God is Everywhere
The truth about our lives is so simple: we live every moment in the presence of God. God is present in every event, every plant/rock/person/animal. God is the interweaving of all life, the glue, if you will, that holds everything together, that connects all elements in the universe. God is the Creator of all and continues to create new life and the evolving universe we live in. We live in God’s presence whether we are aware of it or not. God is the context in which we live and have our being.
God is not in some distant heaven. He is here in the spaces between us, in the context in which we live, in the very bread of life. God is within us, too, able to speak through our hearts and minds, if we will listen. He draws people and experiences to us. God is not something we get to experience after we die. He is here and now, unique and universal, beyond our comprehension and as intimate with us as we allow him to be.
Our journey with God is all about building a body of experience of his presence in our lives, an awareness of, a recognition of all that he does for us. It is about acknowledging what a huge part he plays in our lives from our creation to the end of our days, day in and day out. God is the given in our lives, but it is up to us to discover the breadth and depth of that presence. Then our task is to participate willingly in the presence of God, in growing awareness of God’s support and love and forgiveness for and patience with us.
We may have experiences of God as Spirit or as Son or as Father or even Mother or closest intimate friend or Christ. We may feel the love and make it our own. We may experience a cloud of love surrounding us. Or receive just the words we need to think about. We may experience grief and loss along with the sweetness of having had someone we loved one in our life. We may suffer illness or war or hurricanes and the sweet, comforting presence of God in the midst with us. We may feel terribly alone and yet there he is.
Life on this earth is terribly challenging for all of us. But we are not alone, ever. If we are feeling alone, we are blocking God’s presence. If we are bereft without hope, we are ignoring God’s help and support. If we feel unworthy of God’s love, we have not directly approached him and accepted his love for us. If we think God is remote or absent, we are not seeing the evidence before our eyes. He is here, there, everywhere. But where are we? Where is our awareness of Him?
Questions to ponder over the week: How aware am I of God in the events of my life, in the people I meet, in the day-to-day living? Do I count my blessings and the grace I receive? Do I feel gratitude for all that I have been given, even life itself? Can I separate what God has created from what we humans create?
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Check out this video on YouTube: “Does the Gospel Serve our Purposes or Do We Serve the Gospel? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wryesgONNXQ
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