You’re probably going to be more courageous if you know that God is close to you.

When I was in elementary school, there was a mean kid on the playground. But I had two older brothers. The mean kid was less scary when my brothers were around. 

You probably see the connection. 

‘But,’ you ask, ‘you would have been able to physically see your brothers. We can’t see God. So how do we know when he’s close?’

First, God is always with his people in a general sense (Matthew 28:20).

Second, there are other times when God is particularly close. In the words of Jon Thompson, these are “places of encounter.”* In short, if God says he is close during certain times, then he is in fact close during those certain times. He is a God of his word. Here are some examples: 

Worship with other believers. 
Serving the poor.
Prayer.
Biblical preaching.
Baptism and Communion.
Using your spiritual gifts.
Bible study.
Living with virtue.

Those are not just ‘normal’ activities, even if they often feel normal. God gave us those specific practices; when we practice them he is close.

Let me provide just two Bible verses from that list to make clear what I mean. Psalm 145:18 states: “The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.” When you call out to God with honesty, he is near. Then in Philippians 4:8-9 we are told to pursue virtue. When we do that we are specifically told that “the God of peace will be with you.”

There are times when you will feel his closeness; there are other times when you won’t. That’s okay. Our feelings aren’t everything.

Let’s circle back to the idea we started with. You’re probably going to be more courageous if you know that God is close. If you are a Christian, God is with you. But he’s especially close during certain times. He’s not confined to the list above, but he does keep his word.

David wrote: “Your face, LORD, I will seek” (Psalm 27:8). That’s about cultivating closeness and intimacy with the God whose will you want to honour. 

Pursue nearness. With humility, spend time in those places of encounter. When you do, I’m sure you will start to overflow not only with knowledge and a spirit of servanthood, but with courage.

“Your face, LORD, I will seek.”

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Notes:

–*Thompson explores this idea on the Bridgetown Audio Podcast. “Deliverance: Interview with Jon Thompson.” Published November 18, 2021.

–Bible quotes are from the NIV.