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Just Ask Jesus: Help me understand Your Presence, God

Feb 4, 2017

gods-daily-giftOne night a precious man came into the Family Christian Store.  Full of energy and joy, Robert shared how he met Jesus face-to-face in a vision as he was crying out to God and grieving the sudden death of his beloved wife.  He confessed that had been a Christian for more than 30 years before he “met’ Jesus personally and began to understand what it truly means to have a “personal relationship” with God.

Robert delighted us with story after story of his encounters with Jesus.  There was a gift wrapped bag on the counter that sent him back to one such encounter.  He had a vision one day of Jesus presenting him with a beautifully wrapped gift.

“Wow Lord, what is this?”

“It is my gift to you.  There is one for you each day.”

Thank you Lord, it’s beautiful!   As Robert opened that gift and felt awash with the Love of God pouring through his spirit.

“Turn around Robert.”

Robert turned around and there were presents for as far as his eye could see,each one beautifully decorated.   “What are these Lord?”

“Those are the presents that you didn’t open. The days that you did not open my gift.  Robert, never let a day go by without opening my gift to you.”

Robert assured us that he has not let a day go by without earnestly seeking God for his gift.

This story reminded me of a conversation that I had with Jesus about a year and a half ago.  I was meditating on Psalm 16:11 “You will make known to me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; In Your right hand there are pleasures forever.”

Jesus, please help me understand this verse, help me understand your presence.

”You have the ability through my finished work on the cross and the power of the Holy Spirit to come directly in My presence; to have direct communion and revelation with Me.  This is because you have the faith that accepted My free gift of salvation.  Most believers go their entire lives without accessing this privilege.  I AM your covering.  I make you blameless and therefore qualify you to enter the presence of the Father.  Since most believers know and acknowledge only their own imperfections, they think this is impossible.  This is a false belief that attempts to nullify My work on the cross.  Never forget this privilege and seek My face daily so you can live the life that I have planned for you.”

That gift that Robert received from Jesus sure sounds to me like the gift of God’s presence in our lives that Jesus was just talking about. I was sharing Robert’s story in a class I was teaching and a few days before, the Lord had given Jeanette this journal entry:

“Jeanette, each day I have a gift; a blessing for you.  It’s like a wrapped box.  They are limitless, but you need to ask and expect to receive it daily. As with every gift you receive, remember to give thanks.”

Jeanette thanked the Lord for the specific revelation that He had for her that day.  I love how the Lord will reinforce an important teaching through the witness and testimony of several people.

Jesus has a gift of His presence for us every single day.  A personal encountering blessing.  I sure don’t want to miss a single one of those gifts.  Do you?

How do we open this gift from God?  Matthew 5:6 gives us a hint; “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.”  To hunger and thirst for something is to have a deep desire for it.  The first step is to sincerely desire Jesus and His presence.  Robert was crying out to God in his grief.  He was hungering and thirsting for comfort from the Comforter.  His prayer was answered and then he knew what he had been missing all along.  His experience in his grief birthed a hunger and thirst for more encounters with Jesus.

Jesus already shared the next steps in Jeanette’s journal conversation; ask Him and expect Him to give it to you.  Matthew 7:7 reminds us to “”Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you.”   The Lord is commanding us to ask, seek and knock.  This shows the persistence of expectation.  God wants to be believed for these promises.

God will answer this heartfelt prayer.  The verse says, God will open the door.  If you hunger and thirst, ask and expect Him to commune with you, speak to you, show you something, give you an encounter, He will answer you.  That’s an amazing truth.  Then, as always, thank God for every gift of blessing.

Jesus, forgive me for the days that I have forgotten to open the personal gift of Your Presence.  Help me to not let another day go by where I leave a gift from You unopened.  I thank you Lord for each and every blessing.  Help me to live out the promise of the fullness of joy that comes from Your Glorious Presence.

Now it’s your turn:  Ask Jesus:  Lord, give me a hunger and a thirst for your presence.  Help me to experience Your Presence and show me the special gift that you have for me today.  Share what He shows you here in the comments below and thank Him for the gift of His presence.

If you would like to be able to Ask Jesus questions like we do in many of our blogs and have Him answer back to you personally, we can show you how.  Please see our foundational teaching on 4 Keys to Hearing God's Voice.  If you already know how to have these conversations, join the discussion and share what Jesus is saying to you!