Boldly

Do you ever pray with the nagging thought that you really don’t deserve to come before Almighty God? During those times, do you come away doubting that anything you asked for, even if it was a Bible verse and for someone else, will be done? Perhaps you feel this way because you have argued with a loved one. Or maybe it’s because you have done the same thing again that you’ve repented for so many times in the past, so you don’t expect that God would forgive you again. It could even be that you just have this oppressive feeling of having done something wrong, though you don’t know what it is. If you are like me when you are in this place, you are so overwhelmed with your flesh nature that you forget who you really are – the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus (2 Cor. 5:21)! Let me share a personal lesson involving my wonderful dog, Sandy, that can really help us understand and remember this Truth.

My usual place to spend time with the Lord in prayer and reading His Word is in a particular chair in the living room of my house. Next to that chair is a covered foam pad for Sandy’s comfort, where he almost always curls up next to me. There are some days when he even waits on that pad in his place, almost impatient for me to stop my busy-ness to come have our time. As I sat down recently, however, I noticed that he was not on his bed, but standing in front of me, eagerly waiting for me to invite him to get into his place. I smiled and told him he was certainly welcome, and that he was always welcome without the need of an invitation. As I spoke that simple sentence to him, I realized the Lord was speaking to me about the very same thing.

Ephesians 3:11-12 “¹¹ . . . Christ Jesus our Lord, ¹² In Whom, because of our faith in Him, we dare to have the boldness (courage and confidence) of free access (an unreserved approach to God with freedom and without fear).” AMP

Our heavenly Father, Almighty God, Creator of the Universe, has a place reserved for us next to Him – at all times. It’s not based on our good works, but on the perfect and completed work of Jesus Christ. He offered the invitation to “whosoever would believe in Christ” (John 3:16). Once we have responded to that invitation, we might as well not wait for additional invitations, for there won’t be any. The invitation was made once for all. Our Father’s desire is for us to know our place in and with Him, through Christ, and to dare to have the boldness of that free access to Him at all times. He welcomes us even when we are a bit hesitant, just as I did with Sandy that day, and He reminds us of His Word for us and to us. Though Sandy and I cannot always be next to each other, you and I remain next to our heavenly Father day in and day out, no matter where we go or what we do, regardless of what our minds tell us. And, we will never be in our place waiting for Him to show up, as Sandy does with me sometimes, for He has promised to be with us always. He never breaks His Promise!

I challenge you today, according to the Ephesians passage above, to dare to have the boldness of free access to God, and watch it make a difference in how you pray, what you pray, and what you see happen because you have prayed – boldly! I won’t ask the Lord to give you this boldness, for He has already given it to you. I only ask that He help you dare to act on the boldness that is yours through faith in Christ.

© Copyright 2007 Kay V. Stocking