you make known to me the path of life;
in your presence there is fullness of joy.
[ps 16:11]
presence matters
on march 21, 2020 – as our world was being turned upside down by the covid outbreak – we sent out the first “in the presence of God” writing.
as a social community, just about everything shut down as we were forced to isolate.
as a spiritual community, just about everything shut down as we were forced to isolate.
one moment – life was moving as usual and then …
in the next moment – life stopped and being “in the presence” of anyone – was difficult if not impossible.
so we began these writings …
to call us to the one presence that we truly needed to engage – in that moment, in the days ahead, and in every day in the future – the presence of the Lord.
almost five years and one thousand, five hundred and thirty eight writings later – here we are – at our last writing.
i believe the LORD has one simple yet vital thing for us to pray into together as we head into 2025 and beyond.
in these last five years i have lost the presence of many friends and family. a few were lost to death, some have moved, others were sent by the Lord to new assignments, one walked away from the Lord, and another, my mother, is still alive but probably does not know me due to increasing dementia.
when you lose the tangible presence of people you care about (even when its a joyful sending) – it is hard, confusing, sad, upsetting, painful, and more. you miss many things, but ultimately, what you miss most … is their presence. zoom calls, emails, and texts – are good – but you miss their tangible presence.
presence matters
the presence of the Lord matters even more – and having a relationship with the tangible presence of Jesus – is a battle – for us all. and, there is a reason…
many of us don’t believe we were actually created to live and flourish in the presence of God.
you were created for God’s presence. sin separated you, but Jesus redeemed you back to the presence of God by his life, death, and resurrection. he finished this work by sending his Spirit to dwell in those who faith Jesus to forgive their sin and restore his presence. you were created for God’s presence.
you make known to me the path of life;
in your presence there is fullness of joy;
[psalm 16:11]
God has made known the path of life to us in Jesus. he alone is our right standing (life) before God and he alone is our way back into the presence of the Lord. most of you reading this – believe this truth! (john 14:6) that is beautiful and powerful because your right standing before God is forever anchored in the person and work of Jesus.
however – it is the second line of psalm 16:11 that we struggle to believe. look at it again and as you do – ask the Spirit to help you see and believe and act on this truth.
… in your presence there is fullness of joy.
“fullness of joy” – is quite a statement. this means complete satisfaction of our soul amid any circumstance. God has promised the flourishing of your soul, but – only one thing is promised to give this flourishing – God’s presence. when we don’t believe this – we run toward anything and everything to find the joy our soul longs for. these things can give happy moments and memories – but they do not give fullness of joy. they cannot.
this means we must learn to believe and act on this truth – in your presence there is fullness of joy.
this is the most vital thing you and i will ever learn as followers of Jesus. this will be a battle in your soul till we step into heaven and the face to face presence of the Lord. why? – because your flesh does not believe or want to believe this. your soul in Christ does believe this. so, we have a battle that we must engage in – and it begins with prayer.
together – let’s ask the Lord to increase our desire to believe and live in the presence for which we were created!
will you join me? pray for yourself, your friends, your family, your lot family leaders, the staff, the elders, and others. let’s battle together for the Lord’s presence to be our greatest treasure in 2025!
below are 10 practical ways we can live in the presence of God in 2025 and beyond.
enjoy his presence!
- abide (john 15:4–5)
- set your mind (romans 8:5–6; colossians 3:1–2)
- walk by/keep in step with the Spirit (galatians 5:16, 25)
- rejoice always (1 thessalonians 5:16)
- pray continually (1 thessalonians 5:17)
- pray together (matthew 18:20 – family, or via technology. together doesn’t have to mean in the same room)
- give thanks in all circumstances (1 thessalonians 5:18)
- submit/offer yourself up (galatians 5:17; romans 12:1–2)
- dwell on (philippians 4:6–8)
- remember God’s faithfulness and provision (deuteronomy 8:2–3)
~ john ryan