God Craves Time with You

After sending them home, he went up into the hills by himself to pray. Night fell while he was there alone. Matthew 14:23 (NLT)

Relationships require time and effort to flourish and maintain closeness.

Many of us remember having crushes in elementary school. Yet years later, the feelings have evaporated, and we can barely remember their names. Why? We stopped hanging around them. In time, we meet and tend to marry someone that we grow and stay closely connected to—someone we continually talk to, date, laugh and share our hearts with.

Our relationships with God work the same way. If we stop spending time with God, our hearts begin to grow distant. But if we talk to Him frequently and spend one-on-one time with Him in His Word daily, our relationship with Him grows closer, healthier and more profound.

Jesus often spent time in the morning or the evening praying. He frequently withdrew from people to pray. Often, Jesus just fellowshipped with God. He longed for and loved moments in God’s presence and savoured time with Him.

Sometimes we develop weird ideas about prayer, but at its core, prayer is a personal way to experience God. It’s simply talking with Him.

By the way, God always wants time with you. He’s never turned off or too busy. You’re never bothering Him, wasting His time or interrupting Him. He loves you, craves moments with you, and longs for a close relationship with you no matter what. He yearns for you to understand and walk in all that He’s given you through Christ.

Jesus set aside time for His relationship with God. Shouldn’t we?