnect with God much better in a group with fellow believers than I do simply going to church. There’s something about sharing your lives and your faith and your struggles with others to remind you that you are not alone and that God is there.
Open Your Bible
Yeah, this is a harder one to do when God feels far away and you are struggling to connect to Him. But this is when you need God’s word the most. Pick a book of the Bible to read through. Psalms or one of the Gospels or Ephesians are my go to books to read when I’m feeling far away from God and in need of encouragement. And determine to read God’s love letter to you, even when you don’t feel God’s love.