THE PRESENCE OF GOD

                                                                 THE PRESENCE OF GOD

“When we acknowledge His presence, we are bringing presents to the Lord.”  These are words that the Lord gave me the other day when He was inspiring me to write about His presence.

There is a book that over one million people have read, entitled, “The Practice of The Presence of God.” It was written by Brother Lawrence.  He was born to poor farmers in 1611 in Lorraine, France as Nicholas Herman.  His parents could not afford to educate him so he enlisted in the army.

It was during his 18 years in the army that he was awakened to a spiritual experience concerning God’s love and grace.  He retired from the army and became a lay monk who was a humble cook in a Carmelite Monastery.  He discovered the secret of holiness by “practicing the presence of God.”

 “The time of business does not with me differ from the time of prayer; and in the noise and clatter of my kitchen, while several persons are at the same time calling for different things, I possess God in as great tranquility as if I were upon my knees at the blessed sacrament.”

"We can do little things for God; I turn the cake that is frying on the pan for love of him, and that done, if there is nothing else to call me, I prostrate myself in worship before him, who has given me grace to work; afterwards I rise happier than a king. It is enough for me to pick up but a straw from the ground for the love of God."

“He does not ask much of us, merely a thought of Him from time to time, a little act of adoration, sometimes to ask for His grace, sometimes to offer Him your sufferings, at other times to thank Him for the graces, past and present, He has bestowed on you, in the midst of your troubles to take solace in Him as often as you can. Lift up your heart to Him during your meals and in company; the least little remembrance will always be the most pleasing to Him. One need not cry out very loudly; He is nearer to us than we think.”

“The difficulties of life do not have to be unbearable. It is the way we look at them - through faith or unbelief - that makes them seem so. We must be convinced that our Father is full of love for us and that He only permits trials to come our way for our own good.

“Let us occupy ourselves entirely in knowing God. The more we know Him, the more we will desire to know Him. As love increases with knowledge, the more we know God, the more we will truly love Him. We will learn to love Him equally in times of distress or in times of great joy.”

 

“The most intimate union with God is the actual presence of God.  Although this relationship with God is totally spiritual, it is quite dynamic, because the soul is not asleep, rather, it is powerfully excited.  In this state, the soul is livelier than fire and brighter than the unclouded sun, yet, at the same time, it is tender and devout.”

 

In 1998, the Lord gave me words for this song which is about seeking and resting in God’s presence.

 

“In Thy Sweet Presence, Lord”

 (Marty and Marcella Ward 1998)

 

In Thy sweet presence Lord, I humbly come.

In Thy sweet presence Lord, Thy will be done.

O choirs of angels, do humbly bow.

In Thy sweet presence Lord, we praise Thee now.

In thy sweet presence Lord, we joyfully sing.

In Thy sweet presence Lord, our gifts we bring.

 

Thy Living Bread, Thy presence fill.

My heart my soul, my spirit fill.

His blood was shed, to set us free.

Be born Thy living Word in me.

 

Carry the cross, with Jesus now.

Guide and protect, will be His vow.

His blood was shed, to set us free.

Be born Thy Living Word in me.

 

No one will ever be denied.

Come all to Jesus, for you He died.

His blood was shed, to set us free.

Be born Thy Living Word in me.  (Copyright 1998)

 

A Prayer for Resting in God’s Love

 

Father God, I come into your presence so aware of my human frailty and yet overwhelmed by your love for me. I thank you that there is no human experience that I might walk through where your love cannot reach me. If I climb the highest mountain you are there and yet if I find myself in the darkest valley of my life, you are there. Teach me today to love you more. Help me to rest in that love that asks nothing more than the simple trusting heart of a child. In Jesus name, Amen

 

 Sources:

1. Learn Religions, “Biography of Brother Lawrence, Practitioner of God’s Presence” by Mary Fairchild, updated July31, 2020

2.“The Practice of the Presence Of God” by Brother Lawrence

3. Beliefnet

GOD'S TEMPLE

                                                                 GOD’S TEMPLE

“The Ark of the Covenant was one of the most instrumental symbols of faith and God’s presence. The contents of which included the tables of the Mosaic law, a pot of manna, and the rod of Aaron. The Ark’s origin stemmed from Exodus 25:10 when Moses was commanded by God to “make an ark of acacia wood.

Unlike the statutes of gods idolized by many of the Israelites, the Ark of the Covenant served as a religious symbol where the people could meet with God. He hovered over the Ark when the priests were present. If the priests were absent, the presence of the law tablets reflected God’s presence. Thus, the Ark of the Covenant was aptly named because of the commandments written on the tablets.”  (What Was the Ark of The Covenant?  Its Meaning and Significance by Chad Napier; Christianity.com/Crosswalk Contributing writer)

Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in your midst?  I Corinthians 3:16 (NIV)

 Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.  1 Corinthians 6:19 (NIV)

Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone.  In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord.  Ephesians 2:19-21 (NIV)

Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water.  Hebrews 10:19-22 (NIV)

“The breaking of Jesus’ body at the crucifixion is the unprecedented means by which believers have access to the presence of God.” (Professor Daniel M. Gurtner) 

 The Ark of the Covenant contained the presence of God.  Moses was told by God to build it.  It contained the Ten Commandments.  It was a reminder to the people of God’s presence.  King Solomon, who was David’s son, built the first Temple. 

The First Temple was totally destroyed in the Siege of Jerusalem by the Neo-Babylonian Empire in 586 BC.  The Romans destroyed the Second Temple in 70 AD.  According to most theologians, a Third Temple will be built during the Tribulation when the anti-christ will declare himself as God. 

We are God’s Temple.  It is He who lives in the Body of Christ.  Remember when God said to Moses, This is the covenant I will establish with the people of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.  Hebrews 8:10 (NIV)

I believe that it was God’s intent all of the time to manifest His presence by showing the people first through the building of the Ark of the Covenant.  It was a visible sign.  Then when Jesus died, we received the full inheritance of Christ as children of God through the Salvation of Jesus on the cross of Calvary.   The renting of the curtain at the Temple when Jesus died signified  that there was no longer a division between man and God because Jesus became the Mediator between man and God Almighty. 

A Temple is a place where God dwells.  When we ask Jesus into our heart, He comes in and dwells in our body and spirit.  We are made in the image and likeness of God.  When we speak God’s Word, He is speaking through us.  When we are compassionate and reach out to others, it is God Himself, through our actions, touching other people’s lives.  St. Theresa of Avila once said, “Christ has no body now on earth but yours, no hands, no feet but yours. Yours are the eyes with which Christ looks out his compassion to the world. Yours are the feet with which he is to go about doing good. Yours are the hands with which he is to bless us now.”

It is overwhelming to me that God would choose, through Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit, to dwell in such an imperfect body in which who we are is manifested in our soul which consists of our mind, will and emotions.  So many times our soul can be in conflict with God’s will but that is why the Holy Spirit is there to counsel, help and comfort us.  We are not alone. 

“But at the beginning of creation God ‘made them male and female. ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.^] So they are no longer two, but one flesh.  Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.”  Mark 10:6-9 (NIV) We are no longer alone when we ask Jesus into our hearts and lives.  We become one in Him through the Holy Spirit dwelling in us.  His true Presence abides in us.

The following is a quote from Brother Lawrence who was a lay brother and was born in 1614 and wrote the book, “The Practice of The Presence of God.”

“He does not ask much of us, merely a thought of Him from time to time, a little act of adoration, sometimes to ask for His grace, sometimes to offer Him your sufferings, at other times to thank Him for the graces, past and present, He has bestowed on you, in the midst of your troubles to take solace in Him as often as you can. Lift up your heart to Him during your meals and in company; the least little remembrance will always be the most pleasing to Him. One need not cry out very loudly; He is nearer to us than we think.”
― Brother Lawrence, The Practice of the Presence of God

Yes, God is “nearer to us than we think.”  He is so near that He lives inside us.  We are His Temple so His presence living in us is solace in times of trial but also a joy to know that the God of all creation dwells in us!!  So next time you hear that quiet inner voice, listen because He is speaking to His beloved--------------YOU!!

SALVATION PRAYER

Thank You Jesus for dying on the cross to cleanse me from all my sins.

Forgive me of all my sins as I forgive those who have offended me.

Come into my heart.  Dwell in me.  I surrender my life to You.

Thank you Jesus!!

 

YOU CAN’T KEEP GOD ON A SHELF

YOU CAN’T KEEP GOD ON A SHELF

How many of us remember the “elf on a shelf”?  He was supposed to be watching, in this case, the children to see if they were naughty or nice.  Do you think that the elf stayed there very long before someone either stole, trashed, or covered it up so that the “all-seeing elf” could not see what they were doing?

I think that it is the same with God.  Do we put Him on a shelf?  Is He only there when we want to use Him to answer our prayers?  Do we compartmentalize God to the extent that we rush to go to Church, put our “time” in and then almost run over somebody to get out of the church parking lot?  Actually I know someone who actually got a ticket in a church parking lot for driving too fast!!

Do we forget about God the minute that we leave the church parking lot?  Are we thinking about the game we are going to watch that day and keep looking at our watch?  

Putting God on the shelf, in my opinion, means that He is really not a part of our lives. We put Him “on the shelf” after church services, after other services.  We put Him on the shelf when we go about our activities during the day when we do what we want to do not really focusing on God’s will. 

It is so easy because of our human nature to not include God.  The truth of the matter is that God is always with us even when we turn away from Him by our own actions or our sins.  He is always reaching out to us.  He desires to have a personal relationship with us.

The following is called “A Letter from a Friend”:

I just had to write to tell you how much I love you and care for you.  Yesterday I saw you walking and laughing with your friends; I hoped that soon you’d want Me to walk along with you, too.  So, I painted you a sunset to close your day and whispered a cool breeze to refresh you.  I waited---you never called---I just kept on loving you.

As I watched you fall asleep last night, I wanted so much to touch you.  I spilled moonlight onto your face---trickling down your cheeks as so many tears have.  You didn’t even think of Me.  I wanted so much to comfort you.

The next day I exploded a brilliant sunrise into glorious morning for you.  But you woke up late and rushed off---you didn’t even notice.  My sky became cloudy and My tears were the rain.

I love you, oh, if you’d listen.  I really love you.  I try to say it in the quiet of the green meadows and in the blue sky.  The wind whispers My love throughout the treetops and spills it into the vibrant colors of all the flowers.  I shout it to you in the thunder of the great waterfalls and compose love songs for birds to sing for you.  I warm you with the clothing of My sunshine and perfume the air with nature’s sweet scent.  My love for you is deeper than any ocean and greater than any need in your heart.  If you’d only realize how I care.

My Father sends His love.  I want you to meet Him---He cares, too.  Fathers are just that way.  So, please, call on Me soon.  No matter how long it takes, I’ll wait---because I love you.

Your Friend,

JESUS

Brother Lawrence, who was a 17^th century lay brother who lived in France during the Thirty Years War in which he had fought.  The following are a series of quotes from Brother Lawrence:

The time of business does not differ with me from the time of prayer; and in the noise and clatter of my kitchen, while several persons are at the same time calling for different things, I possess God in as great tranquility as if I were on my knees. 

He does not ask much of us, merely a thought of Him from time to time, a little act of adoration, sometimes to ask for His grace, sometimes to offer Him your sufferings, at other times to thank Him for the graces, past and present, He has bestowed on you, in the midst of your troubles to take solace in Him as often as you can. Lift up your heart to Him during your meals and in company; the least little remembrance will always be the most pleasing to Him. One need not cry out very loudly; He is nearer to us than we think.

There's no greater lifestyle and no greater happiness than that of having a continual conversation with God.

It is possible for us to live in the very sense of the Lord's presence, under even the most difficult circumstances. If you and I are going to enjoy the peace of paradise during this life we must become accustomed to a familiar, humble, and very affectionate conversation with the Lord Jesus.

The world appears very little to a soul that contemplates the greatness of God.

Loving God and loving one's neighbor are really the same thing.

Brother Lawrence

Don’t keep God on the shelf.  Carry Him wherever you are, whatever you are doing and He will fill you with His presence as Brother Lawrence invited Him to every area of his life.  Doing so, you will find true peace because it is His peace that He offers us each day.

PERSONAL PRAYER

                                                          PERSONAL PRAYER

I have talked about the importance of praying scripture.  Jesus set the example as He prayed the scripture.  We know from the scriptures that Jesus went off to pray.  This was His personal prayer between Him and God. 

In this busy, crazy, world we need to quiet ourselves and seek a place that we can come before the Lord in prayer.  Just you and Him.  It is a time of intimacy.  It is a time where one can get away from the trappings and noise of the world and seek our Father as His child.

Ann Graham Lotz, Billy Graham’s daughter, gives 4 components of her prayer time.

1.       Worship

2.      Confession of sin

3.      Thanksgiving i.e. answers to prayers; blessings

4.      Intercession

Worship does not necessarily mean a worship song.  It can be affirmations about God’s goodness and love.  Most of the Psalms were written by David and the word Psalm actually means song.  Many of the Psalms give praise and glory to God.  For example Psalms 149 and 150. 

This is a time to ask God to show us our sins as we ask for forgiveness and ask God to give us the strength to overcome our sins daily.

We thank God for His goodness and blessings.  We can thank God for answers to prayers.  The fact that we awake in the morning tells us that God has a purpose and a plan for our day.

Intercession is important not only for our own needs but for the needs of others.  If we forget who to pray for we can write people’s names and prayer requests down.

In my own prayer time with the Lord I start out the day praying the scriptures and then reading a chapter in the Bible.  Then I spend time with the Lord during the afternoon.  My afternoon time with the Lord has two basic components that I felt Him telling me to do.

1.       Give:  Worship and Praise God.  I usually do this by singing praise and worship songs on my IPad.  I may add, “Jesus, I praise You.”  “Lord I love You,” etc.

2.      Receive:  I listen to what God is speaking to me for that day or season.  This is the hardest time for me because I sometimes don’t have the patience to just sit still and listen.  Sometimes the Lord will remind me of something I need to do or give me insight on something that I am focusing on such as a Blog, etc.  Sometimes He will give me a prophecy and I write it down.

Prayer, essentially, is just talking to God.  It is also listening to Him.   This is one area that is difficult for me as far as distinguishing His voice and mine but I think God is teaching me each day as I truly seek to hear Him so I can do His will.

After all, prayer is not only at set times during the day but it is continual.  Brother Lawrence knew about this.  Brother Lawrence was born Nicolas Herman in modern-day eastern France. His parents were peasants, so his schooling was limited. Young Nicholas Herman grew up during the calamitous Thirty Years War, which devastated central Europe between 1618 and 1648.   He joined the army as a youth.  At the age of 26 he entered the order of the Discalced Carmelite Priory in Paris, France.

Here are some quotes from Brother Lawrence from his book, “The Practice of the Presence of God.”

We should establish ourselves in a sense of God's presence, by continually conversing with Him.  We can do little things for God; I turn the cake that is frying on the pan for love of Him, and that done, if there is nothing else to call me, I prostrate myself in worship before Him, who has given me grace to work; afterwards I rise happier than a king. It is enough for me to pick up but a straw from the ground for the love of God. “He does not ask much of us, merely a thought of Him from time to time, a little act of adoration, sometimes to ask for His grace, sometimes to offer Him your sufferings, at other times to thank Him for the graces, past and present, He has bestowed on you, in the midst of your troubles to take solace in Him as often as you can. Lift up your heart to Him during your meals and in company; the least little remembrance will always be the most pleasing to Him. One need not cry out very loudly; He is nearer to us than we think.”

The King, full of mercy and goodness, very far from chastising me, embraces me with love, makes me eat at His table, serves me with His own hands, gives me the key of His treasures; He converses and delights Himself with me incessantly, in a thousand and a thousand ways, and treats me in all respects as His favorite. It is thus I consider myself from time to time in His holy presence.”

 “That we need only to recognize GOD intimately present with us, to address ourselves to Him every moment, that we may beg His assistance for knowing His will in things doubtful, and for rightly performing those which we plainly see He requires of us, offering them to Him before we do them, and giving Him thanks when we have done.”

Prayer is more than just a special time with God.  It is a way of life. Prayer will be different for everyone but we can look to others, such as Brother Lawrence, as examples of the presence of God in our lives.  The next topics will be about praying for others and praying in the Spirit.