The Yoke of the Ox...

BASKING IN HIS PRESENCE

 I remember as a little girl how excited I often got when my dad came back home from work, I do not know how to describe the feeling but maybe I had butterflies in my tummy, I was always so excited. Oh! how I loved to have my dad around, it was always the crown of my day. Daddy would carry me up so high, well it seemed high at the time, make funny faces, play with me, I would laugh and giggle and smile he was always a delight to be around. I was always looking forward to be in the presence of my dad, but just like many other dads he wasn’t always around 24/7 he would go to work and come back in the evening, sometimes he would travel for days, so he was there but not always there. This is the difference between my earthly father who is now late and my heavenly Father. My heavenly Father is always there 24/7, he is there when I am asleep, he is there when I am confused, he is there when I feel discouraged, he is there in my high moments, he is there at my lowest moments.

God calls all of us to an intimate relationship with Him, He is there to guide us through life, He is always by our side, He never sleeps, and He always listens. So why do we still fear? Why do we still worry so much? I understand that these feelings can come once in a while but why should they stay? Do we look for joy in all the wrong places? Where do we get counsel for the matters of our lives from? Are we listening to worldly experts? We have a Father who created the universe and everything in it, he even created the devil, this same Father is the one that lives in us, and so if we have such an awesome presence with us 24/7 why are we not living life to the fullest? Why are we not fulfilling our God given destinies? Why are we not taking advantage of his awesome presence? Or do we reserve the presence of God for church services, prayer sessions or seminars?  I believe there would be many tears in heaven not just tears of joy but tears of regret because many would regret not taking advantage of the opportunities they had, by opportunities I mean the awesome presence of the Holy Spirit in our daily existence.

The Oxford dictionary describes bask this way ‘Lie exposed to warmth and light, typically from the sun, for relaxation and pleasure’ When you bask in God’s presence you are in a relaxed mood all the time even when it seems like there’s a storm all around you, his warmth is ever present, you enjoy the pleasures of knowing God in a deeper and refreshing way, when you bask in God’s presence nothing else matters anymore but pleasing the one who brings you so much joy, you aren’t thinking about what you have to do next, you aren’t worrying about the things of the past. When we bask in Gods presence he takes over our daily lives, where we go, what we say, what we do, friends we keep, he gives us divine knowledge about situations and warns us of impending doom, when we bask in the presence of God he assures us that all will be well, he gives us the grace to go on in this walk with God, how can we go on when we do not have a real relationship with the one whom we serve, when we bask in his presence it’s not just about attending church or playing eye service  when those in leadership are around, it’s about a deep relationship with the Father that no one can destroy except ourselves. When we bask in God’s presence our wisdom comes directly from God without which we find ourselves attempting to live the Christian life without His power, thus we fail.

How sweet it is to bask in the presence of our Father in heaven, David put it so well in Psalm 34:8

‘Taste and see that the Lord is good.    
    Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him!’

And Psalm 16:11

‘You will show me the way of life, granting me the joy of your presence and the pleasure of living with you forever’

 How can we go through life in this crazy world without Gods presence, why do we not take full advantage of this gift God has put in place for us? The gift of the Holy Spirit. In God’s presence we live beyond our limitation. As believers we know the awesomeness of his presence, because we believe in Jesus and have accepted him into our lives but we must be careful not to cut ourselves off from the free flow of His spirit. God desires to be intimate with those whom He created and deeply love.

It’s not cool to live life without the presence of God infact I have come to realize that the coolest people on earth are those that carry Gods presence. You can be the coolest fashion designer who comes up with the best designs if you carry His presence, because God is interested in design and creativity we see this in the story of Noah’s Ark (Genesis 6:14-16), the priestly garments (Exodus 28), and the designing of the Lords temple (1Chronicles 28:11-18) and the Lords tabernacle (Exodus 26). You can be the musician who composes the best godly songs straight from the throne room of heaven if you are connected to the one who created music, and you can write a bestselling novel if you are connected to the one who gives divine inspiration.

In His presence the weakest and lowliest and most despised by the world become empowered to change society. In His presence hopes and dreams that seemed to slip through our hands come alive and are restored to us again. It’s never too late to start basking in God’s presence you can start today.         

 Olubukola Asafa