pastorjohnb

Thoughts and musings on faith and our mighty God!

Tag Archives: presence


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Like Abraham 

Reading: Hebrews 11: 8-16

Too often we are deaf to God’s voice.  Like with Abraham, God is seeking to bless us and to do great things in our lives.  Throughout our day God seeks to connect to us, to draw us into relationship, to allow us to experience the presence of the Spirit in our life.  Too often we miss these chances.

Most of us have had significant encounters with God.  Maybe they were during a retreat or when we were at camp.  Maybe they were in a deep valley where our sense of God’s presence became very real at the low point of a trial or struggle.  Maybe it was during a special worship service or when we were on a mission project.  At certain times we are particularly open to hearing God’s voice or experiencing God in our midst.  But God desires this to be our frequent experience throughout our day.

The ‘God moments’ we have experienced are powerful and meaningful.  So this leads us to seek out why we do not have these times more often in our day to day living.  In Abraham’s story we find some clues.  First, he was open to hearing God.  At times God’s voice will boom into our lives.  But Abraham had his ear ever tuned to God and had his spirit focused on God.  We too can do this by being intentional in inviting God into our daily lives and by being cognizant of the opportunities God places in our lives.  These may come in the wise words of a friend, in the face of the one in need we encounter on the sidewalk, or in the still small voice of the Holy Spirit whispering into our heart.  Second, when Abraham felt God’s presence or heard the voice, he listened and was honest.  If he did not understand or felt doubt or fear, he was honest with God about these things.  God did not walk away, but responded.  Through faith Abraham heard and obeyed God and was credited as righteous.

Life can consume us.  Life can swirl around us.  The noise and busyness can obscure God’s voice and the encounters sent our way.  When we allow these things to occur, our relationship with God suffers.  Our soul is poorer for having missed out.  Our faith is not as strong as it could have been had we experienced God’s presence.  We, like Abraham, can hear God’s voice often.  We, like Abraham, can become attuned to that voice, lifting it above the daily hum.  The more we hear the voice, the better we listen. And we, like Abraham, can and will experience God’s presence and blessings when we slow down and focus on our faith.  May we learn to be like Abraham so that we can receive the promises, blessings, and power of God in our lives, daily and often. 


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Thanks

Reading: Psalm 50: 1-8 & 22-23

God’s voice booms out in this passage.  It opens with, “The Mighty One, God, the Lord, speaks”.  One can hear the thunder in God’s voice.  Rightly so, God sounds like an angry parent.  God summons the people Israel to hear what needs to be said.  God reminds them of their covenant and that God is their judge.  In the verses not read from the Psalm, God lays out both why they should offer just thank offerings and also a list of the sins they are committing.  As we pick up in verse 22, God reminds ‘you who forget God’ the consequences and benefits of following God faithfully.

We live in a time where blood sacrifices of animals arr no longer made nor are they necessary.  Christ’s sacrifice on the cross covers all of our sins.  Yet God still desires our sacrifices.  In our passage God calls for thank offerings.  These are what God desires of us as well.  A thank offering expresses our gratitude to God for all we have been blessed with.  This can run the gamut from our tithe that we lay on the altar to the time we give to mentor one new to the faith.  It can be the time we give to teach a class and it can be the time we set aside each day to specifically and gratefully thank God for the specific blessings of each day.

This idea goes beyond simply saying ‘Thank You’ to God for the good things in our life.  Our thanksgiving also keeps us humble by recognizing God’s hand in all of our blessings.  It takes the focus off of us and how good we are.  We are also made more aware of God’s vast love, mercy, grace, … and this lessens the load that we feel we have to carry.  It relieves us of some of our fears and anxieties as we come to trust more in God’s provision, power, and presence in our lives.  We come to know God is in control.

Today may we take some time to thank God for the many ways we are blessed by and experience the divine hand at work in our lives.  May we express our gratitude through our selfless offering of our time, gifts, talents, resources, service, and witness.  And may we welcome the presence and peace of God into our lives.


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Presence

Reading: Psalm 107: 43

Today’s verse is a great reminder to do something we seldom do enough of: consider the great love of the Lord.  In the busyness of our lives we rarely slow down enough to pause and recognize God’s role and presence in our lives.  Thus we rarely slow down enough to offer our praise and thanksgiving for God’s activity and presence in our lives.  The less we do this, the less we seem to be thankful to have God in our lives.

When we are in touch with God’s activity in our lives, we are grateful for the many ways we experience that love and presence.  We are also more aware of the ways we can use God’s love to engage others through the use of the gifts and talents that God has uniquely blessed us each with.  This is our grateful response.  This engagement also keeps us focused on God and our faith.  The more we recognize and offer our thanks for God in our life, the more we become aware of it.  It is a good cycle.

As a church, we too can become so focused on what we are doing to involve new people or whatever we think God is calling us to that we forget God is involved as well.  As the body becomes more and more us-centered we slowly but gradually lose the sense of God leading and guiding the church.  On the other hand, there are churches who seek God’s presence, direction, will… almost constantly.  These churches very much have God at the center of all they do.  Looking in from the outside one can see how alive the Spirit of God is in that place and in those people.  It is a beautiful and wonderful thing.

As children of God, we too must seek God’s presence and be aware of God’s handprints in our lives.  Our grateful response is to offer God our thanksgiving and praise.  In doing so we too will exude the light and love of God and Christ in us.  We will be a living example of Christ to all we encounter.  May our joyful, Christ-centered lives witness to our faith and the hope we have in Him this day.


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Mary Time

Reading: Luke 10: 38-42

“Mary has chosen what is better and it will not be taken from her”.  What is better is to sit at Jesus’ feet, to listen to His words, to meditate on their meaning, and to apply them to our lives.  Just as Mary did this, we too are called to daily do the same.  We are called to what is better, to spend time with Jesus.

Life is busy and there is always much to do.  We can easily fill our days up with a long to-do list.  There are so many people and things we are committed to.  We can all relate to Martha in this story.  She is feeling the pressure to always be on the move so that all gets done.  She is a doer and a worrier.  One cannot read this story without feeling at least a little like Martha and without feeling at least a little conviction.

I think a little conviction is good now and then.  It allows us to examine our lives, our practices, our priorities.  There is no need for guilt.  The story simply allows us to evaluate if we are spending enough ‘Mary time’s or not.  Deep inside we all feel the pull to spend time daily with God and we all know that life is better when we do so.  Once the habit is established, our daily personal time with God is closely guarded and kept sacred.

It does not matter if our Mary time is early in the morning, during our noonday break, or in the evening sometime before bed.  It does not matter if our time with God is relatively short or if it is really long.  Each of us are unique and need to find our own best way to come and sit at Jesus’ feet, to connect our heart and soul to His.  If you do not have Mary time each day, try it for a few weeks.  Pick a spot in the New Testament and read and reflect and pray for a little while each day.  If you do have some Mary time each day, blessings on your time each day in His presence!


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Ever Present

Reading: Psalm 30

Psalm 30 is an excellent representation of our journey of faith.  It begins with praise to God for the protection and healing that He gave.  At times in our lives we definitely sense a hedge about us that God is providing.  Our “foes” rise up against us and we feel as if we may fall, yet we do not quite topple or give in.  In the midst of it we can sense God’s hand upon us.  Or perhaps, looking back, we can see where God came to our rescue.

At times in life, though, we can also question where God is.  We cannot sense His presence and He seems absent in our struggles.  As the psalmist writes, “You his your face, I was dismayed”.  We can all recall such times in our lives.  The writer’s solution?  Cry out and pray to God anyway.  Earnestly seek to be in God’s presence even when He feels far away.  Even in our seasons or ‘dark nights of the soul’ God is still present.

Midway through, in verse five, we are reminded that God’s favor is for a lifetime.  Once we enter into that saving relationship, we are forever His.  In this verse we are reminded that joy will come in the morning.  The writer returns to this theme in verse 11.  Because of God’s unfailing love, He turns our mourning into joy and dancing.  The response is praise and thanksgiving to God.  This response is the same as when it feels He is absent: seek Him through prayer and worship.

Faith is a journey.  These times of feeling that God is absent can lead to doubt, which is a normal part of our faith journey.  These times reveal our human limitations.  God is omnipresent.  In our struggles, it is we who question the fact of an omnipresent God.  Like the psalmist, may we too pray through the silence and may we ever offer our thanksgiving and worship for the grace, love, and favor that never ends.


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Might and Power

Reading: Psalm 77: 1-2 and 11-20

As our reading opens, the psalmist feels stress and worry and fear.  The writer feels all alone – isolated from people and from God.  It is a hard place to be.  At points in life our problems can seem to mount up like a wall around us.  We cannot see over the top and it seems as if others and God cannot see in.  In these moments we cry out to God and seem to get no response.  We want God or people to come to our aid or to at least bring comfort and it turns out as if all were oblivious to us.

As the song progresses, there is a shift.  The psalmist is perhaps in worship or maybe just the power of the raging storm reawakens his sense of God’s presence.  In either case, the psalmist realizes that God has always been present.  He recalls God’s mighty acts on behalf of the community of faith.  He remembers God’s good news and this lifts his spirit.  In the vastness and power of God the writer comes to see that he is not alone and that there is much more to God than just the personal relationship.

In our lives we too will feel all alone from time to time.  As our problems mount, may we look to the skies, to nature, to history to remind ourselves of God’s presence.  May we recall the story of Jesus and all that God incarnate offers to us.  May we find presence and comfort and strength in His power and majesty.


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Transitions

2 Kings 2: 1-2 and 6-14

Transitions are hard.  They create stress.  In our modern world, which moves at such pace, transitions are all too common.  Be they in our families, at work, or within our circle of friends, transitions often occur.

Elijah and Elisha are preparing for a transition.  Elijah has been God’s lead prophet for Israel.  He has spoken the truth to kings, often in fear for his life.  And now it is soon Elisha’s turn to take up the mantel, to carry the load.  Many, including Elisha himself, are wondering if he is able to continue the difficult work of Elijah.

We too have all come to a similar crossroads.  We find change occurring in our lives and we wonder if we are up to the new task at hand.  Points such as our first real job, our moving to a new stage in our education, and our getting married all bring us to the point of asking ourselves if we are prepared for this next step.  Others around us are probably thinking the same thing.

After Elijah is taken up, Elisha picks up his cloak and walks over to the edge of the Jordan.  As he prepares to cross back over, before touching the water, he invites God’s presence in.  As the cloak touches the water, the waters part as they had for Elijah, and Elisha crossed over.  The prophets gathered just a ways away probably let out a collective sigh or maybe even cheered.

As we come to similar junctions in our lives may we also invite God into our situation.  May we too rely on His presence to be with us.  And may we also step out in faith, trusting that God will go before.


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Holy Spirit Power

Reading: John 16: 14-15

I think the same fears that gripped the disciples also grips us.  Without Jesus in their midst, how would the work continue?  Without Jesus leading the way, how do we have the power to do it?  Without Jesus, how do we know what to say or where to go?  They were full of doubt and questions.

Jesus closes out His earthly time by reassuring the disciples that He is not leaving them alone.  He promises them the gift of the Holy Spirit to answer all of their questions and to ease all their fears.  In essence, Jesus is giving them His continued presence in the form of the Holy Spirit.  Jesus assures them that in the Spirit they will find both Him and God.  The coming of the Holy Spirit into their lives will bring them the courage to do the work, the direction on where to go, the guidance on the words to say, and – most importantly – it will be the power of Jesus and God in them.

A frequently asked question on journeys is, “Are we there yet”?  On our journey to complete the great commission the answer to this question is obvious.  If Jesus has not returned yet, we are not there yet.  Until He comes again in glory, our work must continue.  Each follower of Jesus Christ must continue to be at work to bring the good news to all people.

The same fears that gripped the first disciples still grip us.  We ask how, what, where, when, and why questions all the time.  Our answer is the same as theirs was.  Through the power of the Holy Spirit, with God and in Jesus.  We too are called to trust in the presence, guidance, and power of the Holy Spirit.  We too can cast aside our fears and can go out to bring Jesus to the world.  May we go filled with the power of the Holy Spirit and with His light shining out from within!!


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All of the Time

Reading: Psalm 8: 2

Even though God and His creation draw praise and worship from some, others do not see the beauty and majesty of His creation or acknowledge His power and might.  Instead of lives that steward and protect His world and all He has created, some choose to abuse the earth and its inhabitants for their own gain.  Some even go so far as to murder, to wage war, to pillage the land for its resources.  They ignore or deny God’s existence because it eases their consciences.

In nature we also find occurrences or events that seem to fly in the face of God and His love.  Tsunamis and earthquakes destroy property and kill scores if not hundreds of people.  Disease strikes and takes innocent lives, often too soon or too young.  Individuals or groups carry out heinous crimes or spew hate and we shake our heads.  There is much pain and death and sorrow in this world.  But God does not cause these things to happen.  Violent storms are part of nature; disease and death come to perishable and frail human bodies; and, at times, mental illness occurs or Satan’s plans occasionally win the day.

We can ask where is God in the midst of all this.  We can ask why God doesn’t intervene to keep all harm from His children.  These are hard questions.  But we know the rain falls on the just and on the unjust.  God loves the sinner just as much as the saint.  God does plan good for our lives.  He blesses us with gifts and talents and often with many resources.  He seeks to be in a personal relationship with us.  In the midst of our trials, God sheds tears right along with us.  He seeks to be our rock in the storm, our comforter in the pain.  Simply put, God seeks to be present to us all of the time, in the good and in the bad, not just on some days.  May we too do the same.


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Spiritual Life

Reading: Psalm 104: 24-34 & 35b

In the Psalm today we see the timelessness of the Holy Spirit.  The psalmist writes of the Holy Spirit coming and breathing life into all of the creatures of the earth.  We see a similar giving of life in Ezekiel 37 where the dry bones are covered in tissues and flesh but require the Breath or Spirit to come into them to give life.

At Pentecost, the life given is a spiritual life, not a physical life.  When the Holy Spirit descended on those first believers, they were physically alive.  But when the Spirit entered them they were born anew, not of flesh and bone, but of the Spirit of God.  They were each made into a new creation as they were filled with a power and presence unlike anything before.  The living and active presence of God was now here to dwell in the hearts of all who call on Jesus as Lord and Savior.  The physical sign of the flames that descended on each there that first Pentecost demonstrated that the Holy Spirit is not limited to one place or time and is not limited in its presence.

Just as the Spirit breathes physical life into all things, the Spirit can breathe spiritual life into all of humanity.  Just as the power and presence empowered the first disciples to take the message of Jesus to Jerusalem, Samaria, and across the known world, so too does the same Holy Spirit enable us to take the same good news out into the whole world.  Just as the first disciples allowed the Holy Spirit to set them on fire for sharing the good news, may we also be lit ablaze with the light and love of Jesus Christ as well!