I think persevering in the spiritual life, persevering and being faithful to God each day, in prayer, inevitably and clearly leads us to a daily, constantly reoccurring awareness of the real and actual Presence of Jesus Christ. In my life these days there are distinct occasions when my mind begins to wander, when my awareness of the Lord begins to fall asleep, and by the grace of God I am moved to pray in my mind’s eye:
Oh Lord I know You are present, present in me
and in these others who are in my life at this time,
present in this situation in which I find myself!
Keep me attentive to Your Holy Presence!
Let me not slide away from or be careless
in my awareness of Your loving presence.
In many circumstances I am aware of being in constant, habitual, silent conversations with the Lord and I know such awarenesses come only through the grace of God, which the Lord encourages me to fertilize or feed through faithful, daily, habitual prayer, Scripture meditation, and quiet time in the Presence of Almighty God! This is our life for us all! This is the path for us all!
I recently read this in Deuteronomy 11:13-17, and as you consider this text, remember that it was spoken by Moses many centuries ago!
“If you will only heed God’s every commandment that I am commanding you today —
loving the LORD your God, and serving Him with all your heart and with all your soul —
then He will give the rain for your land in its season,
the early rain and the later rain, and you will gather in your grain, your wine, and your oil;
and He will give grass in your fields for your livestock, and you will eat your fill.
Take care, or you will be seduced into turning away, serving other gods and worshiping them, for then the anger of the LORD will be kindled against you and he will shut up the heavens, so that there will be no rain and the land will yield no fruit; then you will perish quickly off the good land that the LORD is giving you.”
So do take time today in prayer and in quiet silence in God’s Presence.
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, have mercy on me a sinner!
From the Bible:
“And hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us” Romans 5:5.
“For those whom He foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, in order that He might be the firstborn among many and sisters brothers”
Romans 8:29.
“But as for you, O children of God, flee these things. Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness. Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses” 1 Timothy 6:11-12.
“If you love me, you will keep my commandments” John 14:15.
“Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope” Romans 5:2-4.
“As for that in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patience” Luke 8:15.
Comments