The Awesome Privilege of God's Presence

“Surely the righteous shall give thanks unto thy name: the upright shall dwell in thy presence.” (Ps 140:13 AV)

 At first glance, I was drawn to the second half of the verse.  A reminder that we will dwell in the presence of God for all of eternity is the hope of all who endure the hardships of life.  However, after looking at the verse, the Spirit reminded me the purpose of dwelling in the presence of God is to thank Him for all that He is and has done.  When we appear before our God, it will not be solely for our benefit.  We will not spend eternity basking in the glory of His love, consuming that love as we are the center of our existence.  Neigh, neigh.  We will dwell in the presence of the Holy because we wish to share our deep and humble gratitude for all that He is and has done.  Starting with our very existence.  We may have troubles, but they pale in comparison to what awaits us in glory.  Even if we loathe our existence now,  and wish we had never been born, that will all change when we arrive in glory.  With our troubles over, we will stand in the light of His glory with thanksgiving in our hearts that we get the privilege of existence in His loving presence.

I have been reading a few books on marriage lately.  Upon reading them, I realize just how much I have failed the one that I love the most.  Humanly speaking, that is.  She is such a treasure I cannot find the words to describe her.  My Lisa is a phenomenal person in so many ways.  She has the glory of God’s life in her soul.  She is amazing.  Among those areas I have failed her over the years is not appreciating what she is and who she is to me.  Especially in our younger years, I didn’t always treat her like she deserved.  Taking a person for granted is one of those things we often do and seldom recognize.  In reading those books, the authors regularly pointed out to appreciate one another as a pattern of life.  It wasn’t that I was a monster or anything like that.  It is simply that I didn’t share with her as much as I should have how unique and special she was.  And is.  As we age together, we are growing closer at a much faster pace than we did when we were busy raising a family.  Now, when I dwell in her presence, it is to remind myself just how blessed I am.  The LORD could have given me a wife like the one in Proverbs.  Not the Proverbs 31 woman.  The other one.  The contentious one.  The brawler.  But He didn’t.  As far as I am concerned, He gave me the best woman He has ever created.  Near perfect.  I love her so much!

As much as we love our mates, our love for the LORD should be infinitely greater.  We often dwell in His presence because we need something.  Perhaps we have a physical need of this life.  So, we go to God and refuse to remove ourselves from His presence until that need is met.  Perhaps we need affirmation or security.  We need to be loved and feel safe.  So, we go to the LORD has we stay in His presence until those feelings of love and security flood our soul.  Perhaps we need encouragement or we need instruction.  So, we open the word of God and read until our eyes go bonkers listening for the voice of the Spirit to grant those things.  None of these is wrong.  We need all of them.  What the Spirit is challenging our hearts on this LORD’s day is to seek the presence of the LORD for no other reason than to thank Him for everything.  Starting with our existence, then our salvation, and ending with all the blessings He has bestowed; thanking Him for it all sure would keep the ambers of His presence burning brightly!