Do We Enjoy God's Presence?
Scripture Reading — Psalm 37:1-9
Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him.
—Psalm 37:7
In Seeking God’s Face, a devotional prayer book, author Philip Reinders urges readers to take the time each day to enjoy God’s presence. Every day he invites us to “take refreshment in God’s presence.” In his own words the author is repeating what David says in today’s verse: “Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him.”
Most of us find ourselves too busy to be still and to wait patiently for the Lord. I urge you to take a few moments today to look back on the past week and see the amount of time you have spent enjoying God’s presence. Maybe you rushed to work or hurried to get your kids to school or to some other activity. Maybe you had meetings to attend, appointments to keep, text messages to send, and emails to answer. You may have had games to go to and other events to attend. When you glance back, do you see much time in which you focused on God’s presence?
If not, perhaps a few changes are needed. What if you got up a few minutes earlier each day to pray? What if you spent a half-hour less watching television or texting or on the Internet to reflect on God and enjoy his presence? Some of us must learn to say “no” to some activities in our church or school. We need to discipline ourselves to be still before the Lord and to take the time to wait patiently for him.
Father in heaven, please help us make changes, if nec-essary, to spend more time enjoying your presence. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
About the author — Arthur J. Schoonveld
Rev. Art Schoonveld is a retired minister in the Christian Reformed Church. Before retiring in 2001, he served churches in California, Illinois, and Michigan. Since his retirement he has worked part-time for the denomination and has served as an interim pastor. Art and his wife, Anita, have four children and nine grandchildren.
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