I stood in line waiting for my turn to pay as my kids anxiously waited to gorge themselves on a buffet of pizza and salad…maybe on the salad….probably not on the salad. As I was waiting I couldn’t help but survey the room. I noticed couples and families with young kids running around trying to find the game room. It was a tapestry of smiles and laughter.
Then I saw four people sitting around a square table, two women and two men. They were older, 60’s maybe, and I could tell they’d been friends for some time by the way they interacted with each other. There was a comfort there that’s only developed over time.
Then I saw something else. Above them something like an umbrella opened and I could see the love and glory of God pour over them. It flowed over their heads and splashed down to their feet. There wasn’t any part of them that wasn’t covered.
As I watched this unfold I heard the soft voice of the Lord, I want you to go over and talk to them. Tell them what you saw.
It was just a few minutes later that I pulled a chair up to the end of their table. They looked at me through wide eyes that asked the question none of them verbalized, “Who in the world are you?”
“Hi, my name is Jesse,” I said before it got totally awkward. “How are you?”
Obligation painted the smiles on their faces. “We’re doing fine,” said the man on the left.
So the ice had been broken. I smiled at them. “Sometimes I feel like the Lord lays things on my heart for different people and I feel that He has something for you. Would it be okay if I shared it with you?”
Relief and concern flashed through their faces in turn. Relief that we had common ground in God but concern as to what I was going to say next. But courage and curiosity won out. “Yes,” said the same man on the left. “That would be fine.”
So I explained the vision I saw to them and watched as their faces reflected the love of God as it reached in and touched their hearts. I told them how pleased the Lord is with them and how much He loves them. The Lord began to share with me the things He’d planted in them and they’d used those things to help each other and others over the years. He showed me some of the things He wanted to do and accomplish in each one of them. He showed me just how much He has planned for them.
As I related to them all that God was saying every bit of concern vanished and was replaced by the eyes of children looking at their Father in adoration. The love and presence of God was so strong. We were all blessed.
****
I’ve been thinking a lot about my tendency to compartmentalize my relationship with God. Compartmentalize. It would probably be helpful to define it.
Compartmentalize: To divide into sections or categories
This is an ugly word with ugly implications when we applied to my relationship with God. For example, I’ll use the testimony above.
I had the amazing encounter in which I was filled with the love of God and experienced the honor of being the vessel used to share that love with four strangers.
Although in that moment I was completely aware of the presence of God, when I walked away I quickly reverted back to whatever mindless station my brain was tuned into previously. It wasn’t long before God was forgotten. It was almost as if a partition slid down and divided that encounter from the rest of the day.
Now I’m not saying that I didn’t think about God at all throughout the rest of the day but there were certainly large blocks of time in which I wasn’t even aware of His presence. For all intents and purposes for me, during those specific blocks of time, God ceased to exist. For those blocks of time the only thing real to me was that which I would touch, feel, and experience physically.
As I reflect back over my typical day I see some of the same patterns emerge. My relationship with God feels, at times, uncomfortably like chunks instead of one continuous relationship. I spend some dedicated time with God in the morning (very important to spend dedicated time) and then move on to the next thing whether that be writing or work or eating or family or whatever else. God is forgotten for hours at a time.
This should not be. I’ve always felt it to be a problem but sometimes issues can be glossed over or ignored until they are unearthed and we are forced to look at them. I have been forced to look at it and I can no longer ignore it. God does not compartmentalize His relationship with me. He loves me too much for that. He longs to be a part of my every moment. When I begin to understand a love that deep and intense I cannot help but long to invite that love into my every moment.
I was spending some dedicated time with Him this morning and He told me that it’s only possible for Him to be a part of our every moment if we invite Him to be. If we don’t invite Him into every moment it’s only one sided and relationship will stall.
But how do we bring God into our every moment? Practicing God’s presence is discipline that has been historically frustrating. It’s success seems to ebb and flow. Many have started and given up. It’s very difficult to maintain. Greg Boyd says in his book, Present Perfect, that the most difficult part of the discipline is remembering the discipline.
Now I’m not saying that everyone who does not seek to become aware of God’s presence in every moment has a terrible relationship with Him. And it doesn’t mean that when we aren’t aware of His presence He’s not there. That’s just not true. He’s always there.
This blog is not a judgment of anyone’s relationship with God. This blog is an invitation to consider that there might be more that’s attainable to you. It’s an invitation to consider that God might be asking to invade even more of your day than He presently does.
Blessings,
Jesse and Kara Birkey
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Jesse and Kara Birkey are committed lovers of Jesus who seek to show others the extraordinary life of Jesus is available for everyone. They have authored two books, been featured in films and seek to serve the Lord in whatever ways they can. Follow their blog here.
Bring Jesse and Kara to your venue. Find more information here.
Life Resurrected, Extraordinary Miracles through Ordinary People has been endorsed by Sid Roth and Mark Virkler and is a collection of inspiring stories making it clear that the extraordinary life of Jesus is available to all who love Him. It’s also the testimony of Jesse’s life, the road he travelled bringing him into the arms of Jesus. Get the paperback here. Get the Kindle Version Here. View the trailer here.
Marriage What’s the Point? One couple finds meaning in a crazy mess is the story of their marriage—The tragedy and the restoration. They bear their hearts in an attempt to get others to bear theirs and finally receive the freedom they’ve longed for. Get the paperback here. Get the Kindle Version Here.
Jesse is also featured in the film DeadRaiser, a movie shining the spotlight on resurrection testimonies across the nation. Find more information here.
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