Psalms 46:1 – God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
God is a very PRESENT help in trouble. The presence of God isn’t just a religious idea or doctrine. The presence of God is the presence and reality of an actual, powerful loving being with me always.
Matthew 28:20 (Amplified Bible) – Teaching them to observe everything that I have commanded you, and behold, I am with you all the days (perpetually, uniformly, and on every occasion), to the [very] close and consummation of the age. Amen (so let it be).
I love this. He is with me always, all the days, perpetually, uniformly and on every occasion. This means that no matter how I feel or what is going on, He is there the same. I can talk to Him and trust in Him. I can by faith treat this scripture as true and walk in His presence perpetually, uniformly and on every occasion. When I do this and put my faith in Him, I will find Him there just as He said.
Benefits of His Presence:
Psalm 16:11 – You show me the path of life. In your presence there is fullness of joy; in your right hand are pleasures forevermore. Fullness of joy, pleasures forevermore, the path of life – are all found in His presence.
Acts 3:20 – …so that times of refreshing may come form the presence of the Lord… There are times of refreshing from His presence.
Psalm 31:20 – In the shelter of your presence you hide them from human plots; you hold them safe under your shelter from contentious tongues. In His presence is safety, a place to hide, even from words (or thoughts)
Coming into His Presence:
The Bible teaches us how to come into His presence. We need to learn from the word of God how to draw near to God as well as in every other area of life.
Come into His presence with thanksgiving, making a joyful noise, singing songs of praise. Draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith. We are welcome in His presence.
Psalm 95:2 – Let us come into His presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to Him with songs of praise.
Psalm 100:2 – Worship the Lord with gladness; come into His presence with singing.
Hebrews 10:22 – Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith…
V. 19 – through the blood of Jesus.
Psalm 4:5 – Offer the sacrifices of righteousness and put your trust in the Lord.
Hebrews 11:6 – Without (apart from) faith it is impossible to please God…
If you want to reach Him and leave with His answers, you must do it His way! If you want to always abide in His presence, you must do it based on the Word.
Seek and Live in His Presence Always:
Psalm 105:4 – Seek the Lord and His strength; seek His presence forevermore.
Psalm 140:13 – Surely the righteous shall give thanks to your name; the upright shall LIVE in your presence. Since He has opened the way into His presence and invited you to come in, you are always welcome there – every day from now for the rest of your life – you need never, never leave. He has promised to never leave your nor forsake you. You can live in His presence every minute of every day – since He is always there unchanging, it is up to you not Him.
You Can’t Get Away from His Presence:
Jonah 1:3 – But Jonah set out to flee… from the presence of the LORD.
Psalm 139:7 – Where can I go from your spirit? Or where can I flee from your presence?
Genesis 3:8 – When they sinned, Adam and Eve hid themselves from the presence of God.
Psalm 51:11 – Do not cast me away from your presence, and do not take your good spirit from me. This was under a different covenant. Since He has promised to never leave nor forsake us, since he lives right inside of us, we should never pray like this.
Hebrews 4:15-16 (Amplified Bible) – For we do not have a High Priest Who is unable to understand and sympathize and have a shared feeling with our weaknesses and infirmities and liability to the assaults of temptation, but One Who has been tempted in every respect as we are, yet without sinning. Let us then fearlessly and confidently and boldly draw near to the throne of grace (the throne of God’s unmerited favor to us sinners), that we may receive mercy [for our failures] and find grace to help in good time for every need [appropriate help and well-timed help, coming just when we need it].
He understands whatever we are going through and has told us to confidently draw near to His throne of grace – that we may RECEIVE mercy and FIND grace to help for every need. What a wonderful invitation! Take Him at His Word and draw near today.
Another thought: When do you need mercy or grace? When you have been messing up. So when you are in need of mercy – DRAW NEAR!
1 John 1:9 – This is God’s instant cure for a sense of unrighteousness, for times when you feel guilty and unworthy because of something you have done (or not done). Once you confess a sin it is gone. Train yourself to believe the Word rather than your feelings. Draw near to Him and TAKE His grace; FIND His mercy – right now when you need it!
1 Samuel 2:21 – …and the boy Samuel grew up in the presence.
Some More Thoughts:
God is always the same and always with me the same, but my perception and my feelings continually change. Truth is not based on my moods or passing emotions or the present circumstances but on the eternal realities and on the unchanging nature of God and the eternal Word of God.
If I begin to rely on feelings and they change, I feel like “things: have changed. But if I continue to rely on God according to His Word regardless of how much or how little I feel Him or what seems to be happening around me, my faith is based on something eternal and unchangeable and will remain constant regardless of feelings or circumstances; therefore His presence in my life remains the same – even in my own perception.
I need to rely on the fact of His unchangeable presence not the feeling or assurance of it. Relying on feeling His presence throws things out of balance, and when I no longer feel it, He seems to be gone. But when I rely on a fact that is always the same, His presence never changes – because the fact never changes.
Times of prayer don’t have to be filled with a sense or feeling of power and God’s presence to be effective; they have to be filled with faith.
Don’t try to reproduce some “feeling.” But God is with you as He always has been. Faith in this fact activates its realty – not “feeling” His presence in some way.
Treat Him like He is there because you know He is not because you feel Him.
Count your time in prayer as worthwhile – whether you feel His presence or not. Make your transactions with Him through faith, and count them as real.
Walk by faith. Faith makes Him real to you. Faith always comes before a manifestation of something.
So in conclusion, the presence of God is there always the same. Draw near to Him and draw from Him all that you have need of – every day and on every occasion!
For more on this subject, see the below articles.
