“Draw near unto God and He will draw near unto you” is a promise that God cannot break.
Come Follow Me Daily
They had lost the land of Zion.
They were kicked out of their homes by violent mobs.
They were having financial struggles.
There were threats on Joseph’s life.
Joseph prayed, desperate for direction.
And he got no answer.
He said, “Heaven seems closed.”
My heart ached when I read that. Because I have been there, too— Desperate for important direction that just isn’t coming.
Those moments where the still small voice seems too still and too small.
In August, Joseph wrote to the Saints in Independence, “I know not what to say to you [...] God is pleased to keep it from mine eyes the means how exactly the thing will be done.”
This is a prophet of God. The man charged with directing the church. A man who had seen God the Father and Jesus Christ and had visions of Heaven and glories.
And yet, the very Heaven he had seen now felt closed to Him.
So what did he do?
He kept praying. He studied the words God HAD spoken through scripture. He acted. He kept going.
And in December, he received direction.
Four long months later.
Maybe the Heavens have felt closed to you, as well. Maybe it feels that way right now.
Maybe it feels like the Heavens have been closed for days. Or months. Or years.
Maybe our prayers mirror those spoken by Job, “I cry to you for help and you do not answer me; I stand, and you only look at me.” (Job 30:20)
That wait can feel desperate and heart wrenching.
But don’t stop looking up.
God is there, even in the silence.
“Draw near into God and He will draw near unto you” is a promise that God cannot break, despite what you feel.
Because isn’t that the point of coming here to Earth? The point of the veil?
If we were supposed to receive continual direction from Heaven, we could have just stayed with God.
He put us here to push against the veil.
So keep pushing.
Keep acting.
Keep praying.
Keep reading the words God HAS spoken to you through scripture.
Let us, even in the darkest moments, echo the words in Psalm 62:1, 5: “For God alone my soul waits in silence . . . my hope is from him”
Have hope.
He was there for Joseph. He was there for Job. He is there for you.
Feel comfort in knowing,
Heaven is close...not closed.