He Is Not Far

You're listening to the My Morning Devotional podcast, episode 1533. Today's Devo is called he is not far. Hey there. We're the Alessi's, a ministry family working together in our church in Miami, Florida. And if you're like us, when days get busy and to do lists get longer, it can be hard to find devotional time. That's why we've partnered with our friend Allison to produce a five minute daily dose of heaven. This is the My Morning Devotional podcast. Hello, everyone, my name is Lauren Alessi and I am your host for this week. Trying to sound more fun from yesterday because I sounded literally like a news anchor. Anyways, so today we are reading out of the Book of Acts, chapter 17. We are taking this whole month to read out of the Book of Acts and we are are doing a great job so far. I feel like just because it's such a powerful book, what's great is that we don't really have to do much teaching ourselves. The book kind of speaks for itself, which is awesome. And so yesterday we spoke out of Acts, chapter 16. Monday we spoke out of chapter 15. Today we're reading out of Acts, chapter 17. And we're talking about how God is not far, how he is near. So let's just jump right in. So the verse of the day, Acts, chapter 17, verses 26, 28. And it says this from one man, he made all the nations that they should inhabit the whole earth. And he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands. God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us. For in him we live and move and have our being. What a beautiful verse. Just to dwell on. Can we just dwell on that for a second? Since we are his creation, for in him we live and move and have our being. So that end there. I'm kind of just like paraphrasing what the whole thing says. But for in him we live and move and have our being. That's just so beautiful to me. But just for some context here, Paul is preaching in Athens. And when you read a little bit the Book of Acts and what it talks about Athens, the people of Athens are very philosophical people, very deep people. They require more than just quick Bible thinking, what we would hear today. They're very smart, smart, philosophical, deep thinkers. Paul is a very deep philosophical man. And he gets up and he decides to share the gospel and this is what he decides to say about God. And talk about him more as a creator versus just, oh, he's a good God and he's nice to us and he's good. And I absolutely love what Paul has to say about God because of course that's true too. Not. I don't want to sound rude, but God is a good God and He's great to us and He's a provider and He's a father. But I love Paul's wording here to the Athenians. He says, from one man. Let's really break down what he says. From one man, God made all the nations so that they should inhabit the whole earth. From one man, he created every nation so that the whole earth could have create creations everywhere, inhabitants everywhere. And he marked out their appointed times in history. So Paul is explaining here that God not didn't just create one man or a couple men. He. He knew this is when it was going to be their timing to come. It was going to be their timing to come and, and the boundaries of their lands. So he knew this is when it was going to be their time, but also in their places, in their timing, in their places. God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find Him. So what Paul is saying here is God created the one man to create multiple nations, to create multiple people, but that one man came from God. Why did God do this? So that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find Him. Which means God's on the inside of us. Because that's where it all started, with the creation of God. And he did this because he is not far from any one of us. For in him, in God, we live, we move, and we have our being. Because he's our Creator. Because he's our Creator, we live, we move, and we have our being. Some people refer to this as like, we have a body, we have a mind, we have a spirit, we have a soul. And that spirit. That's because God created us. That spirit is in line with our Creator. So that's a super philosophical, super deep way of thinking. But this is what I really want to focus on today. God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us. And can I just ask you, where does God seem far from you today? That's where you need to reach out to the Lord and ask for help. I wanted to tell this story. I remember growing up with my own father. I would always be like, I'm going to Figure out the problem. And then I'll go to my dad and be like, hey, Dad, I have this problem. But don't worry, I found a solution. So, like, for example, I would have, like, a car problem. And I was like, if I told my dad, he's going to get mad, so let me just fix it. And then I'll be like, hey, I had a problem with my tire, but I fixed it. Don't worry. And it worked. Actually, it worked out really well. But can I just tell you, that's not how the Lord is with us. The Lord wants to know what you're going through. The Lord is near to the brokenhearted. And actually my earthly Father is the same way. He wants to know there's an issue with your tire. Tell me. I'd love to help you. I don't want you fixing these problems on your own. I don't want you out here fixing a tire by yourself. Which I didn't do, by the way. But I'm just saying that's how God is. Just like, that's how my earthly father is, which is like, let me in on your problems. I want to help you. I want to be there for you. I want to love you through this. That's how God is. And if he seems far from you today, is that because you've put him far from you? Is that because you feel like your problems are. Are too hard for God and you've kind of distanced yourself from Him? Just remember, God created us. So God knows exactly what our problems are. He's like, yeah, because I kind of, you know, that was in mind when I created you. So just remember, God did this. He created us so that we would seek him and perhaps reach out for him so that we could find Him. Because he is not far from any one of us. For in him we live, we move, and we have our being. So wherever you feel far from God today, pray. Reach out to Him. Ask him to come near. Let him in on what you're going through. Let's pray. Dear Lord, first of all, we ask for forgiveness. God, if there's any part of us that has maybe distanced ourselves from you, God, maybe we're feeling a little bit of just regret, God. Or guilt for not letting you in on our problems, God. And for that we ask for forgiveness. God. But Lord, now we open ourselves up, God. Come near to us, Lord. Come near to our problems, Lord, and help us. Help us be better. Help us see things better. And give us the help and the wisdom and the understanding that we need. In Jesus name we pray. Amen. So there you have it. Your 5 minute daily dose of heaven. Thank you so much for tuning in today. We pray these devotionals empower you to take on your day. If you found value in this devotional, share it with a friend, leave a comment or review for us on the app you're using right now. Until tomorrow, we pray that your latte is strong, but your love for Jesus is stronger.