What to Do When it Feels Like God Is Far Away?

7/28/2018 47 Comments

Why God seem faraway

Question:

Why does it seem like sometimes when you really need God, when you're in so much pain and you're going through so much suffering, when you really pray, it seems like He's so far far away?

God is never far away from anybody.

ACTS 17:25-27
25 Neither is worshipped with men's hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things;
26 And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation;
27 That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us:

God is never so far from anyone of us. He's just beside us, He is always watching us. He watches us, He knows everyone of us. That is God's capacity, to know everyone of us. Just like a computer has the capacity to know the fingerprints of every employee in a very big company. You will remember that there are machines that are used by companies now wherein the employee will come and place his finger on that machine, and he will be permitted to enter only after the computer has acknowledged his fingerprints. If we believe that a computer is capable of doing those complicated things, how much more is the One who put those prints on our fingers! And that is God.

JOB 37: 7
He sealeth up the hand of every man; that all men may know his work.

See, He had sealed the hands of every man. Each one of us was given by God a seal in our hands proving that He knows every one of us. Not any single person that lives on earth is not known to God.

JOHN 2:24
But Jesus did not commit himself unto them, because he knew all men,

The Lord Jesus Christ knew all men. God knows all men. He knows all men. He knows every one of us. So He can be reached, He is a reachable God. He is a God who feels our passions, our emotions; He understands our being, our weaknesses.

PSALMS 103:14
For He knoweth our frame; He remembereth that we are dust.

He knows our frame, our being, our infirmities, our weaknesses. He knows our frame; He remembereth that we are dust. God knows us. He understands our passions and feelings. Now, why can He be so far? Maybe it's just like that song that I remember.

Shy girl, shy girl
Don't shy away
Little shy girl
I'd like to make you my girl
But each time I try to catch your eye
You always look away
Little shy girl
I wish that you were my girl
If only you knew I'm shy like you
You might not run away
Then maybe you might stay
And even when you're near
You're like a distant star to me
How can you be so near
Yet seem so very far from me
Little shy girl
If only you were my girl
If only you knew I'm shy like you
Then maybe you might stay
Oh please don't shy away
I've got so much to say...

Sometimes, you experience somebody is just beside you but he seems or she seems to be very far from you like that shy girl. God is always near us; He is never far from us. But we have gone so far from Him in our thoughts, in our ways, in our attitude, in our characters, in our likes, in our inklings in life we have run too far from God.

MALACHI 3:7
Even from the days of your fathers ye are gone away from mine ordinances, and have not kept them. Return unto me, and I will return unto you, saith the Lord of hosts. But ye said, Wherein shall we return?

It is the question of people who do not understand God's will. “Wherein shall we return?”, they say. How far have we gone? The Lord said, “Even from the days of your fathers ye are gone away from mine ordinances.” While traversing a road, you will find signs that tell you to detour. People have detoured from the way that was prepared by the Lord, “mine ordinances”, He said. “Ye are gone away from mine ordinances, and have not kept them. Return unto me,...” How do we return to the Lord? Return to the ordinances; return to the reproofs of God; return to the ways of God. Returning to the ordinances of God is returning to God. So, why does He seem so far away from our prayers? From our requests, from our petitions, from our likes? Because we have gone so far from Him. He's not so far away from anyone of us, instead we are so far away from Him because we have gone astray. We have taken a detour and la..la..la..la detoured. There's a song like that. There are so many detours that we have made in our lives. Just like what Frank Sinatra said. I remember this song because it is related to what I read in the Bible. Frank Sinatra said, “along the byway”.

I planned each charted course 
Each careful step along the byway 
But more, much more than this 
I did it my way...

That's the question, that's the problem. People are doing it their way not God's way. They have traveled their own way just like what Frank Sinatra said.

Yes, there were times, I'm sure you knew 
When I bit off more than I could chew

See, just biting more than what you could chew is improper in the sight of God.

But through it all, when there was doubt 
I ate it up and spit it out 
I faced it all and I stood tall 
And did it my way

And the last part is that,

I've lived a life that's full 
I've traveled each and every highway 
And more, much more than this 
I did it my way

So he traveled the highway of his own. He left the highway of God. What happened?

Regrets, I've had a few 

Had you traveled God's highway you will have no regrets.

But as Frank Sinatra said and observed,

Regrets, I've had a few 
But then again, too few to mention 
I did what I had to do 
And saw it through without exemption

I planned each charted course 
Each careful step along the byway 
But more, much more than this 
I did it my way

It's because it was traveled in his way, in the way he wanted to travel. But if we travel the road of life that is destined to us by God, I believe there will be no regrets.

The reason why we feel that our prayers are not answered is, not that God is far from us but, we have taken a road that made us very very far away from God. To be near Him and to find Him in our daily lives, let us go back to His ordinances because God laments in that verse, “Even from the days of your fathers ye are gone away from mine ordinances, and have not kept them. Return unto me, and I will return unto you, saith the Lord of hosts.”

Let us return to His ordinances and we will find an ever compassionate and loving God who is always ready to hear our prayers.

47 comments:

  1. Thanks be to God. I really can feel the sincerity of this blog. Thanks be to God is all I can say.

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  2. Thanks be to God for this wonderful newly blog

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  3. Thanks be to God. His words make me feel hopeful in life. His words make my life meaningful. Thanks be to God brother Eli for your blog.

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  4. This is so true! Thanks be to God for his undying mercy to us!

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  5. Amen. Thanks be to GOD for this article.

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  6. Very informative! Just what people need nowadays. TO GO BE THE GLORY!

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  7. Thanks God for the doctrines and the highway to travel.

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  8. Walk in 'The Old Path' the highway that GOD has built...
    To GOD be the Glory.

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  9. I feel that Bro. Eli is God sent for him to be able to answer this particular question with so much a simple way that understanding it will not pose a problem...

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  10. God Is The Only Who To Those Who Trust God..
    To God Be The Glory!!

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  11. Singing with the lyrics...

    Amen! Thanks be unto God.

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  12. Love this post brother Eli. I shed a tear while reading this article from you. I agree with what you've written that God knows us.

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  13. Thanks be to our God, I have read this kind of Blog!

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  14. Amen. May God help us walk back to his way and hear our prayers. Thanks be to God Bro. Eli!

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  15. Thanks be to God for another great blog.

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  16. What a wonderful message .... thanks be to God bro.Eli

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  17. I agree! God is not far away from us, it is us that go far away from Him because of not following His way for choosing our own ways. Let us go back to the way destined to us by God and He will not leave us. Thanks Be To GOD

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  18. PSALMS 103:14
    For He knoweth our frame; He remembereth that we are dust.Thanks be to God!

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  19. thank you for this... I now know whu God is not answering my prayers.. 🙁🙁

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  20. Surely this article would open the mind of people who are seeking GOD's guidance and forgiveness.

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  21. Wisdom: Job 37:7 God knows each and everyone of us. I miss this one written in the bible before I became a student of Bro. Eli. Who then can hide something from Him, our Creator?

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  22. Another Controversial Issue Through Mr. Controversy Himself, Bro.Eli Soriano!!
    To God Be The Glory!!

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  23. Let us return to His ordinances and we will find an ever compassionate and loving God who is always ready to hear our prayers.

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  24. Let's return to God's ordinances my friends.
    To God be the glory...

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  25. Amazing, Bro Eli explain it very clear and simple that you will definitely learn a lot.

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  26. Salamat sa Dios sa aral na ito.

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  27. I have faith in God and I feel that God is real. And like others who believed in him,I know his always near me/us. Guiding and watching us for our safety.

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  28. I know that the god is not angry with the sinner but is angry with sin and the god will never leave us even if we are sinners.

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  29. PSALMS 103:14
    For He knoweth our frame; He remembereth that we are dust.

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  30. Thanks be to God for this blog, it's reminding us to always push ourselves to follow His ways. We will never regret if we just follow Him wholeheartedly.

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  31. Amen, bumalik sana tayong lahat sa Kanya, Salamat po sa Dios!

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