Practicing The Presence Of God


Evan. Rachel Thomas
Evan. Rachel Thomas

To put it simply: to practice the presence of God is to fill every waking moment with thoughts of God! Before you say that is impossible let’s go a little further. I begin to completely surrender to God by deliberately taking time from each hour to give God much thought. The more I thought on God, the more I was loosening myself from everything, and everybody, including self, to be completely submitted to the will of God, every moment of every day.

This type of deep and intense method of getting close to God should not be undertaken unless you are dissatisfied with your present relationship with Him for you will be changed. To practice the presence of God is to totally and continually surrender to Him and be immerse in his presence. Once a Christian has learned this total surrender, God will be felt in every thought and every action that is made.

The Bible makes mentions of the presence of God, and when it does, it is actually referring to God’s face or His nearness – a special closeness that can be felt. One of the attributes of God is that he is omnipresent. He is everywhere all the time-but when I say “His presence;” I mean that close, intimate relationship we sense when we draw near to Him in prayer, worship, and reading His word.

The power of his presence is needed in our lives. Our daily walk can be a series of trials and tests that can drain even the strongest believer. It is during those difficult times that God’s presence is especially needed for He brings with Him the strength and power we must have to overcome the enemy and bring victory. Philippians 4:13 is when Paul was speaking of inward power to deal with what the devil throws at us. Paul knew as you and I do, that all of our strength is through Christ. I have learned through experience that the true power in my life comes from practicing the presence of God. I learned of the protective power of God’s presence when I was a young girl. He protects His own and He does so in many different ways. God may send a band of angels to protect you or the Holy Spirit may speak gently to guide your pathway. God may use other people and circumstances to protect His sheep.

God has a job for you and He has blessed you with gifts and abilities to do it. There is purpose in his presence. You may hear someone say God never speaks to him or her. He will speak to you when you become sensitive to his voice. Closeness and intimacy with the Father will bring that spiritual sensitivity to listen in different ways. His leading may come to us by reading the Bible, or by a sermon or maybe by some special prophetic Word or circumstance. To practice His presence is to tune our ears to His divine direction that will further the Kingdom of God.

There is perfection in His presence, but let me tell you this. I am 81 years old now and part of those years I have lived and worked around other Christians of many races. I have been privileged to meet and fellowship with some of the finest people in the world. But I have never met a perfect person. Quickly, I would add that I am not a perfect person either and far from it. When the Bible speaks of perfection of men, it does not mean “sinless perfection, but completeness of to reach a goal or purpose.

The Bible speaks of three stages of perfection of man. The first is positional perfection, which every Christian possesses and refers to our relationship with Christ (Heb. 10:14). Next is relative perfection, which speaks of a believer’s spiritual maturity. This maturity is gained progressively and is called “perfecting holiness” in 2 Cor.7:1, and “now made perfect” in Gal. 3:3. By using the gifts given by God, you and I are helping the perfecting of other saints (Eph. 412).

The relative perfection or maturing process has to do with our total growth in areas of LOVE (1 Jn. 4:17- 18); HOLINESS (2Cor. 7:11); PATIENCE (Jas. 1:4); and every good work (Heb. 13:21). Each one of these areas of our life will grow as we practice the presence of God and we absorb these attributes from Him. Of course, the third stage, of perfection of the total man – Mind, Body, And Spirit –The Ultimate Perfection Will Occur At The Resurrection (Phil. 3:11).

Yes, the practice of His presence will bring praise from our hearts and many other good things to glorify Him because to remain silent is to deny Him of His due worship and praise. “Let the heaven and earth praise Him; the sea and everything that moveth therein” (Psa. 69:34). Is it possible to practice the presence of God by continually communing with the Lord? It is certain that we will not be like Him or enjoy the beauty of His presence until we give Him more of our time and more of ourselves. By incorporating Christ into everything we do, we practice His presence.

I believe this type of continual communing with God is what Paul meant when he said “Pray without ceasing” (Phil. 5:17). It is the constant beholding of God’s face that enables us and prepares us to pray when serious needs such as we have arisen. Saints, get closer to God by continually thinking of Him and you can reap the richness of His presence. Because of Christ, Mama Rachel


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