Exodus 33:1-3 And the LORD said unto Moses, Depart, and go up hence, thou and the people which thou hast brought up out of the land of Egypt, unto the land which I sware unto Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, saying, Unto thy seed will I give it: And I will send an angel before thee; and I will drive out the Canaanite, the Amorite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite: Unto a land flowing with milk and honey: for I will not go up in the midst of thee; for thou art a stiffnecked people: lest I consume thee in the way.
Wow! What scary words… I will not go with you. I will give you an angel to go before you—but I will not go with you.
What is it to feel God’s presence?
Many times we are like those Israelites…we have His protection and provision, but we don’t experience His presence.
Exodus 34:6-8 And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children’s children, unto the third and to the fourth generation. And Moses made haste, and bowed his head toward the earth, and worshipped.
I want to feel God’s presence in my life more than anything. As I was reading a devotion the other day, it caused me to ponder my relationship with the Lord. Am I allowing any of the same things in my life that caused God to remove His manifested presence from the Israelites’ lives. Are there areas in my life where I have disobeyed the Lord?
Romans 8:13 For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.
Ephesians 4:29-32 Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers. And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.
As I read the devotion, I had to honestly ask myself, “Judy, are there any known sins in your life today?”
Have I been forgiving, kind not only my words, but kind in my thoughts?
Have I been faithful with the money the Lord puts in my hand?
Have I been faithful to pray for my brothers, sisters, and missionaries who are struggling and going through trials?
Have I been faithful with my Bible reading?
I had to search my heart and pray…Lord, I don’t want to grieve Your Spirit. Show me the areas where I’m failing You. I know that if I disobey you in any area of my life, I won’t feel Your presence. Please keep me in Your presence this day.
Augustine said, “We are all men most miserable until we find our all in Thee.”
I had to ask myself, “Has my devotion to the Lord been divided? Is there anything in my life that I love, fear, serve, or trust more than the Lord? Is there anything or anyone that takes precedence over God’s will for my life? Have I been defiant in any area of my life?”
God called the Israelites a stiff-necked people. If I want to feel God’s presence and be real in my life, I can’t be stiff-necked in any area.
Many times, we don’t even realize ways we could be grieving the Holy Spirit. Ask yourself this morning…have I been stiff-necked when the Lord asked me to…
Put His Word and prayer before checking Facebook
Minister in the nursery
Be faithful to tithe and give a weekly Faith Promise offering
Forgive a sister or brother who has offended me
Psalm 51:10 Create in us clean hearts, O God; and renew right spirits within us. We want to feel Your presence today.