Experiencing God’s Presence

My spirit longs to experience God’s presence. After years of searching and seeking to fulfill the longing deep within my heart, I finally heard God’s voice saying, “I AM the One you are seeking.” I realize that only God can complete me. He created me. He “knit me together in my mother’s womb.” (Psalm 139:13) So how do I get to know Him? How can I experience His awesome presence?

Is it a matter of “squeezing” God into my schedule…penciling Him into “His” slot…and then expecting Him to permeate my being with His presence throughout the rest of my day? Do I think I can “give” God a few of my precious moments each day, calling it my “sacrifice”? Do I try to “fit” God into my perspective of life?

What I am learning about God is that He cannot be constrained to a timeslot in the schedule of my life. In fact, I cannot view God from my perspective at all. When life is about me, my senses and my spirit are numbed to experiencing the presence of God, and therefore I mistakenly assume He is not with me. In reality, God is with me – and always has been with me – every second of my life! So what changes need to take place in me to unclog my senses so that I can see God, hear God, and feel God’s presence in my life?

Experiencing God’s presence requires practice. If I know (with my mind) that God is with me, how can I become aware (with my senses) of this fact and acknowledge His presence? One key to practicing the presence of God is learning to convert all of my thoughts into dialogue with God. This is essential! If my God is with me always, and I truly believe that He is, then why do I ignore Him…or seek Him only when I want something? I must develop the habit of conversing with God continuously. It should not be a chore! It is the greatest privilege of my life that I am the child of the Most High God! I have the privilege of enjoying His presence.

If I believe in the depths of my heart that God is who He is, then my only response must be to worship Him, to praise Him, to thank Him for choosing me to be His child. Why should I depend upon myself for anything? God has given me everything, including the opportunity to be in His presence and under His direction. Shall I cast this aside in pursuit of worldly trinkets? Shall I throw this gift that God has so graciously given me into the wind? Shall I depend upon my own mind and capabilities when the God of the Universe has so graciously offered to direct my every thought, word and deed?

I must practice my faith so that God’s Word will be actualized in me. I must beg Him to give me His perspective, to see the world through His eyes, to feel what He feels, to love like He loves. I must practice His presence until it is the most natural thing in the world for me to do. I believe He made me to do this. I want to do this. But undoing decades of not doing this is extremely difficult. I forget. I slip back into my old comfortable habit of conversing with myself. I so desperately need His power in my life.

Please Lord - Set my heart on You. Help me to change the habits of my heart so that I may acknowledge and experience Your presence always. I do not want to give You lip service. I really believe that You know everything about me. I believe that You are in control. I believe that You created me to fulfill a special purpose for You and that I am part of Your plan. I believe that you love me. I long to experience Your presence! I want to be intimate with You. Help me to know You, Lord. Help me to keep my thoughts on You. Amen.

Vulnerability to the Dark Side

When thoughts occur to us, they are either coming from the Holy Spirit or from the evil one. How often am I entertaining a thought from the wrong side? Can I discern the source of my thoughts? When I practice conversing with God, converting every thought into a dialogue with Him, He becomes real in my life – close, relevant, Immanuel, the Lord my God! I can walk with Him, laugh with Him, cry with Him, share all of the details of my life with Him…He is my Daddy, my Protector, my Everything. Throughout the course of these conversations, the Lord fills my heart with His Spirit, He protects me from the enemy. Only through constant conversation with God can I be assured that my thoughts come from the Holy Spirit.

Am I constantly conversing with God? No. My spirit is in constant battle with my flesh for control. My flesh is tangible – it is here, I can touch it, I cannot cast it aside. The thoughts of my flesh weave in and out of my existence at a rapid-fire pace, and I am so used to the cacophony that I rarely pay attention to the origin of my thoughts. My flesh dominates my thoughts, and even when I attempt to focus solely on God, the barriers I have erected to keep out the flesh are so weak that many fleshly thoughts break through and enter into the place I want to give to God. I am “fluent” in fleshly thoughts and worries, and I want so much to forget this language and become fluent in the Kingdom language. This can happen only when I choose to become Christ’s slave and learn His language, truly dying to my flesh and all of its thoughts. The barriers that protect my thought life from the evil one will be strong and impenetrable only when I am fully enslaved to Jesus Christ.

Dear Abba, Daddy - I am a baby. I am weak. In the midst of everything I thought I understood about You and living the Christian life, I knew nothing. All I want is to know You. I want to be like Christ. I want to die to my flesh and live through Christ! I want my life to glorify You. I want to walk with You and enjoy a lifelong conversation with You. Thank You for Your mercy and compassion toward me, Your wayward daughter. Teach me to be in constant conversation with You! Teach me to block all thoughts that do not come from You! Give me the privilege of remembering my past so that I may repent of all of my sins and be truly cleansed. Be with me, Lord, and give me discipline and perseverance in this life so that I may grow closer to You each minute and be a constant reflection of Jesus. I love You and am honored to be Your adopted child. Thank You for Your blessing. May Your Name be glorified forever and ever!! Amen.