Entering God's Presence

“Father God, I love you . . . I worship you . . . you are so great, so glorious.” These words roll off my tongue in rapid succession, so quickly, so easily as I begin my time of prayer. And as soon as they do, I realize it comes too quickly, too easily. It barely has meaning. It’s just words with little heart.

I slow down. I think. I reflect. I meditate on the glory of God. And now, I begin to enter into the presence of God.

Here is what is in the heart of the one who truly knows and experiences the glory of God’s presence:

One thing I have asked from the LORD, that I shall seek: That I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, To behold the beauty of the LORD And to meditate in His temple. . . . When You said, "Seek My face," my heart said to You, "Your face, O LORD, I shall seek." (Psalm 27:4,8 NAU)

As a deer longs for streams of water, so I long for you, O God! 2I thirst for God, for the living God. I say, "When will I be able to go and appear in God's presence?" (Psalm 42:1-2 NET)

Do you hear and feel the desperation and determination in these verses? “One thing I have asked from the Lord, that I shall seek.” “As the deer longs for streams of water, so I long for you, O God! I thirst fo God . . .” This is passion. This is a desire that demands to be satisfied. It is unquenchable by anything else but personal, intimate, me and God alone in unity of heart, mind and soul fellowship! Nothing else will do. There is no stopping, no ending of the pursuit until there is an abiding in the presence of God. Desperation. Determination.

Discovering the intimate presence of God begins with a longing that has resided deep in the heart, that has been expressed to God, and a longing that will continue to be pursued, “all the days of my life.” There is a continual thirst, for once you have drunk from the well of God’s divine presence, you will be satisfied with nothing else. You may drink from other wells, but they will be so tasteless and unsatisfying that you will know there must be something more, something better, something you know you have tasted before and long for again.

But how is it cultivated? How do you come to taste of this soul-quenching presence of God? You “behold the beauty of the Lord”. Some translations replace the word “behold” with the word “gaze”. It is an intense look. It is contemplation and meditation. On what? On the “beauty” of the Lord. His splendor. His majesty. His glorious greatness. His divine character.

This is no casual approach to God! You can’t think you can carve out 15 minutes in your day, read a few verses, read a few paragraphs in a devotional, and then rattle off all your requests to God in the remaining time and expect to enter into and experience fellowship in the presence of God. It takes time! Time to empty your head of all the thoughts that compete with single minded focus on God. It takes time to focus your thoughts on the character of God. It takes time to get yourself quiet before Him to spend time with Him and hear from Him.

There’s a principle that runs through scripture, especially the messages of the prophets. It is this: “You will seek me and find me when you search for me with all your heart (Jer. 29:13).” Jesus repeated the same basic idea when He said the first and greatest commandment is to love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. You don’t get to the place of intimate fellowship in the presence of God by half-hearted effort. It comes through passionate pursuit that will not stop or be satisfied with anything else but to know, “I have met with God; I have been in the presence of God. And now, I go forth, living and walking in His presence.”

Lord, may I attempt to be satisfied with nothing else then to know your very real presence in deep, meaningful, intimate, personal fellowship with you in your presence. May I be desperate for and determined to gaze on, meditate on, and adore your beautiful majesty. Lord, keep me in your presence, always abiding, walking with you, mindful of your presence with me at all times. Help me to live in fellowship with you – true, life altering, thought governing, heart beating with your heart fellowship with you.

SDG
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