Practicing His Presence

I set my phone down, weary of the constant bombardment of images, ideas, and notifications that the little screen broadcasted. Then, I picked it up and turned it on again. Why? In his book The Shallows, Nicholas Carr describes how the internet has shaped our relationship with stillness: “What the Net seems to be doing is chipping away my capacity for concentration and contemplation. Whether I’m online or not, my mind now expects to take in information the way…

Whenever you’re feeling down, the Psalms are an excellent source of comfort and encouragement. In Psalm 42:5-11, the psalmist shares how God offers comfort to you, His child, in hard times. To receive it, you should … •  Look within. Before you can deal with despair, you need to know what is causing it. If you’re not sure, ask the Lord to help you figure out what’s going on. •  Look up. The next step is to lift your eyes to…

Discernment is the ability to make sound judgments by perceiving what is not readily obvious, and it is critical to our life in God. For example, what should you do when you want to follow the Lord but have multiple choices that appear promising and good? How can you know if you’re hearing from God or simply listening to your own desires? All we have to do is ask. Proverbs 2 says, “If you cry out for insight, and raise your voice for understanding … then…

As a wise old sage was praying with me through some of the painful memories of my life, I was immediately reminded of the time in middle school when my first girlfriend broke my heart. These wounds can linger for a lifetime if you let them — the first cut is the deepest, and all that. We asked Jesus to take me back to the memory. I saw us, the girl and me; it was that fateful summer day. We were in the living room, just as it happened. Then I saw Jesus enter the room.…

The term “intimacy with God” has become one of those phrases that Christians often toss about in conversation. But how many of us know what it means? I certainly did not, as my story confirms. I was one of the many who confused knowing the Lord with knowing about Him. I knew a lot about God, being an academic and studier of things. But what I found is there is such a huge difference in knowing about, versus knowing intimately. Consider this, American Christians…

When the Lord tells us to wait on His will, He always has a very clear reason, and that reason is without exception for our benefit. Waiting is essential in living the Christian life, walking in obedience to God, and receiving the best of His blessings.Being patient is surely difficult, but failing to wait upon the Lord can bring about disastrous consequences. First, when we do not wait, we get out of God’s will. Second, we delay God’s planned blessing for us.…

In Isaiah 55, God declares, “My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways” (Isaiah 55:8). In fact, that’s one of the biggest frustrations of the Christian life—a lack of understanding about God’s ways. There are times when we could really use a miracle, and He doesn’t come through for us, which can lead to confusion, disappointment, and anger. Why did God let me down? God works in both supernatural and ordinary ways, and…

There’s something I’d want to encourage you to consider. Drum roll, please! Invest the first 15 minutes of your day in the presence of the Lord. In silence, in prayer, and in God’s Word. Ask Him to open your heart to what He has for you in those opening moments of your day. If you get bold, you’ll gradually creep up to an hour. That’s what I did today. You’ll be shocked as to how well the rest of the day will materialize, even if it turns…

In his book, “The Vision and The Vow”, Pete Greig tells of how a distinguished art critic was studying an exquisite painting by the Italian Renaissance master Filippino Lippi. He stood in London’s National Gallery gazing at the fifteenth-century depiction of Mary holding the infant Jesus on her lap, with saints Dominic and Jerome kneeling nearby. But the painting troubled him. There could be no doubting Lippi’s skill, his use of color or composition.…