Draw me Close

March 2, 2022

Good Morning Yahweh. Thank you for waking me up this morning, it’s another day. LOL. It’s funny, I recently watched Star Trek Beyond, where the captain said almost the same words but with resignation. But, that’s not how I mean it. It’s another day! I am alive, got some rest and I get the opportunity on another day to (hopefully) make you smile.  I think that it is an awesome thing. (I am assuming that when you are pleased, you smile, because you know, we were made in your image and how awesome is that?) Honestly, it’s so amazing that you love us so much that you sacrifice so much for us. Thank you for loving me. Thank you for saving me.

Do you know what I just realised and I guess that’s why you decided to spend this month reminding me: I’m not remembering offhand a lot of your promises. There are the ones you made to me personally and some of the general ones. But you’ve made some incredible promises to us and I will strive to remember them. Because you do. 

Thank you for choosing to love us. Sigh. I just remembered the rainbow again from yesterday and I had to smile because you started off the month of promise with one of the most visible and remembered signs of one of your promises – that you won’t destroy the earth with water again. 

Promise: A declaration assurance that one will do something or that something would happen.

Promise (Bible): A binding declaration to be done or given for another’s benefit. A covenant. 

Covenant: An agreement between God and His people, where God makes promises to his people and (usually) requires certain conduct from them. 

This honestly sounds so dry, and there’s little sense of the love bound up in your covenant based on this description. But it’s there and I am thankful for that, that you’re not a cut and dry God who only enters into transactions like a robot with no feelings.  Every promise to us, means something to you and they mean the world to us because it is what also connects us. It would be so easy to see you as a distant, don’t care God but that’s not who you are. You desire to be close to us, to share in all that we do and all that we go through. 

James 4:8 – Come close to God, and he will come close to you. 

This is a conditional promise because Yahweh will never force us, but he longs to be close to us. In order for him to do that, we have to want him close. We have to turn to him: that tiny step and he would be so close to us. 

Psalm 145:18 – The Lord is near to everyone who prays to him, to every faithful person who prays to him.

Some of Yahweh’s promises are unconditional. He loves us. Full stop. But others are (conditional) because though he made the oath against himself, he also needs for us to do our part. He cannot come close unless we invite him. He still sees all, hears all and feels all. But that closeness that heals us and saves us and keeps us from despair? We have to want it and invite him to come close through prayer. Prayer is lifesaving. Literally. Talking with Yahweh literally says our lives. Saved (and continues to save) my life. When Yahweh is near, he fills every need: he hears us.  Now he hears the prayers of those who loves him all the time, but I (me ehhh, this is not supported technically, though there is circumstantial evidence) believe that the more we pray to Yahweh: the more we talk with him, the easier it is for him to hear. Or maybe it’s easier for us to hear his response. His whispers and not just his yells. 

Psalm 34: 8 – The Lord is near to the heart broken and he saves those who are crushed in spirit. (Contrite in heart, truly sorry for their sin).

Hmmmmm. No comment. But thank you. 

I guess you know what it is to have a broken heart: every time someone turns away from you. I’m sorry for the times I turned away from you. For today I will choose to call on you, to trust you, to get close to you. Like you may get tired of me close. Well I know you don’t get tired (that still so amazing) so I know you won’t get tired of me being close. Thank you for always being there. Thank you for responding: for wanting me. Sigh. It’s amazing. Plus I like hugs. It’s impossible to hug someone and not get close in some way. So I’m going to get close enough to hug you. Thank you for your promises. As mom said yesterday when she saw the rainbow, “It gives me hope.” And that’s what your promises do. Give hope. 

Closer/Wrap me in your arms by William McDowell

Happy dance! Met with the engineer on site. First thing, he loves to view from the site. Second thing, the soil is solid! So extra retaining walls are not needed. Happy dance. He just has to review the plans to make sure that the infrastructure can carry the load, but from his initial look it can definitely do so. 

I have another site visit for the issue on Friday. But that’s not until 11:30. I’m currently parked just enjoying the moment of quiet before heading back into the storm. Thank you for this moment.

Of Yahweh’s Promises Playlist