God is always present. He is everywhere, at all times. He is at the farthest reaches of the universe and beyond it. At the same time He is right beside you, even within you. That is what it means for Him to be omnipresent: All-Present. He is everywhere, simultaneously, all the time. You cannot find a place that God’s Presence won’t already be. There is no place that He wont go.
Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your Presence? If I ascend to heaven, You are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You are there. If I take the wings of the dawn, if I dwell in the remotest part of the sea, even there Your hand will lead me, and Your right hand will lay hold of me. Psalm 139:7-10
All that exists, does so within His Presence. For God is greater than all of the universe and is in fact larger than the universe. Even hell exists within His Presence. Many believe that hell is the absence of God’s Presence. 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9 says it is to be “away from the Presence of the Lord and from the glory of His might” but this is not the complete absence of His presence. Those in hell will not enjoy the manifested Presence and His glory. While His presence may not be tangible or visible, He will still be present there for there is nowhere God cant go.
So there is nowhere that God can’t go and there is never a time in this life that God doesn’t show up. The church can take comfort from this truth. I already discussed previously how God is relational in His nature. His omnipresence is a key part of being able to walk in relationship with Him. We may be abandoned or forgotten by others, but God is still with us, always. And while we may long for human relations, we always have access to relationship with God.
It is because of this that the idea of loneliness is proven to be a lie. You are never actually alone. You are never on your own. God is always with you and watching over you. The enemy wishes for us to feel and become isolated to make it easier for us to succumb to temptation. But the Lord is always there, ready to guide us through life.
Hidden and Manifest Presence
We can understand the Presence of God in two context: hidden and manifested.
Hidden means when you don’t feel Him, hear His voice or see the evidence of Him working but the truth that He is present still stands. It is during this time that we put our faith in His presence. We have to trust that He is still there and believe the truth of His omnipresence. We have faith that God has not abandoned us, as many of us have probably believed in these times.
Manifested means His Presence is tangible. You feel His Presence. You hear Him speak or see Him at work. The experiencing of Him may vary from person to person but you get the impression that God is here, right now! This is the one everyone wants to experience.
Practice the Presence
“You don’t have to pray out loud; He’s nearer than you can imagine. It isn’t necessary that we stay in church in order to remain in God’s Presence. We can make our hearts personal chapels where we can enter anytime to talk to God privately.” – Brother Lawrence
If you have never read Practicing the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence I strongly recommend it. It is a very short book that is simple and easy to understand. In it Brother Lawrence explains living in the Presence of God on a consistent basis. To practice the Presence is to turn your thoughts and affections to God as often as possible. Set aside time in your day to just rest in Him. Don’t busy yourself with other things, turn off your phone, and just spend time with God.
“The Presence of God is the concentration of the soul’s attention on God, remembering that He is always present.” – Brother Lawrence
Prayer is no longer a series of words that seem to go no further than the ceiling. Instead prayer becomes real communication between you and Christ. You can speak, knowing that He is in the room with you. Then you listen and see if He responds. Your problems no longer seem to be overwhelming. You can just lay them before Him and ask Him to take care of them, resting in the knowledge that He hears your plea, and sees the troubles of your life.
You know longer read the bible to find Him. You already found Him, or more accurately He found you. Now, you can read the bible with Him, asking Him what things mean and receive direction and teaching from Him.
To many Christians, “relationship with God” is a metaphor for practicing spiritual disciplines. Praying, fasting, attending church, reading the bible, doing good deeds. They don’t see it as a real thing. But relationship with God is real and it’s His omnipresence that is key to that truth. Practicing the Presence makes that relationship come alive!
Holy Spirit, I pray that every person who reads this and all who call on You to draw close to them, experience deep intimacy with You. Make Your Presence known to them and banish the feelings of loneliness from their hearts. Take them from knowing You exist to experiencing Your existence as they learn to walk with You through life. Amen.
The Walk of Enoch 