It is possible for each of us to learn how to recognize and experience God’s presence–right now, every moment, wherever we are. There’s no better time than right now to begin living with an awareness of God’s presence in your life.
Set aside time during the next few days to read each of the following guiding principles for practicing God’s presence every day. Think about them, pray about them, and ask God to open your heart and mind to His presence.
Guiding principles for practicing God’s presence every day
(from “God Is Closer Than You Think” by John Ortberg)
- God is always present and active in my life, whether or not I see Him.
- Coming to recognize and experience God’s presence is learned behaviour; I can cultivate it.
- My task is to meet God in this moment.
- I am always tempted to live “outside” this moment. When I do that, I lose my sense of God’s presence.
- Sometimes God seems far away for reasons I do not understand. Those moments, too, are opportunities to learn.
- Whenever I fail, I can always start again right away.
- No one knows the full extent to which a human being can experience God’s presence.
- My desire for God ebbs and flows, but His desire for me is constant.
- Every thought carries a “spiritual charge” that moves me a little closer to or a little farther from God.
- Every aspect of my life – work, relationships, hobbies, errands – is of immense and genuine interest to God.
- My path to experiencing God’s presence will not look quite like anyone else’s.
- Straining and trying too hard do not help.
Meet God in this moment
The principle that impacted me the most today as I read and pondered this list was: My task is to meet God in this moment.
I find it too easy to get distracted in doing things for God instead of just being (meeting) with God.
I want to live each moment with God.
I want to have Him be a part of every aspect of my life.
I don’t want to segment my life (which has been a tendency for me in the past).
I want God’s presence to saturate every moment of my life!
Which of these principles impacts you the most today and why?
A Few Related Posts You May Find Useful:
Sermon Synopsis 8/12 – Practicing the Presence of God
Sermon Synopsis 12/30 – 3 things that God taught me in 2007
The most dangerous word in the English language is . . .
The ministry of presence
3 principles for resolving conflicts
6 ways to practice the presence of God throughout your day
God is closer than you think
Do you see God’s presence in the people around you?
That’s a good one Kev. We must know practices that God give each and everyday we live.
Thanks for sharing Mika!
Every individual has God in them. If you hurt anyone then you are hurting God.
Thanks for sharing Archana!
We must pray God every day as he is one who loves us unconditionally and is with us no matter what the situation, except when we go against his principles and moral values. Everyone will hurt you one day or the other but God will always embrace you
Yes, God will always embrace us no matter what!
Thanks for sharing Tammy.
A very inspiring post. I especially agree with “Straining and trying too hard do not help.” – the strain itself is too much of a distraction to get in the right frame of mind.
Yes it is Richard!
Thanks for sharing.
God is present everywhere, this is the thing we should never forget. Praying and feeling his presence every moment make us strong and faith in Him help us to fight every situation. Before going out for work, I usually pray for 10 mins that truly gives me great comfort and confidence.
Great practice Astrid!
Thanks for sharing.
Great shout out Kevin. We should know our practices. Thanks for letting me join the conversation.
Thanks for sharing Carmen!
I think if you are a believer, you always have God with you. He helps us to make decisions, and trust and hope and stay strong in the hard moments of life.
Thanks for sharing Julie!
Thanks Kevin for this inspiring blog post. We should always put God first in our minds and hearts, in all our endeavor in life, in everything we do, most of all every day we wake up every morning, we should not forget to thank Him for everything He does for us.
You are absolutely right Karyn, we must put God first in everything!
Thanks for sharing.
I have good God-focused intentions… but, annoyingly, I gain unexpected unintentions. And have to find a way to reverse the curse, so to speak. Heavy sigh!
This is something that I experience as well and I believe this is part of our overall growth.
Thanks for sharing Joanne!