A Word for 2021 by Lisa Burkhardt Worley
You don’t see as many bumper stickers these days but yesterday I was behind a car that had something written on its window. I got a little closer to see what it said and I read, “Do you follow Jesus this close?” I had to laugh because I felt like it was a confirmation that my word for 2021 is “close.”
Earlier that morning, I had worshipped to the song, Draw Me Close to You. I wondered at that time if me word for the year was “close” so God used a creative way to let me know.
Why “close?” As the world gets increasingly more unstable, we’re going to need to draw even closer to the only One who can provide the security we need, Jesus. Hebrews 4:14-16 says,
“Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”
And I don’t know about you, but I feel like I’m in a time of need right now. I want to cling to the throne of grace with confidence that my God will supply all my needs.
And God wants us to take the first step in moving toward Him. James 4:4 says, “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. The Greek word for draw near means an “extreme closeness, immediate imminence—even a presence.”
What would it be like if we were so close to God that we felt His presence every minute of the day? Every decision. Every step. Every thought passes through the LORD’s hands. That is the kind of closeness I am seeking, so close that you hear His words of encouragement whispering in your ear when the world tries to take you down. So close that you feel His strong hands steadying you when you can’t take another step. So close that nothing can shake your faith because you know the Father is with you.
Have you ever super-glued something back together that has broken? You know it works. We’re in a broken world right now, and I desire to be super-glued to God in 2021—that’s about as close as it gets. What about you? How close do you want to be to God this year?