Practicing the Presence of God

By Michael Richards

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first Commandment” Mathew 22:37-28

Faith is more than just reading your Bible, going to church and doing good works. Our works without God is not only useless, but it is also a sin (Rom.14:23). When we do good works for God, we should not do it for ourselves to make ourselves feel good (Matt. 6: 2-4). Any work we do should reflect our faith, so that by our works others may see our faith (James 2:18). The First Great Commandment of God is the foundation of faith, even more so than the ever more popular Second Great Commandment (Love your neighbor as yourself).

God is always with us and even sent the Holy Spirit to be our teacher (John 14:26), comforter and overall companion in our faith. Even though He dwells within all believers (John 14:17), I find it awkward that He is often ignored in our prayers and in our daily lives. Most people think of God as some king clothed in majesty, sitting in heaven looking down upon all His people, or as Christ who became the sacrifice for all of our sins. Yet, God gave us another part of Himself so that we could build a relationship with Him.

Its probably best to mention that the mere proclamation of belief is not faith. Real faith is the firm belief in your heart that God is always present and wants to spend time with you and work with you in your faith. Its coming to the recognition that the only thing keeping you back is your sins, which are forgiven through Christ. Lastly faith is the belief that God is what gives your life meaning and that He didn't ask for some of you; He wants all of you. At my church we often pray “I proclaim with my mouth and believe in my heart”. Our verbal proclamations and our actions should reflect the belief which stems from our hearts. This is best done by having a relationship with God, not merely a knowledge of Him. To have this relationship, we must first believe He is really there.

The best way to remember God is always there is to practice the presence of God. Its best to start by remembering God is there when you do little everyday things (like chores or work). Do those little chores or typical work at your job as if you are doing it for God. Talk with God as if He is really there (because He is). Also keep in mind God's presence when you feel you are being tempted, especially as your emotions begin to flair up. Also, find something you really don't do often (or even want to do) and do it for the sake of God (like those chores you don't like or talking with the person at work who aggravates you).

It's best to start small. Its not easy to practice God's presence, but over time you will find that the relationship you build with God will astound you and be a huge blessing. It's always important, that while you are practicing, keep in mind that the Holy Spirit is there with you every step of the way. Before going to the Father with your prayers, ask the Holy Spirit to help guide those prayers in a way that will be pleasing to the Father. Keep the whole Trinity of God in mind in your prayers. I felt that has helped not only my prayer life, but my walk with God as well.

(Note: This article was inspired by the book Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence. I highly recommend reading it.)

LOVE IN ACTION

Suppose a brother or sister has no clothes or food. Suppose one of you says to them, "Go. I hope everything turns out fine for you. Keep warm. Eat well." And you do nothing about what they really need. Then what good have you done? It is the same with faith. If it doesn't cause us to do something, it's dead. But someone will say, "You have faith. I do good works. "Show me your faith that doesn't do good works. And I will show you my faith by what I do. (James 2:15-18 NIRV) When Jesus began his three year ministry his love for others was set in motion. He was the ultimate “love mover” and is still leading the love movement till this day! What did Jesus do in the name of love? You can read about it in greater detail in the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John of the Holy Bible. Jesus Christ healed the sick, fed the hungry, prayed for and encouraged others to believe, and ultimately paid the ransom for the sins of this world by dying on the cross; giving sinners a chance at eternal life in heaven. Now that you know this, look around you! There's a world full of lost and and hurting people. Whether they are hurting physically, spiritually or both you can show them God's love. Jesus Christ has set the example; now go!

ARE YOU TIRED?

Ever wondered why you get a feeling that everything that you've put your hope in runs dry? Your coworkers, your family, your friends, your spouse, can't live up to your expectations. You've got your feelings hurt by some of these people. They let you down. You try to buy more things in order to make yourself feel happy. You experiment with new relationships to in order to get in touch with others in a deeper way. Still, you're left feeling empty. You may feel like you're out of touch with God, and that he doesn't have time to hear about your problems. Or that he is disinterested with you and only deals with church goers or “good people” instead. Have you ever heard about God saying this: "Come to me, all of you who are tired and are carrying heavy loads. I will give you rest. Become my servants and learn from me. I am gentle and free of pride. You will find rest for your souls. Serving me is easy, and my load is light." God is waiting to hear when you admit that you're tired of “trying to live right” and “trying to do good by others”. When you admit it, he will give you a peace of mind. This is what he means by rest.

Tithing

The one question all pastors attempt to answer is "Why a should Christian tithe?" Some give the reasoning that tithing comes with a promise of better living and God's protection from the devourer. Others contend that it is a way for us to show God that we place Him over our earthly possessions. There are many reasons and all of these reasons are biblically sound.
However, there is one primary reason that has often been ignored or underwritten, humans did not create anything on earth, only transformed those things which God has created.

Since God made all things and left to individuals the duty of caretaking, no man can say that he has obtained all that he has on his own. Through tithing we come to recognize that God is the creator of all things, and we are merely the transformers and caretakers of those things. After all, we believe a man should be paid for his labors, so then what sense does it make for a believer to withhold God His fair due. Like any other business transaction, God looks for those who recognize they owe Him for his service and what He does. Not only does God find favor with those
people but seeks their wealth by expanding their wealth both physically and spiritually.

Christ has shown that the way we handle our relationship to God will determine our place in Heaven. If we cannot show God our gratitude here on earth over little matters, then how can God trust us with more important things in Heaven. This is why God doesn't force us to give. He wants to know our faith in Him is moving from glory to glory. He wants us to give happily in recognizing that
all we have is from Him and is kept secure by Him. Christ freely gave Himself on the cross so that our souls can be saved. This Grace was given freely but was given at a cost, God's only begotten Son. If what I said before doesn't convince you the importance of tithing, always remember, God sacrificed for you long before you ever sacrificed for Him.