I mailed a response to a wedding invitation today. We will be out of town on the happy day so I checked the box for "will celebrate from afar." How sweet! We will be celebrating in spirit! It made me smile.
That response also reminded me that a few days ago I’d read Psalm 139:2 and was struck by the word afar. My paraphrase of the verse in my journal was "God perceives my thoughts from afar." I’d also noted in my journal, "God knows my thoughts. He has to do that from afar, since I try to keep Him far. God does not want to be Afar."
Just like I’d like to be at that wedding, circumstances make me celebrate from afar. It’s my choice to allow circumstances to keep me Afar from God. The entire Bible has made it abundantly clear that God wants to be near, not Afar. I try to live in Afar, but God reaches across Afar to invite me into nearness, to draw close to God.
Perhaps Afar is the name of the wall we try to build around our hearts to keep us in! Fortunately God is greater than my Afar! Time and time again, He invites me, and you, into relationship with Him and to celebrate at His party.
A lways go
F irst to God
A nd
R each across the circumstances to leave Afar and draw near to God.
That’s where the real celebration is!
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