The Presence Of The Lord Changes Everything

We all have our share of problems and each person thinks theirs is greater than any others. One thing you can be sure of - today you will face difficulties. Jesus even warned us that life would not be fair to us. The thing is, make sure you are not the source of your troubles. We have enough to face without causing unnecessary pain to ourselves.

Now I am not trying to be a downer today because along with the facts of life is the reality of our part in it. When we are facing difficulties we have a few choices in the direction we will head. We can choose to fight it, complaining all the way. We can choose to deny it until it destroys us. Or we can deal with it using the tools Jesus has given us.

One of the greatest gifts we have been given is the constant abiding presence of the Lord. We may not always remember and we may not always practice his presence, but when we do, he becomes our greatest source of strength, encouragement, and wisdom. There is a line in psalm 73 that always reminds me of this fact. The psalmist was struggling over the apparent prosperity of the wicked and he could not understand until he humbled himself and entered the presence of the Lord:

When I thought how to understand this,
It was too painful for me—
Until I went into the sanctuary of God;
Then I understood their end. (Psalm 73:16-17)

Too often we make our struggles harder than they need to be. Father never intended for us to face anything on our own. But all too often we try to take short cuts in the relationship. We will fire off a few quick prayers and expect the situation to be removed, but Father wants intimacy. He will resist us so that we are forced to take the time to consider the situation. He will delay the response until we realize what we have done and come into the awareness of his presence. He is always present but we are often too busy with life to notice.

Taking the time to be aware and to sit in Father's presence is the greatest step we can take to overcoming the difficulties of our day. Whether Father removes them or gives us the strength to overcome them, it starts with our relationship with him. The presence of the Lord changes everything, and the joy we experience from knowing he is with us is the perfect way to face every new day.