Prioritizing Presence

Prioritizing Presence

You know him, because he lives with you now and later will be in you. John 14:17

IMAGINE A RIDICULOUSLY WEALTHY FATHER who has two sons. One son stops by his father’s office every once in a while to say hello and, at some point, asks for a bit of money to help meet some need or desire. The father usually complies but gives only as much as the son needs and does so without much pleasure. The other son spends time with his father whenever he can. He enjoys home life, sometimes goes to work with his father to help out, and makes time to pursue mutual interests together. He has needs and desires too, and he rarely hesitates to ask his father to meet them. The father almost always does—and throws in some extras with great pleasure.

What’s the difference between these two sons and the way they receive from their father? They both get their needs met, and both remain solid members of the family. But one relationship is satisfying, fulfilling, and overflowing with goodwill, while the other has turned into a transactional arrangement without much heart. The father loves both sons, to be sure, but he delights in his relationship with only one of them. And because he so delights in that relationship, he is eager to give. He doesn’t just react to what his son needs; he takes great joy in anticipating it, providing it, celebrating it, and even going over the top with his answers from time to time.

That’s a picture of two vastly different approaches to prayer, and it should be obvious which is more satisfying to us and to God. We were made for a relationship with him that is filled with deep love, joy, and affection. That’s why the Holy Spirit is given to us—God himself resides within us at the deepest levels of intimacy. When we cultivate that sense of his presence, we are cultivating the context for real prayer and faith. This is where our vision, longings, and desire for God’s will are implanted and incubated in our hearts. This is what makes a life of prayer and faith fruitful and fulfilling—and what stirs the Father’s joy in giving.

Why should not every moment of our lives be a sort of communion with the divine love?