Morning by Morning—Daily Prayer Journey with Tommy Hays

Wednesday, April 01, 2020

Morning by Morning, April 1 - Coming Closer to Jesus

Good morning, Lord Jesus. You are One with my Father, One with the Holy Spirit, and I welcome You here in my heart to be One within me, as I begin my day looking to You and listening for Your leading. For "anyone united to the Lord becomes one spirit with Him" (1 Corinthians 6:17). ...

The closer I come to You, the more I sense a burden for those who are not coming closer to You. The more I find myself desperately dependent upon You to be my Source of peace and security, the more I'm moved for those who are trying to get through this crisis depending upon themselves. And in the moments when it feels like You're not there or not acting on our behalf in the ways I feel You should, when it makes me press in even that much more deeply to come even that much closer to You, the more I'm deeply burdened for those who feel distant or forgotten or even forsaken.

The story of the bride-to-be and her beloved in the Song of Solomon comes to mind this morning, of her yearning for his presence in times when it feels like he's not there.

"Upon my bed at night, I sought him whom my soul loves;

I sought him, but found him not;

I called to him, but he gave no answer.

'I will rise now and go about the city, in the streets and in the squares;

I will seek him whom my soul loves.'

I sought him, but found him not.

The sentinels found me, as they went about in the city.

'Have you seen him whom my soul loves?'

Scarcely had I passed them, when I found him whom my soul loves.

I held him, and would not let him go

until I brought him into my mother's house,

and into the chamber of her that conceived me"

(Song of Solomon 3:1-4).

The bride-to-be is not a casual acquaintance of the one she seeks. He is her beloved, her bridegroom-to-be, the one whom her soul loves. And at the same time, she feels like he isn't there. She seeks him, but doesn't find him. She calls to him, but he doesn't answer.

But she doesn't give up on her relationship. She doesn't give in to any feelings of distance or rejection or abandonment. She doesn't settle for something less than her hopes and dreams for intimacy and security that she longs to come from only him.

She says in her heart, "I will rise now and go.... I will seek him." And even then, it feels like she's having a hard time finding him. She goes to others who may have been seeing him and experiencing his presence in the ways she longs to see him and experience him.

It seems her pursuit only makes her even more desperate for his presence. It seems her feelings of distance from her beloved only make her more determined, more passionate, more committed to her pursuit of him.

And then she finds him! With great relief that was worth the waiting in the pursuit, with great joy that was worth the sorrow of the feelings of separation, she must have shouted out for all to hear, "I have found him whom my soul loves!"

Father God, You've sent Your Holy Spirit to prepare the bride for Jesus, our Bridegroom. It's not a gender thing or sexual thing; it's a spiritual thing. Men are part of "the bride" of Christ (Revelation 19:7), just as women are part of the "many sons being brought to glory in growing up into the maturity of the body of Christ (Hebrews 2:10). Jesus is our Beloved (Ephesians 1:6).

We're created to long for Him, to pursue Him, to even feel empty and alone and lost without Him. But He is not far from any of us -- even before we come to know Him and humbly open up our hearts to Him. "God has done all this, so that we will look for Him and reach out and find Him. He isn't far from any of us, and He gives us the power to live, to move, and to be who we are. 'We are His children'" ... (Acts 17:27-28).

Father, fill me with Your Holy Spirit (Ephesians 5:18). Holy Spirit of the Living God, stir in my heart to pursue Jesus (John 14:26), to listen for His voice (John 10:27), and to deeply abide in and embrace His Presence (John 15:4). Lord Jesus, I welcome You here in my heart and every moment of my day. You are my Beloved and I take hold of You to never let You go and I thank You that You take hold of me and never let me go -- even, and especially, when it feels like You're not here or acting in all the ways and in all the timing that I feel You should. Through it all, You are Lord of all. "There is peace with God through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all" (Acts 10:36). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays

My Friend, may you come closer to Jesus every day, more passionately pursuing Him and more deeply embracing Him, in Jesus' name. Please pray the same for me. And I join with you in prayer for all who need to know Him and God's love for them in this current crisis and through every moment. God bless you, my friend!