You're listening to Encounter, a simple daily podcast of sacred and mindful meditations

to help you encounter the divine presence of God all throughout your day.

If you want to have free access to the entire library of 500 meditations, I encourage

you to download the Encountering Peace app where all the meditations are free as they should be.

Few things on this earth, tug harder at the strings of my heart than seeing the look of our

grandson watching us as we walk up the front sidewalk of his house. As his parents come out,

holding him up and watching as he leans forward towards us, both of his tiny hands reaching out

to us with a beaming smile. Or what about when he walks up to us straining his head back to look

up into our eyes? Grabbing at our legs, as if to say, please hold me, lift me, bring me close,

I just want to melt. There is nothing I wouldn't do for him in that moment.

Well, this meditation from James chapter 4 is a reflection on that level of desire,

not between a grandparent and a child, but for you and I to have an even greater longing

to come near to our Creator, to submit ourselves to the arms of God,

to humble ourselves in his presence, kneeling as we look up into the loving eyes of God.

So to begin, whether at the first rays of morning sun or the long shadows of evening,

allow the next 15 minutes to be, well, a retreat, to contemplate seeking after God,

growing in your desire to come closer to God. So as your eyes begin to close naturally without effort,

to center on this place of surrender for a still moment, this time of yielding,

and a silent whispered prayer of commitment to God, spirit and sun.

Continue in a spirit of prayer by responding to this passage from Hebrews chapter 10,

and as I lead us, this response simply, Lord, I long to come near to you.

Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from

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