The Ever-Presence of God

Psalm 16:11

You make known to me the path of life;  in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

What are areas of my life that could be changed by experiencing and living in God's presence?

That was the question Alan ended with in his sermon this past Sunday.. that is the question that we need to think on every day and in every circumstances and for every decision.

In our own pride, we think we can run away from the presence of God. Jonah did and ended up in the stomach of a whale. Moses thought no one was looking when he killed an Egyptian. Joseph learned through his life circumstances that God orchestrated all events for glorious ordained reasons and purposes.

God throughout the Bible manifested or magnified His divine presence, starting from the Garden of Eden, through the tabernacle and the temple and finally in the New Testament, through Jesus. In I Cor. 2:12-16 says, ¹² Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God.¹³ And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual. ¹⁴ The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned. ¹⁵ The spiritual person judges all things, but is himself to be judged by no one. ¹⁶ “For who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ. The Holy Spirit indwells us. There is never a time when we are not in God's presence and we can never run away from Him.

Psalm 139:7-10 says, ⁷ Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence? ⁸ If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there! ⁹If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, ¹⁰ even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me.

Do you believe it?

Do you live it?

Think back on the question that started this post... How will you live out the answer to that question?