Discussion Response
God Who Draws Near
Ed Price
DSMN 815 Personal Spiritual Formation
November 2022
1
Discussion Response: God Who Draws Near
Clint,
Thanks for your discussion thread. I love to read the interpretations of assignments
through the eyes and heart of fellow sojourners. Paul reminds us in his letter to the church at
Ephesus, “For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit”.1 Like you, I concur
that the Holy Spirit has been given to us to ensure that everything in our lives’ as believers
remains Christ-centered. I especially liked the authors analogy of the Holy Spirit as a floodlight2
that provides focus on Jesus. I really appreciate how you framed that the Holy Spirit is shaping
us wo we can be less like our old selves.
Chapter six was also the most challenging for me as well. The author states, “prayer is
one of the most difficult aspects of the Christian life.”3 What I also shared is that for me prayer
can be easy and rewarding in one season and challenging and dry in others. For me I find that in
good times I tend to say, ‘I got this’, and do it my way. In tougher seasons I run to Him, cling to
Him and prayer can truly be ‘living water’ in those times. What I am challenged most by is to
remain like Job in every season when I could proclaim, “The LORD gave and the LORD has taken
away; may the name of the LORD be praised.”.4
Finally, like you, I agree that male friendships, male relationships in general are lacking
in almost every season of a man’s life. Fair weather friends dot the landscape of our lives; high
school and college friends, work friends, family and husbands of others do not make a band of
brothers, nor does it allow for iron sharpening iron.
1 Stephen Arterburn, Dean Merrill, and Tyndale House Publishers, Every Man’s Bible : NIV ; New International
Version. (Carol Stream, Ill.: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc, 2014), Ephesians 2:18.
2 Michael A G Haykin, The God Who Draws near: An Introduction to Biblical Spirituality (Darlington, England ;
Webster, Ny: Evangelical Press, 2007), 22.
3 Ibid, 54.
4 Ibid, Job 1:20.
2
Bibliography
Arterburn, Stephen, Dean Merrill, and Tyndale House Publishers. Every Man’s Bible: NIV; New
International Version. Carol Stream, Ill.: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc, 2014.
Haykin, Michael A G. The God Who Draws near: An Introduction to Biblical Spirituality.
Darlington, England; Webster, Ny: Evangelical Press, 2007.
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