Dwelling Place

Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. James 4:8

Where are you in relation to God? Are you close to Him? The Word says He will never leave us nor forsake us. Since the Garden of Eden, God has been pursuing us and pursuing our hearts. He longs for our hearts to turn towards Him. The word dwell in Psalm 91:1 is yashab. Yashab means to sit down, dwell and to remain. Such a beautiful place to be is in His presence, to be with Him. It’s intimacy with Him. It’s not religion. It’s relationship. People can be religious and yet not have that intimate relationship with Him.

Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. James 4:8 His presence in my life brings peace. I’ve been able to dwell in His presence this year. It’s changed me. It’s helped me and sustained me. One of my favorite authors, Ann Voskamp, released her book Way Maker last year. In her book, she wrote about the Hebrew word “ayekah”. It was about God asking where we are.  His heart longs for that personal connection. When God asks us something, it’s not because He doesn’t know where we are. But for us to know. Ann says it so well, “He’s asking me to seek out and coordinate my own heart with His. Ayekah means God understands everything going on inside and doesn’t want a soul to hide.”

Back in my hometown, there is a hymn that is always sung, The Garden. One of the verses in the song is about going to the garden, early in the morning, while it’s still quiet and the world is just beginning to stir; and sitting and dwelling there with Him. I was able to see this song in a whole new light when I was in Hawaii several years ago. Our first morning there, we went to have our morning coffee and quiet time on the lanai. I was so enjoying the views, the warm breeze, and being surrounded by the aroma of the plumeria blossoms that were all around us. God’s presence would show up so sweetly there each morning. We would just want to sit there and remain in that peaceful presence. I’m not saying you have to go to Hawai’i and sit on the lanai to experience intimacy with Him. It’s quite the opposite. It’s deepening your relationship with Him right where you are. Find your place where you can always go deeper in how intimately you know God. Find pockets in your day to go and sit and dwell.

The intimacy changed how I viewed circumstances in my life. I remember once when I heard Jesus speak to me about how I was conforming Him to my life. I was making Him to fit my circumstances, if I was even making room for Him at all. He told me to conform my life to Him. Desiring more of Him and His presence and His will for my life, drawing near to Him, I’ve seen Him repeatedly drawing near to me. Examine your heart and relationship with Him. Are you molding your life and circumstances to Him and making that room for Him in all moments in your day? It changes everything. It always turns out so much better when we conform our lives to Him, His will, His ways and His guidance. So much better, better than we can imagine or attempt.

His love for you is like the waves on the beaches, always pursuing and reaching for the shores of your heart. So today’s post is not a long post. It is a rather sweet and simple reminder to find those pockets in your day to invite God into your day, to dwell and sit in His presence and invite Him in. Become familiar with His sweet presence. My heart craves that presence everyday. There is nothing like it.