The days, weeks and months have been wearing.
Confession. I need a big ‘ol hug. I could use a never-ending, super-squeezy, bear hug. I could cuddle up in a hug but may never let go.
Do you ever feel like this? Anyone else need a big ‘ol hug? Do you ever feel like you just need someone to wrap their arms around you and let you fall apart? Let you find comfort? Let you find rest and be restored?
I have felt this way more in the last eighteen months than maybe my entire life combined.
But, as I was getting ready for bed last night and had my Spotify station on, and the song, Draw Me Close, came on. It was like I was back in my freshman dorm room.
I remember feeling the same feelings of needing a big ‘ol hug then too.
I want to share some of the Draw Me Close lyrics with you, because they have been impactful in my life and I hope they will touch your life.
“Draw me cose to you
Never let me go
I lay it all down again
To hear you say that I’m your friend
You are my desire
No one else will do
‘Cause nothing else can take your place
To feel the warmth of your embrace
Help me find the way
Bring me back to you
You’re all I want
You’re all I’ve ever needed
You’re all I want
Help me know you are near.”
My first year of college I was away from home. I didn’t know a soul. I had to navigate, as all students do, new friendships, roommates, class schedules, clubs and my relationship with God.
College was the first time that what I did with Jesus was my choice. I was 18. All alone in a new place. I coped and overtime thrived in my new setting. I believe my transition from coping to thriving had a lot to do with this song.
As I got ready for class I would blast Draw Me Close. It was my morning anthem before setting out for the day. It was the gentle instruction and the answer to the cry of my heart for the loneliness I felt. And it positioned my heart to say yes to Jesus.
The words, “Help me know you are near” resonated in my heart. I needed to know that God was close.
And as the cry of my heart was verbalized in the words of this song, God responded by helping me to be aware of His presence in my dorm room, in the classroom, in the lunchroom and as I walked about campus to class.
My circumstance is different now. I am surrounded by loved ones and great friends. I am in a new place, but not alone. And yet this song is still the cry of my heart. These words still resonate, “help me know you are near.”
“You’re all I want.” This is the cry of my heart just as it was the cry of my heart twenty years ago as a college freshman. You are all I want God!
I have gotten closer to God over the last twenty years. He has drawn me close to his heart. But I am not satisfied, I want more of Him. I choose to lay it all down again and again for Him.
The more I know him, the more I recognize my need for him. The more I spend time with him, the more I want to be with him. The more aware I am of his presence, the more I long to be in his presence.
The more I recognize my need for Him, the more I pray that he will meet my every need.
With God, there is always more.
More to gain. More comfort. More peace. More love. More joy. More healing. More hope. More restoration. More hugs. More strength. More wisdom. More power. More help. More counsel.
There is always more of God to know, to love and to experience.
When God’s comfort shows up in my life, He feels like a warm hug. He is like a warm hug with gentle and strong arms to envelop me as His daughter.
If you have never experienced the comfort of God, pray that He comforts you in the areas of your life you need to find rest and comfort. May these verses guide your prayers for comfort.
Psalm 32:7-8 says, “You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance.”
Psalm 145: 18-19 says, “The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. He fulfills the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them.”
Psalm 91:1-2 says, “ You who live in the shelter of the Most High, who abide in the shadow of the Almighty, will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress; my God in whom I trust.”
Isaiah 40:1 says, “Comfort, comfort my people, says your God.
Comfort in the shadow of his wings. Comfort in salvation. Comfort in the hiding place.
Our God comforts.
Our God gives the best hugs. If you need a hug today reach out to him, and ask him to help you feel his presence. Ask Him to wrap his arms all around you.
Lord hear our prayer,
Father King, eternal One, I come before you today aware of your presence. I am aware of your ability to meet our every need. Father, I praise you in advance for the comfort that you will bring to each and every one who reads this blog. Lord, I come with the authority of Christ Jesus and pray for your comfort to be released in every home.
Father, for those who are feeling worn and weary will you surround them with your loving arms as you have done for me many times. Help them to experience and to feel your presence. Help them to know that you are near. Lord help us all to see that you are all we have ever needed.
God you word tells us that you are near to the broken-hearted and you will bind up their wounds. Bind the wounds of hearts today. Bind the brokenness. Bring your comforting presence to us all. In the name of Jesus Christ our precious Lord and Savior let it be done.
Take a moment, before you get back to work, to your family, or your next activity and listen to this song. Draw Me Close by Michael W. Smith, performed by Shane and Shane. https://youtu.be/29gOLpi5EzM
For more resources to grow in your relationship with Jesus, go to my webpage and find out more!
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