You Are Already Close to God: Replacing Lies with Truth

Have you ever felt distant from God? Maybe you’ve started a season of prayer and fasting with the goal of getting closer to Him, only to feel like there’s still a gap between you. This common experience might actually be based on a misunderstanding of our relationship with God.

The Lie About Closeness to God

Many of us have this mental image of God being somewhere “out there” and we’re trying to bridge the gap through our spiritual practices. We hold our hands out in front of us, measuring the distance between ourselves and God, hoping our efforts will somehow bring us closer.

But what if this entire premise is flawed? What if the enemy’s most crafty tactic is convincing you that you need to work harder, pray more, or be busier to get closer to God?

What Does Scripture Actually Say About Our Closeness to God?

In 1 Corinthians 6:15-17, Paul makes a profound statement: “Don’t you realize that your bodies are actually parts of Christ?… But the person who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with him.”

This scripture reveals a powerful truth: if you’ve accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you are already as close to God as you’ll ever be. There’s no capacity to get “closer” because God is already dwelling within you.

The reality is that God isn’t just around us—He’s in us. When you accepted Christ, you became one spirit with Him. This is why Jesus could say, “I’ll never leave you nor forsake you” right before ascending to heaven. He wasn’t contradicting Himself; He knew that through His Spirit, He would continue to dwell within believers.

Why Don’t We Feel Close to God?

If we’re already as close to God as possible, why don’t we always feel that way? John 8:44 tells us that Satan is the father of lies. One of his most effective lies is making us believe we’re distant from God when Scripture says the opposite.

Most of our spiritual struggles come from lies we believe. The enemy wants you to think you’re not close to God, that you’re alone, or that you’ll never overcome your hardships. But according to Psalm 145:18, “The Lord is close to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.”

How Do We Combat the Lies?

The invitation before us is to replace every lie of the enemy with the truth of God’s Word. We don’t replace lies with things that just make us feel better—we replace them with truth. And that’s when we get set free.

For example:

• If you believe you’re alone, that can’t be true because God dwells within you
• If you believe you’ll never overcome a struggle, that can’t be true because “He that dwells in you is greater than anything in this earth”

What Should Our Prayer Focus Be?

Instead of praying to get closer to God, we should pray that God would:

• Illuminate the lies of the enemy that we’ve believed
• Help us replace those lies with the truth of His Word
• Make the truth of His Word come alive in us

When we seek God wholeheartedly, we find Him—not because we’ve moved closer to Him, but because we’ve recognized His presence that was already there.

Slowing Down to Experience God’s Presence

One practical way to recognize God’s presence is to slow down. Our busy lives often prevent us from experiencing the closeness that already exists. We need to:

• Be present and focused
• Give God our full attention
• Make Him our first priority, not our last
• Take our eyes off what’s around us
• Recognize His Spirit moving here and now

Life Application

This week, I challenge you to identify one lie you’ve believed about your relationship with God. Maybe it’s that you need to earn His love, that He’s distant when you sin, or that you need to perform certain spiritual practices to get closer to Him.

Write down this lie, then find a scripture that directly contradicts it. Memorize this truth and speak it aloud whenever the lie resurfaces in your thoughts.

Ask yourself:

• What lies have I believed about my closeness to God?
• How would my prayer life change if I truly believed God is already dwelling within me?
• In what areas of my life do I need to slow down to better recognize God’s presence?

Remember, you don’t have to strive to get close to God—He’s already as close as He can be. Your journey isn’t about closing a gap; it’s about believing and experiencing the truth that you are one spirit with Him.