06 Jan Drawing Near to God #5

Drawing Near God Overview

In ‘Drawing Near to God #5,’ Pastor William Harney teaches on the vital importance of taking God’s word to heart and listening for His voice above all others. Drawing from James 4:7-10 and personal ministry experiences, he emphasizes that when we draw near to God, He draws near to us. The pastor shares powerful testimony about establishing his church in Merrill, including supernatural provision and intense spiritual warfare. He explains that pressing into God’s presence requires humility, persistence, and expectation of His transforming power. Using the analogy of his Navy correspondence with his wife, Pastor Harney illustrates the difference between religious routine and intimate relationship with God. The message challenges believers to move beyond merely reading scripture to experiencing God’s presence personally. Faith comes through repeated hearing of God’s word, and believers must learn to distinguish God’s voice from the many competing voices in life. The sermon culminates with the truth that perfect love casts out fear, and only through genuine intimacy with God can we overcome life’s challenges and experience the transformational glory that Moses and the disciples witnessed.

Drawing Near God Outline

• 0:00 – Learning to Listen with Big Ears: Pastor introduces the importance of having spiritual ears to hear God’s voice.
• 3:15 – Taking Heart and Growing Through Problems: Teaching on taking God’s word into our hearts to grow better, not bitter.
• 6:30 – Vision of Mountains and Seeking God: Sharing a prophetic vision about mountains of seeking God rising across the region.
• 10:45 – Church Foundation and God’s Instructions: How God gave Philippians 1:27-28 as the church foundation and said to ‘wake up the devil.’
• 18:20 – Supernatural Property Acquisition: Testimony of how walking and declaring God’s promises led to miraculous provision.
• 25:10 – Intense Spiritual Warfare and Pressing In: Describing the severe attacks that followed and learning to press into God.
• 35:40 – Expression vs. Possession of God’s Presence: Distinguishing between having God’s presence and experiencing His expression.
• 42:15 – Distinguishing God’s Voice from All Others: Teaching on the many voices in life and why God’s voice must be supreme.

Scripture References

James 4:7-10, Philippians 1:27-28, Romans 10:17, John 8:31-32, 1 John 4:18

Key Takeaways

• When we draw near to God, He promises to draw near to us, creating a divine exchange of intimacy.
• Taking God’s word to heart means allowing it to transform the issues of our lives from within.
• Spiritual breakthrough often comes with intense opposition, requiring us to press into God’s presence.
• There’s a difference between possessing God’s presence and experiencing His transforming expression in our lives.
• Faith develops through repeated hearing of God’s word until it becomes heart conviction.
• God’s voice must become more trustworthy to us than our own voice or any other competing voice.
• Perfect love casts out fear, but we must personally experience God’s love, not just know about it intellectually.

Drawing Near God Notes

Pastor William Harney opens this powerful message by emphasizing the critical importance of developing spiritual hearing. Like the oversized plastic ears he used in children’s ministry, believers need enlarged spiritual capacity to truly hear God’s voice above life’s noise. The concept of ‘taking heart’ goes beyond mere encouragement—it means actively receiving God’s word into the deepest parts of our being, allowing it to transform how we handle life’s challenges.The pastor shares a profound prophetic vision of mountains rising across the region, representing a movement of people seeking God with unprecedented hunger. Mountains in scripture consistently symbolize places of divine encounter, from Moses receiving the commandments on Mount Sinai to Jesus’s transfiguration where His glory blazed brighter than the sun. These mountaintop experiences reveal God’s desire to transform His people and manifest His glory through them in these last days.When establishing his church in Merrill, God gave Pastor Harney Philippians 1:27-28 as the foundational scripture, emphasizing standing fast in unity and being unafraid of adversaries. The Lord’s instruction to ‘wake up the devil sleeping in churches’ proved prophetic as intense spiritual warfare followed. The supernatural acquisition of their church property demonstrates how declaring God’s promises and persistent prayer can move mountains of impossibility.The pastor’s Navy analogy powerfully illustrates the difference between religious duty and relational intimacy with God. Just as letters from his wife Pam created longing for her actual presence, reading scripture should create hunger for experiencing God’s tangible love and power. Many believers settle for knowing about God rather than knowing God intimately through His manifest presence.Distinguishing God’s voice requires understanding the multitude of voices competing for our attention—our own thoughts, emotions, circumstances, other people, and even demonic influences. Romans 10:17 reveals that faith develops through repeated hearing of God’s word, creating heart conviction that supersedes all other voices. This is why the pastor emphasizes sermon series and review—repetition builds unshakeable faith foundations.

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