40 Day Daniel Fast Day 33

April 7th, 2022
by Steven Pettis

Where did you go?

James 4:8 Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

Devotional
Have you ever been in an uncomfortable season in your relationship? One moment you were happy and excited about the future, and then the next moment thinking, I want out of this; some may be pondering ending it. What happened? How did things get so stale? You go from the discovery phase of this relationship to barely speaking; you were once intrigued about every new thing you could learn, and now, satisfied with what you know! What happened? What happened to that desire and that diligent pursuit? By now, I am sure you think I am talking about your relationship with a spouse, Nope! I am talking about your relationship with the Lord. How did we get here? How do we rekindle the fire? James tells us, "draw near to God!

Hey, just in case you may have forgotten, God desires to fellowship with us daily! Notice James doesn't tell us to ask God to come to us; you see, we have to engage Him. You see, it's not like it was when we didn't know Him as Savior; he has already done his part, which is the very reason we are in this relationship, the reason why He knows our name; it's all because of salvation. James' one statement reveals God isn't the one who left us; no, we are the one who lost interest. You see, as we draw nearer, as we approach the Lord, we will become aware of the habits and actions in our lives that are not pleasing to Him, the very things that have drawn us away from Him, the very things that have caused us to take our relationship for granted. James encourages us to cleanse our own hands and purify our hearts. Notice, who's the one doing a lot of the work? We are. Do you get it now? God was always there! What happens when we do the work? Draw near to Him! It's what this fast is doing for us now; we start to think more clearly and understand our thoughts and motives; what caused me to think I could live this long without fellowship with Him?

Challenge
Have you identified where you may have been cheating the Lord out of full commitment? What ways have you been challenged to serve the Lord closer?

Read
Malachi 3:7
Zechariah 1:3
Psalm 73:28

Pray
Father, forgive me for distancing myself from you; my prayer is that I will walk more faithfully with you. Please help me see when I am moving away from you, and always remember to stay close to you! Father, I repent of having motives that didn't always acknowledge or please you. Forgive me for being more concerned with my needs and satisfaction than yours. You desire fellowship with me; help me see the benefit of satisfying you over pleasing myself.
I pray this in Jesus' name. Amen!

Posted in 40 Day Daniel Fast