How to Draw Near to God After Tragedy
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All Scripture references come from the King James Version of the Holy Bible (KJV)."
All Scripture references come from the King James Version of the Holy Bible (KJV)."
How I could draw near to God after my illness and amputations?
Seven years ago, I contracted a flesh-eating bacteria that put me in a coma. My illness required several surgeries to remove the bacteria, and then the final surgery which removed both of my hands and both feet. Through my tragedy, it was important that I draw near to God. In my mind, I could not get through this recovery without the Lord. This is my story of how I did that.
The super wise doctor assured my husband, Mike and family that my death was imminent. However Mike has a very strong faith. He prayed and so did our family, our church family and strangers all across the country. Therefore, he was assured that this doctor was wrong and he would see his wife alive and well.
Drawing near to God is necessary for spiritual growth
When I awoke from my medically induced coma and found so much of my body had been altered I truly cannot really remember how horrible I must’ve felt. I was still heavily medicated. However, it wasn’t long before my prayers for strength and courage began. I often wondered about how to draw near to God so he would draw near to me.
I wonder about similar situations where someone else’s first thought might have been anger toward God and a pulling away from him. But I never felt the need to pull away. I still asked God why did he allow this to happen to me? What did I do to deserve this? Never once did I not need the Lord. My first thought was God, please help me and my family through this. I needed to draw close to God if I was ever going to find the strength to cope with this major change.
Salvation draws you close to God
The first step to drawing closer to God is to accept his son, Jesus as your Savior. Admit you are a sinner and accept the precious blood that He shed on the cross of Calvary, as payment for your sin debt. My post on How to Grow your Faith in God has more details on the steps you need for salvation.
Romans 10:9-10 says “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation”.
Once you’ve made that prayer, you began a relationship with the Lord. Next, you need to make a decision that you want God to see you through and know that you aren’t able to deal exclusively on your own. I was saved in my 20’s and have been building on my relationship with God.
This illness was a great test of my faith and belief that He would give me the courage and faith that I needed to see this whole thing through. Answered prayers are an encouragement which also draw you close to God.
Prayer is a great tool for drawing closer to God
So from here, how do you continue to draw near to God? Work on your prayer life. Prayer is simply a conversation with God. Let me tell you that my prayer life has gotten a lot stronger since my illness. One of the things I’ve gotten a lot better at is gratitude.
I could be so much worse off than I am now. Yes, I know, no hands and no feet is pretty bad. However, I have prosthetic legs which are pretty much like having regular feet, only I take them off at night and put them on in the morning.
I use my stylus strapped to my arm for typing and practically everything pertaining to blogging and communicating. Mike sets out my lunch and snacks for the day. Other than that, I’m pretty self-sufficient. That right there is a LOT to be grateful for.
So I spend a lot of time thanking God for all of my blessings and praising him. For gratitude inspiration, visit Gratitude from A to Z and Why counting your blessings is so important!
I’ve also gotten better at praying for others. Maybe I just have more to pray about. It’s important to lean on the Lord more. I have a tendency to try and work things out myself. However, I know that dependency on the Lord is part of drawing near to Him. Leaning on Him to take care of things instead of me. After all, he’s way better at it than I am.
One of my very favorite verses is Proverbs 3:5-6. I call upon those verses any time I’m scared or need strength. ” Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; And lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths”. That tells me to trust Him and He will guide me when He needs my help.
Draw near to God for peace
As you draw near to God, he will draw near to you. The result of this relationship is a peace that is truly unknown to those who do not know Jesus Christ as their Savior. It is a comfort that you can resort to when you start to feel that panic rise up within you when something spirals out of control in your life.
Our youngest son, Matthew is married and lives half-way across the country so as a mom I worry about them. Sometimes, when I think my son really needs my help, I know that he and his wife are old enough to work things out without me. They too have the Lord in their life and God is in control, not me. That kind of peace. It’s definitely not easy, but it’s worth it.
Seeking to draw near to God after a tragedy is so important in order to cope with the situation. I don’t know how people get through major life changes when they don’t have a relationship with God. However, I can tell you, it’s definitely easier when you have Him there. What does the Bible say about encouragement?
Do you still wonder how to draw near to God?
Download my Free, Ebook, How to get closer to God Spiritually. It’s the PDF version of one of my post popular posts, How to Get Closer to God Spiritually.
Wendy Wallace I just finished reading your message about drawing near to God after tragedy and I must say, I’m in awe of your determination to see the better side of everything! Losing not just one limb, but several is definitely something we need to draw near to God about because nothing else would be able to give you peace during that kind of tragedy… your story if so inspirational and thank you for sharing 💜
-Thasia Awad-
Coming from
http://www.Makemegoodground.wordpress.com
Thank you so much, Thasia. You are so right. Without drawing near to God after my illness, I cannot imagine the results would be any more positive. My heart aches for those who struggle without Jesus in their life.
I understand tragedy ALL too well. Losing our first grandchild at 4 1/2 months is something I wouldn’t wish on no one. Much Love to you
Love to you too, Angie. I’m so very sorry for your loss.
Such a wonderful reminder that, despite our circumstances, we can find peace and purpose through our relationship with Jesus. I’m with you – I have no idea how people who don’t have Jesus make it through terrible situations.
Thanks, Sarah! I’m so thankful that Jesus is always there. Praise the Lord!
What a beautifully inspiring post!! Thank you so much for sharing your believes and encouraging others to bring God into their lives!
Thank you so much, Holly! I appreciate your stopping by.
Very inspiring. God bless you!
Thank you, Teresa.
Thanks for this reminder that there are always many, many things to be grateful for! I see it throughout your post as not just something you write about, but something you live.
Thank you so much, Rachel. I appreciate you saying that. Thanks for stopping by.
I love this post, drawing people to get closer to god is so important. Having faith in our lives is vital and some people don’t have it. Unfortunately, people go threw some tragic event and they seek the path of god only then.
Thank you, I agree. It’s sad to wait until something bad happens to call on God. People who do that are missing so much!
Very wise words. Thanks for sharing.
I appreciate you’re reading, Erin. Thanks for stopping by.
This is good on so many levels. The belief that bad things don’t happen to good people isn’t true. God helps you THROUGH those times. He doesn’t distance Himself from you. He lifts you up and carries you. That is when you lean on Him. And that builds your faith…for now and in the future.
Thank you, Evelyn,
That’s my point exactly. I’m so thankful for a Heavenly Father who guides us through our hardships. Our faith grows stronger through our trials, if we let it.
There are no words to say how thankful I am for your words today. One year ago I lost an aunt to cancer and now another has been sent home because treatments stopped working. So often we want to run away when things like this happen. Thank you for this!
Kimberly,
I’m so sorry for the toll that cancer has taken on your family. We never know why these things happen, but if you lean on the Lord, he will see you through. Thanks for reading. I’m thankful I could provide some encouragement.
Wendy thank you for the great reminder, I enjoyed a lot reading your post!
Hi Van,
Thank you for reading. I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Wow! I really enjoyed reading your story and it is so inspiring. Proverbs 3:5-6 is one of my favorite scriptures. I look forward to reading your other posts!
Hi Falon,
I’m thankful you enjoyed my post.
Wendy,
Proverbs 3:5-6 are verses I recite often as well. Thank you so much for sharing your step-by-step way of handling your situation. I think it will be helpful to many.
Lisa
Thank you, Lisa,
I’m glad you enjoyed the post.
You’re truly inspiring. Thank you for re-opening my eyes today. 💕
Thank you, Margaret. I’m glad you enjoyed my post!
What an inspiring post! Thank you for the encouragement!
Hi Julie,
I’m glad you liked it! Thank you!
Beautiful! So many people get mad at God when something happens. A mature faith turns to God instead of anger.
I appreciate your comment. Thank you Carlyn!
This post really touched my heart. I’ve been going through my own trials and the verse in James is really what I needed, right now. You are so encouraging! It’s truly good for every Christian ever to forget the peace Jesus gives, as you mentioned. Thank you for sharing your story!
Hi Lily,
I’m so thankful my post touched you and that James was exactly what you needed. Keep the faith. God will see you through.
What an incredible story! God Bless you!
Thank you, Tara!
Thank you for sharing your story!! It’s so awesome that you are pointing others to God through how you were able to lean on His strength. I know that I also can not imagine going through this life without having God’s strength, peace, comfort and so much more to be able to depend on!! Nothing this world has to offer can compare!!
Amen April. Thanks for reading my blog and sharing your thoughts.
Hi Wendy another wonderful post. You have included practical advice on getting through challenging times. I find if I do biblical meditation and regular devotion before tough times come it helps with spiritual stability when then do. Thanks for this.
Those are definitely great reminders Rosemarie. Don’t wait for the storm to hit to turn to God. Bring him into your life now and study his word. That way when tough times come, as we all know they will, you’ll be ready and able to cope.