Recognize God's Presence

Whitney Hopler

Life has a way of swallowing you up in busyness if you're not careful. And when that happens, it's difficult to recognize God's presence with you. Although you know that in the Bible He promises to always be with you, perhaps it's been a while since you were aware of Him.

How can you sense God at work around you? If you change your life so that love is your top priority, you'll encounter Him. Here are some ways to do that:

• Understand that love is the most powerful force in the world, and that God is love. When seeking God, look for love in operation, not just religious principles.
• Ask God to fill you with His Holy Spirit so you’re better able to love Him and others.
• Trust God with every aspect of your life, inviting Him to transform you according to His purposes. Pray for the strength to let go of apathy, indecision, and an urge to control. Then pray for the courage to break out of old routines and live creatively.
• Think about how much God loves you by picturing Jesus on the cross and considering all He went through because He loves you. Thank God for forgiving your sins. When others hurt you, commit to forgiving them, with God’s help.
• Ask God to open your eyes when you look at others so that you can see them as He does – valuable children made in His image.
• Serve others. Think and pray about what ways you can best contribute to others’ lives using your unique talents, then take the initiative and do so. Strive to love people unconditionally, and ask God to help you serve them without judging them so that your love might impact them.
• Think about the living hope that the Resurrection made possible, then consider how you can give others a sense of hope in their suffering by loving them. List as many ways as you can think of to encourage people you know, then put your ideas into action as often as possible.
• Ask God to show you how you should set your priorities when you decide how to spend your life’s resources (time, energy, money, etc.) and to continually remind you of those priorities.
• Become an active part of a church family.
• Ask God to give you wisdom in every situation, and be open to learning new things every day.

Adapted from God Was Here, and I Was Out to Lunch by James W. Moore, copyright 2001 by Dimensions for Living. Published by Dimensions for Living, Nashville, Tenn., www.abingdon.org, 1-800-251-3320.

James W. Moore is senior pastor of St. Luke’s United Methodist Church in Houston, Texas, and is the author of numerous other books.

When have you sensed God’s presence with you lately? What was that experience like? Why do you think it’s important to change your life so that love is a top priority before you can expect to recognize much of God's work in your life? Visit the Books forum to respond, or read what others have to say. Just click on the link below.