“I know a man who has practiced the presence of God for the past forty years. He understands what it means to be in the presence of God, though he has several names for it:
“A simple act
A clear, distinct way to know God
A fuzzy vision
A loving gaze
Waiting on God
Silent chats with God
Soul peace”
— Practice the Presence of God, Brother Lawrence
I find it remarkable the simplicity of this list. I would have imagined results of experiencing the presence of God to be large in scale, a Moses-like event of parting of seas or manna from heaven. How about a Daniel experience of being in a lion’s den or, better yet, a Peter and experience of walking on water?
Come on! We are talking about the presence of the Almighty God, creator of the universe, maker of mankind, deliverer over all death HIMSELF!
Yet God chose a simple list to allow us to experience His presence. Why you might ask?
If you read the accounts of the great miracles, you will find a common element in all of them. It is that they were all forgotten, and the recipients went on to doubt and question God the very next morning. Sure, those miracles had the shock and awe effect, but it appeared to have a short shelf life as to their impact on their souls.
Now consider the list above again. They have an intimacy about them, an individualist sense, they touch the heart and soul. They meet our daily needs. God said not to worry about tomorrow for today will have enough troubles of its own. He wanted to give us bite size, today size, in the moment size glimpses of Him. He knows that if He gave giant sized accounts of His presence, it would have been amazing to say the least, but the soul would be left wanting.
So instead, He whispers to us, He sits quietly with us, He allows us to feel His presence in physical ways by experiencing real things like joy, comfort, and peace.
God, I am grateful that You are so powerful that you can move mountains. To be really honest, I’m even more amazed that the God of the universe can love me so much that He would meet me in the most simple and personal way. That He would allow for me to refer to Him as a friend and a Father.
Just a Thought…
