LIVING FOR HIS PRESENCE Kay Keith Peebles December 7, 2018 18.37
Instantly He came and nothing else mattered! I woke up around 4:30 in back pain. Several weeks prior I had reached down in an awkward position and my back and neck were still causing me continual pain and discomfort. My chiropractor told me to rest and take it easy. My mind was stressed by a list of things that needed to be done to prepare for Christmas. I tried to relax and go back to sleep. I even attempted to quote scripture set to memory but my mind was determined to keep worrying while my back kept nagging me. I was overly tired and couldn’t seem to break through to find peace. I gave up trying to sleep and got out of bed at 5:30am. I stumbled into the kitchen for a cup of coffee, feeling defeated, weary and concerned.
Settling down in my chair I sipped my coffee and opened my Bible. I read the Bible from Genesis to Revelation and then start the sequence all over again. I’ve been doing that for years and I can’t tell you how long it takes me to get through the Bible. Some days I read only one chapter and others two or three. Today’s reading was Numbers Chapter 4. Leviticus and Numbers are my least favorite books of the Bible because they are the Law and genealogy of the Israelites. My thought was ‘Oh well, I’ll begin here and maybe another scripture will come to mind that will give me comfort’.
The passage was about the duties of the Kohathites who were of the tribe of Levi and responsible for maintaining the Tent of Meeting in the wilderness. I honestly had a “ho hum” attitude when I began reading until I got to verses 5-7. “When the camp prepares to move out, Aaron and his sons shall come into the sanctuary and take down the veil (curtain) screening off the Holy of Holies, and cover the ark of the testimony with it; and they shall put on it a covering of porpoise skin (fine leather), and shall spread over that a cloth of pure blue, and shall insert the carrying poles of the ark. Over the table of the bread of the Presence they shall spread a cloth of blue and put on it the plates, the dishes [for incense], the sacrificial bowls, the jars for the drink offering, and the continual bread [of the Presence] shall be on it.”
When I thought of the Ark of Testimony in the Holy of Holies and read the words “the bread of the Presence” the Lord flooded me with His tangible Presence. It was a sensation like thick oil or honey which began at the top of my head and flowed down over me. The weariness and frustration I was feeling instantly left. I became overwhelmed with His love as tears began to flow down my cheeks. In a moment, none of my problems mattered. The God Who created the heavens and earth, died for my sins and raised me up to sit beside Him in heavenly places came into my family room and comforted me. My situation was not life or death, nor was it earth shattering but He came anyway. What love I felt. His love casts out all fear and worry making the impossible to be possible!
This was not the first time I have felt the overwhelming Presence of God and it certainly won’t be the last. The words in the scripture pierced my heart as I contemplated the thought of His “continual Presence”. Oh, there is such joy and peace in His presence. It is the atmosphere for miracles. It is the place where our paradigms shift from one direction to another and doubt is vanquished by faith. It is a place where He becomes so very real nothing and no one else can refute it in our heart. It is a place of seeing and knowing, touching and feeling. It is a place of impartation from Him to us.
I was a Christian many years before I realized that God wanted me to live in His Presence. I could hardly believe He was that personal. I would read it in His Word but I couldn’t understand the reality of that concept. “You will show me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy; in Your right hand there are pleasures forevermore.” Psalm 16:11. I would read that passage and long for His Presence but thought, not me, He doesn’t mean me.
The first time I was overwhelmed by His Presence was 1990 at a Women’s Aglow prayer meeting. I was president of our Women’s Aglow chapter and we were meeting in a friend’s home. The Hebrew word for God’s Glory describes it as heavy or weighty. I was sitting in a chair when the heaviness of His Presence washed over me. I felt weak in comparison and soon found myself face down on the floor basking in His Glorious Presence. He wanted all the women in the room to experience His Presence so He told me we should all “be still (silent, waiting) and know that He is God.” His Presence is as tangible as a hug but it is a Divine hug that permeates one’s entire being. His Presence can sometimes be seen like the cloud in the daytime and the pillar of fire at night that led the Israelites in the wilderness. It can be heard like a huge clap of thunder or felt like an overwhelming peace. Moses heard a voice coming from between the cherubim on the Ark of Testimony. Whatever the sensation might be His Presence washes over and through those who are being touched.
After that first encounter, it wasn’t long before His presence began to come home with me. There is an atmosphere we can cultivate which draws the Presence of the Lord. Hunger for Him and the worship of Him are like a magnet which draws us closer to Him and Him to us. Heaven opens above and around us when we seek Him as if we would die without Him (and we would). He satisfies the longing of the heart. The book of Song of Solomon shows the back and forth pursuit of the Presence of the Lord by the interaction of the King and the Shulamite maiden. There are countless distractions in our lives today but when we leave them behind to “yearn” for His Presence, He comes.
“Then [with a deep longing] you will seek Me and require Me [as a vital necessity] and [you will] find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.” Jeremiah 29:13. God really isn’t hard to find, but finding Him is determined by the depths of our sincerity and willingness to keep searching until He comes. He longs to be with us and there is nothing we will face that can hold Him back when we pine for His presence. “Even though I walk through the [sunless] valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod [to protect] and Your staff [to guide], they comfort and console me.” Psalms 23:4.
“And then I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, ‘See! The tabernacle of God is among men, and He will live among them, and they will be His people and God Himself will be with them [as their God].’ ” Revelation 21:3. His Presence is not for certain men, it is for all men, women and children who will seek Him. Many think getting saved is the beginning and the end until we die and go to heaven. Our salvation, glorious as it is, is only the beginning. Our Christian walk and life is to be like Adam and Eve experienced before the fall. They walked with Him daily in the garden. Moses experienced that “tabernacle” experience by abiding in His presence daily in the wilderness. Joshua followed in His footsteps.
David dwelled in the presence of the Lord when he tended his father’s sheep. His life was one of continual worship and praise. Leadership qualities are birthed out of His Presence. Our lives are transformed by time spent in His Presence. We cannot make it without His Presence. His Presence calms the stormy seas in our life and silences the voices of dissension. His Presence gives us a foundation upon which to stand and battle. His Presence assures us He will always be with us and we will enter into His rest, not just in heaven but here on earth!
“And so the LORD used to speak to Moses face to face, just as a man speaks to his friend.” Exodus 33:11. “Now therefore, I pray you, if I have found favor in Your sight, let me know Your ways so that I may know You [becoming more deeply and intimately acquainted with You, recognizing and understanding Your ways more clearly] and that I may find grace and favor in Your site… And the Lord said, ‘My presence shall go with you, and I will give you rest.’ ” Exodus 33:13-14.
It is the Presence of the LORD GOD that distinguishes us (His people) from the world. It is His Presence that crowns us with His Glory and empowers us to walk as He walked. It is His Presence that destroys our flesh and forms us into His likeness. It is His Presence that prepares us for whatever lies ahead. Many people are being martyred every day all over the world. I have often wondered if I would be able to stand in the day of decision when I am confronted with life or death, torture or freedom. I have come to know that it is His Presence that will see me through whatever comes my way.
“We have come to know [by personal observation and experience], and have believed [with deep, consistent faith] the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides continually in him. In this [union and fellowship with Him], love is completed and perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the Day of Judgment [with assurance and boldness to face Him]; because as He is, so are we in this world. There is no fear in love [dread does not exist], But perfect (complete, full-grown) love drives out fear, because fear involves [the expectation of divine] punishment, so the one who is afraid [of God’s judgment] is not perfected in love [has not grown into a sufficient understanding of God’s love]…No one has seen God at any time, But if we love one another [with unselfish concern], God abides in us, and His love [the love that is His essence abides in us and] is completed and perfected in us…God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides continually in him…” 1 John 4:16-21
His Presence is our daily bread. It is the life-giving sustenance we need to live for Him. His Presence is the essence of our faith, our hope and our confidence of eternal life. It is life-transforming and empowering. His Presence is where we become one with Him, and He in us as Jesus’ prayer in John 17 for oneness with Him is fulfilled. When we partake of the continual Bread of His Presence, we need not worry about what was or is to come. We rather stand in the assurance that, “He is able to keep you from stumbling or falling into sin, and to present you unblemished [blameless and faultless] in the presence of His glory with triumphant joy and unspeakable delight.” Jude 24.
May His Presence be with you always.
