God's Presence
"When, like Elijah, you're surprised by sheer silence, listen to God speaking deep inside. When, like Peter, you're scared by the wind on the sea, look to Jesus right there with you. Finally, when bedtime nears, stop and review how the Spirit caught you by the hand and caught you off guard with love. Hold these close to your heart and go to sleep."—Br. Luke Ditewig, SSJE, from "Brother, Give Us a Word," a daily email sent to friends and followers of the Society of Saint John the Evangelist (SSJE.org).
God promises God is always with us, beside us. Always. All the time. How do we feel that presence? My experience is that when I connect to the God within me, the Christ within me, and when I can see the Christ in my neighbor, I feel God's presence.
We feel God's presence when we feel the fruit of the Spirit, love, joy, peace, patience, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness, self-control, and kindness (Galatians 5:22-23). We feel God's presence when we suddenly realize we can do something we did not think we could do.
During troublesome times, God shows up in the presence of someone who loves us just as we are. This epiphany can be in a phone call, an email, a snail mail, or even a text.
It isn't easy to spend any time outdoors in nature, or even to gaze outdoors to observe the birds feeding near our windows without feeling the presence of something greater than ourselves.
Gratitude helps us wear new glasses to recognize God's presence in our lives.
Forgiving ourselves and others keeps us from putting up the barriers that prevent us from seeing God in our lives.
Beauty in art, music, the sacred word, poetry, fiction, and nonfiction writings can open up our eyes, ears, and minds to see God sitting right beside us—on a bench at the National Gallery, Crystal Bridges, or in the center orchestra section of the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra, or as we curl up in our favorite chair with a favorite book.
