Draw near to Me.

Most of us have read, or heard James 4:8 "Draw near to God, & He will draw near to you."
But how many of us really believe that? I have been so burdened lately because of a number of girls that have recently asked me why they don't feel like God cares about them. Or why they feel such a need to have a boyfriend, or they are desperate for attention from a guy because they just don't feel like God is enough.
I have been there. Not that long ago actually. Last year, I went through this exact same thing, I really doubted that God cared all that much about me. Well, I knew He loved me, & He had loved me enough to pay the penalty for my sins. But it almost seemed to me like thats where His love for me had emptied out, on the cross. Now I was left to get through the rest of life by myself.
At the same time, I really did believe in what the Bible said, I just wasn't 'drawing near' to God. As in seeking after Him, & getting into His word to find out more about His true character. As with any relationship, how can you love or trust someone if you have never really gotten to know them? God has promised us so much more than a 'surface' relationship with Him, but we often don't look to Him to fill His promises, we look other places instead.

Think about it, so many girls need attention from guys, or need to be in a relationship to get a sense of security. What do they do when they begin dating a guy?
That's just it, they go on dates! Lol. No trick questions here. ;)
They want to get to know the guy, see what kind of person he is & all of that mushy stuff.
Now stick with me, but it's kind of the same principle with your daily devotions. I think alot of times we think of devotions as a time where we read our required chapter a day or whatever, then we list off our requests to God. But how would it be if we did that in our relationships, even with friends & family? Can you imagine just walking up to the person, you've read their facebook info or whatever, so you figure you know enough about them, no need to really ask them questions about themselves, or try to find out what they're really like. Great! Now you can move on to asking them to take care of some things for you.
Probably wouldn't get a great response from that, huh? Of course not! Sometimes we have to work to develop good relationships.
So I want to encourage you, seek out God! He has promised to draw near to you! And guess what? God never leaves us either! I have found that whenever there are times I don't feel as close to God, it is never because He has changed, or that He gone somewhere else, it is ALWAYS because I have taken my focus off of Him. So turn around, God is waiting for you right back where you left Him.

There are SO MANY verses that have to do with God's love for us, I just want to share a few that I have found especially encouraging. I really want to challenge those of you ladies who may think that you will not feel whole or loved unless you have a boyfriend to really, honestly meditate on some of these verses & just ask God to help you to rest in His love. He loves you more than any guy ever could!

Psalm 36:5 Your steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens, Your faithfulness to the clouds.

Jeremiah 31:3 The Lord appeared to him from far away. "I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I have continued my faithfulness to you."

Zephaniah 3:17 The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty One who will save;
He will rejoice over you with gladness; He will quiet you by His love; He will exult over you with loud singing.

1 John 4:16 So we have come to know & to believe the love God has for us. God is love, & whoever abides in love abides in God, & God abides in him.

Did you catch that? God is love! And He abides in us if we have asked Christ to be our Savior! He will never leave you or forsake you. He has promised that in His word, & it says in Hebrews 6:13-20 that it is impossible for God to lie. He can't do it! Which means He is faithful & He will fulfill His promises to us. Ok, so heres the last passage I'm going to share with you all for today. It is one of my favorites because it reminds me that I am never alone, no matter what I go through in this life. Christ is with me, & He will protect me.

Isaiah 43:1-5
But now, thus says the Lord,
He who created you, O Jacob, He who formed you, O Israel; "Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine! When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; & through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through the fire you shall not be burned, & the flame shall not consume you. For I am the Lord your God, The Holy One of Israel, your Savior. I give Egypt as your ransom, Cush & Seba in exchange for you. Because you are precious in My eyes, & honored, and I LOVE YOU! I give men in return for you, peoples in exchange for your life. Fear not, for I am with you."

WOW! I can't help but have peace after I read that. God, who created everything on this earth, cared so much about me, that He chose me, He called me by name to make me His own. He is more powerful than anything our minds can fathom, yet He promises that He will be with us through every little trial, every little heartache. He even tells us that He would give all of Egypt, Cush, & Seba (some extremely wealthy countries at the time) in exchange for us. But He ended up giving something infinately more precious, His only Son, to pay the ransom for our sins. God tells us that we are precious in His eyes, & that He loves us!!

I don't know about you, but I don't believe that there is a guy, or any person for that matter, on this earth that can match that kind of love. And they shouldn't have to try, because God is enough! No, it is not a bad thing to want a relationship & eventually marriage someday,that is great. But it is so important to get in your Bible & find out who God really is, & have a personal realtionship with your Savior before you go searching for a guy to try to fill the emptiness you feel. No guy can fill it, & it is unfair to put that kind of pressure on anyone. You are so valuable in Christ's eyes & He loves you & wants to help you. Draw near to God, He WILL draw near to you!