Come

He has always been coming for us. Since the beginning he has sought us out to walk with us, to be with us. This is his way: how he comes and keeps coming. Though we hide in shame, shake our fist in anger, turn from him in selfishness, run from him in fear, he keeps coming. Look closely, and you’ll see this is the theme of all his stories, all of them pointing to this One Story.

He will find you, but he will not force you. He comes to make the way for you, but you must choose it.

“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Mt. 11:28).

“If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink” (Jn. 7:37).

“Whoever comes to me shall not hunger . . . whoever comes to me I will never cast out” (Jn. 6:35, 37).

Love can only ever be offered and accepted—or not. His love is there regardless of what you do with it. But his whole reason for coming to us was to make the way for us to come to him.

As we look forward to a new year, let’s ask ourselves how he wants us to come to him. Maybe there’s something in your way that you must let go of. Maybe you need to slow down, make time and space. Maybe you need to quit trying so hard to do it all yourself. Maybe you need to do that thing he’s asking you to do, the thing you are running from. Maybe you need to just go ahead and bring all those questions, doubts, accusations, and hurts and dump them right into his lap, wait to see what he says.

We are hungry and thirsty. We are weary and burdened. We can take all these needs somewhere else, or we can come to him. We can ask for faith to slow down, ask for help letting ourselves need him. We can wait to let him come to us in his way and his time, which are different—and better than—ours. Coming to him on his terms requires humility. Space. Openness.

How is he asking you to come to him?

This is our hope. He says, “Surely I am coming soon” (Rev. 22:20). And just before that, he invites us: “The Spirit and the Bride say, ‘Come.’ And let the one who hears say, ‘Come.’ And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price” (Rev. 22:17).

If you want the water of life, it is yours. You just need to come. He paid for it already when he came for you.

The door is open. His hand is stretched out. All you have to do is take it.