Be A Strong Christian | Strong Christians Seek God’s Presence

 

We become what we practice

  • Good habits, bad habits
  • Healthy, unhealthy

A practice I have been focusing on recently is trying to be more PRESENT

  • With my wife/kids
  • So easy to unplug and zone out

The reason we must PRACTICE being PRESENT is that our lives are FULL of distractions

  • TV
  • Phones
  • hobbies

In the final week of our series “BE A STRONG CHRISTIAN” I want to talk about PRESENCE
Specifically God’s presence in our life

 

Jeremiah 29:13

13 You will seek me and find me when you search for me with all your heart.

 

A Strong Christian Seeks God’s Presence

  • Not satisfied with knowing about God, want to KNOW HIM

Because when we truly value someone, we want to KNOW THEM, not just know about them
I want to challenge some of you today with a question

Do you regularly sense the PRESENCE OF GOD in your life?

  • Do you feel his holy spirit speaking and guiding you?
  • Do you feel moved when you read scripture?
  • Do you feel convicted and encouraged in prayer?

Here’s the great news!

God wants to be known by us!

  • He wants you to know him
  • He wants you to seek him
  • You are created to know him

It will be helpful for us to understand how God’s presence is described in the Bible

  • 3 different types

 

1: Omnipresence of God

 

Psalm 139

1 Lord, you have searched me and known me.

2 You know when I sit down and when I stand up; you understand my thoughts from far away.

3 You observe my travels and my rest; you are aware of all my ways.

4 Before a word is on my tongue, you know all about it, Lord.

5 You have encircled me; you have placed your hand on me.

6 This wondrous knowledge is beyond me. It is lofty; I am unable to reach it.

7 Where can I go to escape your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?

8 If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there.

9 If I fly on the wings of the dawn and settle down on the western horizon,

10 even there your hand will lead me; your right hand will hold on to me.
God’s Omnipresence means God is everywhere

  • There is nowhere we can go to escape God’s presence

He saturates and holds all things together
This is why we can say, that we are never too far from God to turn to Him

  • He is always close

David says, ” if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there.”

  • Even in a place that feels like hell, God is close

God is not distant, and it’s his presence that extends his general grace to all of creation

 

God is the ONLY ONE who is OMNIPRESENT

  • Not satan
  • Not the angels
  • not those who have died

 

Because He is omnipresent, we can trust that God is close, even when it doesn’t feel like it

 

2: Manifested Presence of God

 

The story in the OT about a man named Sampson

  • Strong
  • Anointed by God
  • Falls in love with a bad woman
  • tricks him into telling her his strength secret
  • A vow to never cut his hair

Judges 16

20 Then she cried, “Samson, the Philistines are here!” When he awoke from his sleep, he said, “I will escape as I did before and shake myself free.” But he did not know that the Lord had left him.
Sampson had experienced the MANIFEST PRESENCE of God

  • God’s presence and anointing gave him supernatural strength

But unlike God’s omnipresence, His MANIFEST PRESENCE can leave us
What to know about the MANIFEST presence of God
The MANIFEST PRESENCE of God cannot be missed

  • People know

The MANIFEST PRESENCE of God changes people

  • They do not leave the same

Examples:

  • Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego
  • The burning Bush (Moses)
  • Pentecost

3: Personal Presence of God

John 16:13

13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth. For he will not speak on his own, but he will speak whatever he hears. He will also declare to you what is to come.

 

For many of us, this is the type of God’s presence that we are most familiar with

  • God’s spirit drawing close

 

NOT JUST A GOOD FEELING

  • A real encounter with God
  • Does not happen all the time

 

Examples:

  • Extended times of prayer
  • during moments of worship
  • in moments of broken (near to the broken hearted)
  • Asking for direction

God is personal

  • He wants us to EXPERIENCE HIS PRESENCE

 

How do we experience the PERSONAL PRESENCE OF GOD regularly?

  • Over-busy
  • Loud
  • Distracting culture/lives

We experience the PRESENCE OF GOD by the practice of BEING PRESENT with God

Learning to be in the NOW

 

We can’t experience god when we can’t SHUT OUT the distractions pulling us off the NOW being with God
I want to introduce you to the idea of the practice of STATIO

Statio: The Holy Pause Or Practicing Being Present to experience God’s Presence

 

Starting around the 4th century, Christian believers began incorporating “STATIONS” into their worship services

  • At each station, they would “PAUSE” to allow God’s spirit to be PRESENT with them

Christian Monastic Monk said it this way:

The practice of statio is meant to center us and make us conscious of what we’re about to do and make us present to the God who is present to us. Statio is the desire to do consciously what I might otherwise do mechanically. Statio is the virtue of presence.

 

When do you need Statio (Holy Pause:

  • Over-stressed
  • Too busy
  • Overloaded with information
  • Missing human touch
  • Worried or frustrated
  • Distracted by too many things
  • Pulled into pleasing people
  • Feeling disconnected from God’s love
  • In a hurry

 

Sounds like regular life for many of us

  • This is why so many of us are UNFAMILIAR with God’s Personal presence
  • We’re not used to being “PRESENT” with one thing

 

David prayed this…

Psalm 27

4 I have asked one thing from the Lord; it is what I desire:

to dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, gazing on the beauty of the Lord and seeking him in his temple.

 

To be a strong Christian, this must be our heart to…

  • This ONE THING
  • This over EVERYTHING Else

 

What Practicing Statio (Holy Pause) to seek God’s PERSONAL PRESENCE can look like:

  • Arriving a little early to meetings and events to pray
  • Walking outside to appreciate the beauty of nature
  • Turning car travel time into a worship moment with God
  • Immediately praying whenever you hear someone has a need
  • Praying while you’re waiting in line
  • Meditating on a Bible verse while you brush your teeth
  • Singing a praise song to God in the shower

 

 

Do you sense God’s Presence in your life?

  • Do you want to be a strong Christian?

 

Then Practice Statio: The Practicing Being Present to experience God’s presence

  • Holy Pause

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