The Gift of His Presence

I read Psalm 105 recently and I felt a stirring to write down all that the Lord had done for me over the past few years in a way that resembles Psalm 105.  At first that seemed simple enough, but as I started to put things on paper, I realized that this Psalm was very much about how the Lord had held back all of those who tried to defeat or oppress Israel in their quest to inhabit the land that God had promised them.  He rebuked kings, He sent a famine to the land.  But first, he sent Joseph ahead, not with an army, or with gifts, but as a slave sold by his brothers.

Joseph was in Egypt for years as a slave and in prison before he was put in a position of high authority in Egypt.  Then he served in that position for close to a decade before his brothers came for food and his family was reunited in Egypt. Generations later the Israelites were made slaves in Egypt. God saved Moses' life and put him in a place to have influence on Pharaoh, but even that influence couldn’t save his people. Pharaoh was stubborn, but ten plagues later he not only let them go but was thankful that they were leaving and sent them away with silver and gold. In the wilderness God protected the Israelites, provided food each day, and even opened a rock that poured out water.

I kept reading Psalm 105 over and over.  This entire passage is about how God moved against the enemies of Israel for their protection.  There were only three things mentioned that any of the Israelites did themselves.  The first two were wander and sell one of their own into slavery.  The last was Moses and Aaron performing God’s signs and wonders per direction from God. The wandering in Genesis could be following God’s directives (Abraham) or fleeing after deceiving your brother (Jacob) but in either situation God protected His people along the way. Selling a brother into slavery isn’t the most upright thing to do, but even so, God used it to preserve Jacob’s family. Even Moses and Aaron performing God’s signs and wonders didn’t move Pharaoh to do as they were asking.

On a side note, as I am typing this I am asking the Lord not to use me in ways that involve rods turning into serpents. Please use me in other ways Lord! I hate snakes.

So now I have been reflecting on the last few years. Instead of listing off the miracles, (a great thing to do though!) my plan was to list these out as ways the Lord went to battle for me, not against flesh and blood but against the rulers, authorities, and powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. (Eph 6:12) Then one thing became very evident. The one way to defeat these forces of evil is with the presence of Jesus. That’s the way the Lord battled on my behalf each and every day. He was with me. His presence is a gift. And before we even see the answer to a prayer on earth we have already received the best gift because that time in prayer was spent in the presence of Jesus. The gifts of this earth are circumstantial, they are great, but they aren’t Jesus. I’ve stopped trying to lay my problems and circumstances and even the people I love at the feet of Jesus. I just focus on laying myself at the feet of Jesus. That’s the beauty of the metaphor in the book of Ruth. She lays herself at the feet of her redeemer.

The Lord’s presence in our lives is constant for believers. We don’t have more of His presence in the good times or when our prayers are answered. It can be easy to talk about God’s faithfulness in light of an answered prayer, but if that’s the breadth of how we talk about His faithfulness we are missing out. His faithfulness stands out to me in His presence with me on the hardest days, and in the ways He sustains me consistently. So when uncertainty settles at the forefront of my mind I look to Him for His presence and comfort, knowing that the gift in the midst of the unknown is His presence, and that when He answers that prayer, the gift will still be His presence.

In John 6 Jesus preaches a sermon that is really hard to hear and understand. Many of the people following Him decided to turn back. Then He asked the disciples if they would turn back too. I love Peter’s response. I find myself quoting it often.

“Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.”

This is where sanctification happens, this is where we learn to lean into our Heavenly Father.  When we can’t understand, when we are hurting, when we are waiting, the gift of His presence comforts us in ways that we cannot explain.

And my only job in this is to lay at His feet.  He does the rest.