The Nearness We Seek: Trusting God Through Persistent Prayer

The Nearness We Seek

By Brenette Wilder

There’s a walking path that I frequent in my neighborhood. At a certain point during this 1.2-mile path, you will come across a peaceful section that captures the beauty of mother nature’s plant life. A tree line is on one side, while a natural grass habitat stretches along the opposite side. Its irresistible beauty will draw you into a 200-step prayer walk, if only to thank God for His marvelous creation.

Most people frequent the path for exercise or to simply enjoy the outdoors, but for me this particular section feels sacred. It’s the place where I seek God’s divine support, especially after reading Draw the Circle by Mark Batterson. The Draw the Circle 40-day prayer encouraged me to have a big view of God and to ask Him for God-size ideas. My ‘ask’ centered around writing. I wanted a vision with no limits to geographical borders. And although I am still drawing a prayer circle around my writing, I am writing this to encourage you to never give up, just as I will never give up.

I started praying about my writing aspirations at a women’s retreat 15 years ago.But after reading Mark's book in January 2020, my prayers became more intentional, so much so, that if you look close enough along that walking path with your spiritual eyes, you will see ruts formed prayer upon prayer.

Little by little, I have seen growth in my prayers, but I confess it’s not the fullness that I had hoped for. Yet, in spite of the many years, I still believe God is working things out for His purpose and my maturity.

Some will say, “Why keep praying? It’s been 15 years. Maybe He’s not going to answer.” But I say, “He is answering.”

You see, prayer isn’t just about getting what we ask for, it's also about drawing near. And the nearness we seek is found in our relationship with Jesus. Through Him we can approach the Father in prayer with full confidence. As 1 John 5:14-15 NIV reminds us, "This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.”

Practically lived out, nearness to Him resulted in writing my first books, Dream Number 4 and Netted Together. Then God opened an opportunity for me to write in the newspaper you are reading today. And later He called me into ministry, so that I could write with credential credibility.

That’s why, each time my feet walk the pathway that I treat with Holy respect, I call out to Him as if to say, I am still entrusting my writing unto you. Show me what’s next Lord. Expand and multiply each opportunity before me. Help me to exhaust every gift and skill You have given me to achieve the goal of disciplining and reaching those that don’t know You.

In reflection, the pathway experience has given me courage to dare for the impossible. And, to trust God without accepting the discouragement of practical thinking people with limited God vision that don’t have the capacity to fathom a dream given to an ordinary freelance writer like myself.

So, from one believer to another, I encourage you to draw near to God every day. It is in your consistency that you will see your purpose come alive. Consider this biblical example, the story of Cornelius in Acts 10. Cornelius was a man who regularly drew near to God.

Here’s a scriptural synopsis of his story. “Now there was a man at Caesarea named Cornelius, a centurion of what was called the Italian cohort, a devout man and one who feared God with all his household, and gave many alms to the Jewish people and prayed to God continually… Your prayers and alms have ascended as a memorial before God. Now dispatch some men to Joppa and send for a man named Simon, who is also called Peter.”

After Peter arrived and spoke to Cornelius and others that had gathered to meet him, Peter said to them, “You yourselves know how unlawful it is for a man who is a Jew to associate with a foreigner or to visit him; and yet God has shown me that I should not call any man unholy or unclean.” Cornelius response: “I sent for you immediately and you have been kind enough to come. Now then, we are all here present before God to hear all that you have been commanded by the Lord.”

How incredible is this? A Jewish man was sharing the Gospel with Gentiles. None of them realized how the significance of this moment would affect the whole world. In this pivotal act, God used the obedience of a praying man (Cornelius), Cornelius’ devotion, and Peter’s openness to the Spirit to break down cultural barriers and introduced the Gospel into new territory.

Mother Teresa was right when she said, “Prayer is not wasted time.” Because when our prayers agree with God’s word it becomes living and active until it accomplishes the intended purpose. You may not see it working or even understand the fullness of what God is doing, but by faith, scripture tells us that we must have confidence that He hears us. So, keep praying, trust the process of prayer, and have faith even when drawing near to God feels like wasted time.

Continue Fishing with

-Net.

Brenette Wilder Author of Netted Together