I was thinking the other day about a time when my mother took me to college with her. I must have been four or five years old because I had not started school yet. She was enrolled in Texas Women’s University in Denton, Texas which was about 50 miles away from our house. The university had one very tall building as I recall and it happened to be next to the parking lot where my mother parked. The land is pretty flat up there so this building was very noticeable from the little highway that led into town. As we got closer to the university, my mom told me to keep my eye on that building.

She told me that building was going to get bigger and bigger and bigger the closer we got. She was probably trying to give me something to do so that I would quit asking, “Are we there yet?” It worked. I kept my eyes on that building. I watched and watched and sure enough, the closer we got to the university, the bigger that building grew. It was amazing how big that building was by the time we parked right next to it. As I look back on that time, it reminds me of what the Bible says in Hebrews 4:16

Hebrews 4:16 Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

The author of Hebrews talks about “drawing near to God” on at least three occasions (Heb 4:16; 7:25; and 10:22). Each exhortation to draw near is linked to having a personal relationship with Christ, our Great High Priest, who offers us forgiveness and who intercedes for us on a daily basis. Because of Christ, we have direct access to God’s throne of grace. Because of Christ we are able to draw near to God. And the closer we get, the better we understand the scope, the power, and the grandeur of our Lord. He is bigger than all of our problems. He is greater than all of our worries. And when we draw near to Him, we are always able to receive mercy and find grace and strength in our times of need.

I hope that you have a good week and that you are able to draw near to the Lord and let Him minister to you, empower you and equip you for the work He has for you to do.

Until next time, stay strong in the faith,

Pastor Phillip Stephens