I can’t figure out how to start this one, guys. It’s absolutely the hardest part of writing. I want to grab your attention, so you’ll keep reading. But I don’t have anything clever. So I’m not gonna fluff it to fill space. I just have a question.

Do you ever feel led by guilt to spend time with God?

I’m pretty sure that you do. I do, too. I’m so led by this word, “should.” And I’ve begun to wonder if that’s a dirty word to Jesus. He is so much more than something that we are supposed to make a part of our day.

One day last week, I had a few sacred moments alone. And I thought, “Well, I should probably read my Bible or something.” It doesn’t always go this way. But as I made the choice to sit instead of be busy, I felt something settle and shift. It was as if God was saying, “Oh, hey. I’ve been waiting for you.” And I realized that although it felt like my need to do what was right was leading me, Someone else really was.

When I feel this need – this “I should” pull to set aside time to meet with God – it’s not really my guilt or knowledge driving me. It’s the Holy Spirit in me, loving me toward my Father. How freeing? Instead of a chore or a responsibility, it’s an invitation.

I think that most likely, we have the knowledge that God wants to be with us. That He is with us, longing to speak to and comfort us. But honestly, we’re pretty unaware of just how present He is. When a random friend you haven’t talked to in a while pops in your head, that may be God wanting to use you to speak to them. That worship song that you heard out of nowhere? He just may have played that to show you that He’s listening.

But it’s so much more. He’s not only listening, speaking, walking with us. Jesus is praying for us.

“So He is able to save fully from now through eternity, everyone who comes to God through him, because He lives to pray continually for them.” [Hebrews 7:25]

Jesus is praying for you. 

I am dying for us to grasp this. Have you ever been prayed over? Have you ever had a friend or a stranger speak to God on your behalf; declaring scripture and speaking faith into your life where you’re lacking? It’s feeling heard and seen and known. Jesus lives to do this for us.

What might He be praying for in your life? Well, that guilty feeling that you should get to church or somehow spend time with God? That just may be a result of Jesus Christ praying for you. Speaking to the Spirit of God to draw you in with love and mercy, to help fix your eyes on the Truth which will set you free.

What about those moments when you’re afraid you’re too lost? You’ve allowed the thoughts in your mind to swirl so long you can’t even trust yourself anymore. Jesus is praying for you.

Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world. The One who endured every single trial so that we would be able to relate to Him. The One who died so that we would never have to fight for our own freedom. The only One who has beaten death.

He’s sitting at the right hand of God, saying your name. Continually. Over and over and over. He’s praying for comfort, for strength, for wisdom. He has no weaknesses and no needs for Himself. He lives to pray for you. To intervene in your situation.

I don’t know about you, but I am just aching to be more aware. I want to be aware of God’s invitation in my every day life. As Jesus intercedes for me, God is so present. He’s inviting me to choose Him instead of latching to anxiety. He’s inviting me to rest instead of strive.

He’s inviting you, today. Right now. What on earth would our lives look like if we actually believed that God listened every time we talked to Him? Let’s just try. Let’s say yes when He calls. Let’s get to know the whispers of God in our soul, which can only come from close proximity and true relationship.

So, hey. Jesus is praying for you. And I am certainly not Jesus, but I’m praying for you, too. I hope you know that as I type these next words as a prayer, they aren’t simply a blog post. They are words that God has already heard, and He will answer.

Holy God,

You are good and kind. You love us so much more than we’ll ever understand, but I pray that we’ll all take a step closer to trying. You want us to know Your voice even more than we do. So speak to us, and help us to listen. Pull us further in. Push us if we need it. You have chosen each of us simply because you wanted to. Help us to believe the things that You say You are, and in turn, we’ll believe what You say about us. Give us supernatural wisdom to choose You in the small things. You are so present in our every day. Help us to just begin to see You so much more. You are speaking our name so gently, and your mercy is brand new for us today. So right now, for the first or the thousandth time, we say yes again. Yes, God, you can have us. Yes, God, we’re listening. Pull us into the secret place where we see You so clearly. We believe that You love us. We love you. 

 

“It was fitting for us to have such a High Priest [perfectly adapted to our needs], holy, blameless, unstained by sin, separated from sinners and exalted higher than the heavens; who has no day by day need, like those high priests, to offer sacrifices, first of all for his own personal sins and then for those of the people, because He [met all the requirements and] did this once and for all when he offered up Himself as a willing sacrifice.”

[Hebrews 7:26-27 AMP]