“Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.” Zechariah 8:23 NKJV
“They best practice the Presence of God who transform even the secular into all things sacred.”
My thoughts today are about “a sense of His presence.”
A small collection of letters and conversations were gathered after the death of an obscure monk of the Seventeenth century, working in a monastery kitchen in France. He was Nicholas Herman (1605-1691), better known as Brother Lawrence. His letters were compiled in a small book, “The Practice of the Presence of God,” ultimately becoming one of the most widely read books.
Brother Lawrence used his tedious and mundane responsibilities and relative obscurity for a lifetime of “a habitual, silent, secret conversation of the soul with God . . to live as if there were none but He and I in the world.” Whether scrubbing pots or serving dishes, he used every moment and simple act of service as his expression of worship and communion with God. His life’s history was shaped by the simple, everyday practice of God’s presence, as well as the hearts and lives of innumerable readers of his personal reflections.
The practical truth of that little book has impacted my life and ministry as well. In 1966, after Gayle’s and my first few years of pastoring in Granite City, Illinois, we returned to Bethany University to finish my senior year. We were serving on the staff of a church in San Jose, California. I well remember one Spring morning toward the latter part of that year. Driving the twenty or so miles of winding, mountain highway early each morning for 8:00 am classes and then back each day at noon to be at the Church office, I found the daily routine of the commute more and more dreaded.
That morning before leaving the drive of our apartment, I prayed, ”Lord, be with me today . .“ Interrupted before I could say a single word more, I felt God’s whisper in my heart, “I have been with you every morning; you just haven’t noticed.” I sat in my car alone, stunned and quietly weeping for my spiritual insensitivity to His loving presence. As I write today, tears again fill my eyes for the times God has been with me though I was distracted and oblivious to the privilege of His company. I feel as Jacob, “Surely, the Lord was in this place and I was not aware.” Genesis 28:16 NIV.
In tears, I asked forgiveness for my unawareness and pledged myself to recognize and prize God’s presence in both duty and opportunity. Then I did something that would have seemed strange if anyone were looking on. I walked around to the passenger side of that maroon, ’66 Buick, opened the door and invited Jesus to be with me. I cannot describe the sheer joy of that morning’s commute, and each morning thereafter.
Each day, I would again walk to the other side of my car, open the door and consciously, even verbally, invite Jesus to be with me. That car became my personal place of daily prayer and worship. I do not recall a season of my life when I have known the joyous fellowship of the Lord more.
I have sought to make “the practice of the Presence of God” a spiritual discipline, and I am the richer for it. Though Jesus is always there, the heart-shaping experience of His nearness is reserved for those who invite Him into the most common activities and moments of daily life. Psalm 16:11 NKJV. You best practice the Presence of God when you transform even the secular into all things sacred. In doing so, you practice for Heaven. The Presence of God is to be treated as the highest and holiest of privileges, never regarded as common nor taken for granted. Read Psalm 139:1-12 NLT.
My prayer for you today is: sense the Lord near, and let others be drawn to His Presence.