Has it been a while since you truly felt that God heard your prayers? Maybe you haven’t even wanted to pray.

Do you feel unworthy? Insignificant?

Do you miss the warmth of God’s presence?

If so, I’d like you to read Matthew 2:11 (ESV), paying special attention to the last part:

And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary, his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him.

Picture being one of the wise men who, despite all logic, knew that this young boy (probably around two years old) was the Son of God, the King of kings. Imagine how their lives would be forever changed. How their faith would be transformed in His presence.

Now, let’s shift from the wise men’s story to our own. Try to remember what your life was like before you knew Christ – when you were still dead in your sins. Perhaps your heart was easily drawn toward things opposed to God, and you didn’t yet realize how desperately you needed a Savior.

But you have since learned that you do need a Savior – that you always have – and you have come to appreciate Christmas all the more.

Why do we celebrate Christmas? Why did Jesus come to live among us?

Jesus came because of His amazing love for us. And because we needed Him to.

When we enter His presence through prayer, Bible reading or worship . . .

• We find the faith to trust His sovereignty in our trials.
• We discover His love for us – and His love for our enemies.
• In His presence, we find our compass.
• In Him, we grow in our faith as we bring our concerns, struggles, anger, shame, doubt, exhaustion, even our joy and hopes.
• In Him, we develop our character. We find significance.

In Him, we find rest.

What circumstances or struggles are you facing today that make God feel distant?

Life can be frightening. In these challenging times, we must draw near to God, meditate on His Word and listen to (and sing) hymns and worship songs.

God loves it when we worship Him. We can practically feel His pleasure when we magnify His name in our trials and in our joys. Praising God reminds us that He is totally and powerfully sovereign. Worshipping Him will relieve our stress and is a beautiful way to express our happiness. 

Revering our Savior will also give us a hunger to spend more time in His Word and in conversation with Him. In the warmth of His nearness, we’ll long to know Him more … and to become more.

Just as the wise men experienced, our lives will be forever changed as our faith is transformed in the presence of the King of kings.

What about you?

I’d love to hear your thoughts about this post. (Your comment might also benefit others.)

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