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if God still feels far

Hello, friends! It’s been a couple of weeks since Easter, and while we just celebrated the resurrection of Jesus, I thought it would be a great idea to speak to the ones still feeling like God is far. Like even though we celebrated the tomb being empty a couple of weeks ago, God’s silence never lifted. The question I want to cover today is ‘What do we do when we know the tomb is empty, but it still feels like we’re stuck in Saturday?’

First, I want to say – I’ve been there. Many times. There were seasons in my life when God’s presence felt so loud, so constant – doors opened, friendships flourished, prayers were answered, and joy felt effortless. And then there were seasons that followed when that pace slowed. I knew He was still with me, but I couldn’t see or feel Him like I had before. I know how frustrating that can be. I wrote this post today a little longer than usual because I want to walk with you through what I’ve learned in those “silent seasons”. And I truly encourage you to read to the end – there’s a challenge waiting for you that might just change how you walk through this season.

Let’s begin here for a solid foundation – Proverbs 3:5, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.” While this verse is familiar to most of us, it speaks of something radical. Feelings come and go. Truth doesn’t. Our emotions can change by the hour, while God’s promises are unwavering.

Paul reminds us in Romans 12:2, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

Most of the time when we think of this verse, we usually picture “obvious” sins – hookup culture, drunkenness, gossip, and so on. And while Paul is warning against sinful patterns, there’s a deeper invitation: not only are we called to resist worldly actions, but we’re also called to resist a worldly mindset.

Something I love about walking with Jesus is His joy. And let me be clear – joy is not the same as happiness. Happiness is an emotion that fluctuates based on circumstances, while joy is a choice rooted in the unchanging goodness of God despite circumstances. Choosing joy doesn’t mean ignoring grief, stress, hardship, or suffering. It means standing on what we know rather than what we feel. And when we choose joy, we don’t just strengthen our Christian witness, we renew our mind, just as Paul instructs in verse above.

I wanted to highlight joy here because even if you feel like God is far, choosing joy produces a transformation within you. Choosing joy before submitting to your feelings creates maturity in how you continue to walk with Christ. Choosing joy proves that you are deciding to trust that His promises are greater than your feelings at that moment.

As most of you know, I’m in my first year of pharmacy school, which means I love finding parallels between the world of science and the truths of Scripture. In a neuroanatomy lecture, we studied the limbic system – the region of the brain responsible for processing emotions (amygdala), memory (hippocampus), and motivation (hypothalamus). All of these structures work together to shape how we feel and react to the world around us.

In medical science, we also recognize that when the limbic system dominates without regulation from the prefrontal cortex (the area of the brain responsible for logic, decision-making, and impulse control), people begin to perform purely on emotion rather than reason. And spiritually, it’s much the same.

When we allow our emotions to dominate without being anchored by truth, we become reactive, impulsive, and easily deceived. It’s not a coincidence that God – Who formed our innermost being – specifically designed us with the capacity to feel. Emotions are His creation – yet He never intended them to lead us (Gal. 5:16). When we give our feelings access to dictate our faith, we risk forgetting the steady promises of God. And He assures us that He is never far from us and He has never lost one of His sheep.

Something I love throughout scripture is how often people allow themselves to feel grief and sit in their sorrow. Peter after his denial. Andrew after John the Baptist’s death. David’s anguish in Psalms. Job’s suffering and confusion. Elijah’s overwhelming despair. And even Jesus – after John’s death, at Lazarus’ tomb, before His arrest.

Jesus and everyone in the Bible remind us that feelings are meant to be felt, not suppressed. But although their emotions were felt deeply, they were never allowed to become their master. Because while they sat and embraced their feelings, they didn’t stay there. They embraced grief for a moment, but they rooted their hope in God’s promises and His Word, not in their pain.

Consider this:
The disciples – every one of them except John – were martyred.
Paul and Silas were beaten and imprisoned in Acts 16, yet they sang.
John the Baptist, who prepared the way of Jesus, was imprisoned and beheaded.
Even today, believers around the world are being persecuted, yet remain unwavering.

They weren’t blessed because they were delivered from pain – they were blessed because they endured with purpose in it. As we learned last week, the cross wasn’t about comfort – it was about communion. Christianity is not about God only helping us – it’s about God sitting with us in both celebration and suffering. God has our highest flourishing in mind, yes, but flourishing doesn’t always mean “feeling good”.

Malachi 3:3, “He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; He will purify and refine like gold and silver.” Just like gold and silver must endure intense heat to be purified, we, too, are placed in the Refiner’s fire – not for destruction, but for transformation. Refining burns away impurities, strips away what is not eternal, and exposes the hidden places in our hearts that still need surrender.

But the result, we emerge differently. Transformed. Renewed. Healed. Freed. Purified. Consecrated. We don’t come out the same as we went in – and that’s the point. Christianity is not about God catering to our desires; it’s about Him consecrating us for His greater purposes.

Here’s the challenge:
What if the distance isn’t abandonment, but it’s refinement? What if God is allowing you to enter into a time of silence to test the depths of your desire with Him? What if God is allowing you to realize you were chasing the blessing from Him more than the silence with Him?

What if He’s asking you:
“Will you still reach for Me even when you don’t feel Me?”
“Will you still believe My Word even when your emotions tell you otherwise?”
“Will you still trust My heart when you cannot find My hand?”

Friend, the distance or silence you feel is not always God’s punishment. Sometimes, it’s refinement. Sometimes it’s His way of strengthening the genuineness of our faith – faith that is precious to Him. Because real faith endures in the fire. 1 Peter 1:6-7, “In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith – of greater worth than gold – may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.”

And before I close, I want to say this clearly: God’s silence does not equate to His absence. The silence has a purpose. Seasons of silence are a reality in our Christian walk, and even though our experience with God is sometimes quiet, it’s still holy – because it’s deliberate.

God’s silence wasn’t absence when Job wrestled in pain for days before hearing from Him (Job 1-37). David cried out, “How long will You hide Your face from me?” (Ps. 13:1). Hannah wept bitterly in 1 Samuel when her prayers for a child felt unheard. Jeremiah lamented in anguish, unsure of God’s nearness. And between the book of Malachi and the first chapter of Matthew, there were 400 years of prophetic silence, yet God was meticulously setting the stage for Jesus.

And even if He feels far right now…
He’s still near.
He’s still listening.
He’s still working.
He’s still present.
And He’s still good.

Thank you for reading today, friends! Have a great day!