Experiencing God's Presence #288

Experiencing God's Presence #288

Jacob named the place Peniel (which means “face of God”), for he said, “I have seen God face to face, yet my life has been spared.”

Genesis 32:30

The Israelites at Sinai didn’t want God to speak to them directly. They were afraid they would die, so they begged Moses to go into the Presence and then tell them what God had said (Exodus 20:19). When Daniel heard Him speak, he trembled, fainted, and lay facedown (Daniel 10:3-11). When John saw a vision of Jesus, he fell at His feet as though dead (Revelation 1:17). None of them were harmed, but all were severely traumatized. The Presence of God can be frightening.

Some people confuse God’s Presence with a warm heart and a positive attitude. Others confuse it with emotional swells, tears of joy, or deep burdens. Though God certainly can prompt all of these, there’s another side to the experience: awe. When He comes close, we are overwhelmed. The things we were preoccupied with seem suddenly irrelevant, the insurmountable problems we faced suddenly seem like minor speed bumps, our self-will bows to His majesty, our imperfections come to the surface of our minds, and all we can think about is how to relate to Him properly. God’s Presence is always good, but never quite safe.

Jacob’s encounter wasn’t a majestic view of God’s glory, as the visions of many others were, but he still understood the gravity of it and marveled that he survived. We need to have the same perspective: joy that we have access to Him, but an understanding of the radical nature of meeting Him face-to-face. In other words, a sense of wonder and awe. We need to recapture the ability to marvel at the amazing position we’re in. And we should be grateful that our lives have been spared.

Lord, help me recapture the awe of Your Presence. Show me Your glory and then fill me with wonder at seeing it. May my encounters with You always be frequent but never taken for granted.