What to Do When We Feel God Is Gone

Writer

Updated January 06, 2023

PLUS

- Jesus, do I believe that you are in charge of my spiritual life and growth? Am I believing that you are leading me to good spiritual places in my spirit?

- Jesus, is there a sin that I am cherishing in my heart? If so, would you please reveal it as we look at my heart together through the lens of your great grace?

- Jesus, am I strong in belief, but you are calling me to believe in your truths more deeply? Help me know what you are pruning in me so that I can bear more fruit for you.

- Jesus, am I, with anxiety, keeping my true fears from you because I want to figure out my path by myself?

- Jesus, I long to know you, so I am going to sit in silence and stillness, knowing that you are God. Please lead me in the way everlasting. I know that you are the Way. You will lead me into fellowship with you, so faithfully.

These are some ways we can ask God to hold and mold our hearts. It is good and faithful of us to search our hearts before the Lord. It is good to be known by God, to see that He is willing to search and probe us. The inspiring psalmist writes: “Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting” (Psalm 139:23-24).

Perhaps Jesus’ silence is not due to anything you have neglected or are avoiding. Perhaps what you need is fresh, daily remembrance of His love and grace and mercy. Or perhaps — likely! — the two needs go hand-in-hand. We need to not overlook what Jesus wants to do in us, while being sweetly assured of His character.

The wonderful reality about a Savior like ours is that we are in a personal love relationship with Him. And He will never leave or forsake us because He cannot deny Himself. We who believe in His sacrifice for our sins are so thoroughly His by grace!

Jesus says that His character is to draw us near. And so perhaps as an overarching question, we can look at our beliefs. What are we thinking/believing to be true? If we believe in Jesus, in His character, then we know His heart is this: “how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing” (Luke 34:13).

If we believe that character of Jesus, then we have comfort. This is how He desires to be toward us, as a hen drawing her little chicks near in felt love and protection. He wants us to ask Him for help, to ask that He would build us up in our human weaknesses. Will we humble ourselves and turn our hearts toward Him in the silence so that we are willing to receive Him

It’s all about what we actually believe. So, if Jesus is less present, in a felt sense, but you believe His word about His graciousness and protective posture toward you — perhaps He is prodding you to believe more deeply such that you walk with Him more closely.

Examine and follow. Believe and follow. Listen and follow. Trust that Jesus is near, even when you question. See if you’re the one avoiding Him — instead of the other way around! And honor Him by believing the very great and precious promises of Scripture. Jesus has entrusted us with hearts and minds that are capable of belief, of increasing faith, and of making decisions about who we are and want to be. He is highly honored when we choose to trust and follow Him, even when it seems like He has gone. Surely and truly, He has not left or forsaken us, but He will pull us along, that we might know Him better. We draw near to God, and He will draw near to us.

Photo credit: Unsplash/Averie Woodard

Lianna Davis is author of Keeping the Faith: A Study in Jude and Made for a Different Land: Eternal Hope for Baby Loss. She is also a contributor to We Evangelicals and Our Mission with Cascade Books. Lianna is a graduate of Moody Bible Institute and a student at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. She lives in Illinois with her husband and daughter. You can learn more about her writing at her website.

What to Do When We Feel God Is Gone

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