Pressing In To God

The Lord hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee. Jeremiah 31:3 (KJV)

We often hear the phrase press in to God. What does it mean? How do we do it? Today we are going to explore this phrase and how we can accomplish what it tells us to do.

Press in implies that we must choose to push to get closer to someone or something. It involves conscious effort on our part. In the Gospels we see the word press used in the King James Version to describe the crowd around Jesus that was pushing to get close to Him to touch him or get His attention.

And when they could not come nigh unto him for the press, they uncovered the roof where he was: and when they had broken it up, they let down the bed wherein the sick of the palsy lay. Mark 2:4 (KJV)

Even the woman with the issue of blood had to push and fight through the crowd, or the press as the KJV says, to touch Jesus’ garment. She had to press in through the press to get to Jesus.

Let’s be clear about something before we go any further. We do not have to do anything to get God to move on our behalf. Everything we will ever need was accomplished when Jesus died and resurrected. God has completed His part and both Jesus and the Father are at rest. The Spirit of God resides inside every believer and we do not have to get close to Jesus because He is already in us. Pressing in is important because it does something to and for us. Pressing in means we are drawing near to the God Who is already near to us. It means we are pressing close to Him to enjoy His fellowship and to tap into what has been deposited in our spirits.

With that being said, how do we press into God? Drawing near involves a combination of things noted in numerous places in Scripture.

• The Word. Consistent reading and studying of the Bible brings us nearer to the Lord because He and His Word are One. Therefore, when we get to know the Word by study, memorization and especially by meditating on it, we get to know God more and more. People who routinely study the Bible benefit from revelation. The Bible reveals God, and God reveals the Bible. It’s marvelous!

• Prayer. Prayer is often seen as simply presenting our requests to God. While that is part of it, prayer is an intimate conversation and relationship with God that should be ongoing. That is why the Bible tells us to pray without ceasing. Prayer isn’t only talking TO God; it is also hearing FROM God. It is a divine interaction. Like dear friends who are familiar with one another, we can sit with God without even talking, just enjoying the time spent together. Prayer is talking to Him, hearing from Him, and just being continually aware of His presence everywhere we go. And when we pray in the Holy Spirit, tongues permits us to tap into heavenly secrets and pray the perfect will of God without our intellects or the enemy getting in the way.

• Worship. Worship helps us to focus on the One Who dwells within us. It turns our hearts and minds away from distractions and directs them to the Lord. It reminds us of our victory in Him, all He has done, and all He will do. It amplifies Who God is. God is in us, but worship stirs His presence and causes His glory to manifest. The Psalmist told us that God is enthroned in worship. His rulership and reign become more evident when we worship. The Spirit of God is on earth and lives in us, but when we worship it activates something in the spirit realm that causes a physical manifestation of the supernatural and God’s presence and nearness is more readily felt. If we were to worship God personally everyday, I believe we would go forth in the world and see the miraculous happen with more regularity. Worship is a weapon against the enemy and more victory would likely be seen if we were more diligent to worship.

I consider these the three most significant ways to press in to God. Fasting, tithing, and giving, among other things, will also contribute to your closeness to the Lord. God is in us and will never leave us or forsake us. He wants a real relationship with each of us. It is up to us to press in and draw closer to Him so we can experience an intimate relationship with our Creator and Father.

Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Hebrews 10:22 (New International Version, NIV)