There are some questions I wrestle with about the presence of God. I’d like to ask you to join me in grappling with them. Ready?
Do you believe you’ve felt the presence of God at some point? A time when you just knew he was there with you? You had a moment when you related to David’s words,
I know the Lord is always with me. I will not be shaken, for He is right beside me. No wonder my heart is glad, and I rejoice… You will show me the way of life, granting me the joy of Your presence and the pleasures of living with You forever. — Psalm 16:8–9, 11 NLT
Have you ever felt God’s presence like that?
If not, stick with me as we dive in. If so, here’s a follow-up question: How did you know? How do you know you felt God and it wasn’t just your emotions playing tricks on you? Maybe you had a tingling sensation? Or perhaps you were so overwhelmed with emotion that you cried? Or you felt an unusual heavenly peace that transcended the chaotic circumstances you were experiencing?
Is that how you knew you were in the presence of God?
Because His presence can give you a tingly feeling, right? Well, so can test-driving a new car or taking the first bite of an incredible dessert or hearing that you’re about to get a big raise. Is it God or an endorphin rush?
God’s presence can make you cry tears of joy, but so can a really touching YouTube video or the end of all six Rocky movies.
God’s presence is incredibly peaceful, but so is drinking chamomile tea in a bubble bath surrounded by a bunch of flickering pumpkin-spice-scented candles. (Or so I’ve heard.)
So if you think you’ve experienced God’s presence, how can you be sure?
Here’s another challenging question: When you don’t feel the presence of God, whose fault is it? Is it His fault? Is He holding out on you? Or is it your fault? Perhaps God wanted to show up in a palpable, powerful way, but you weren’t paying attention. Could it be you did something wrong? Or if it wasn’t God’s fault or yours, maybe it was someone else’s? Perhaps it was your kids being so loud when you were trying to pray. Or maybe the problem was the worship pastor because he didn’t pick any of your favorite songs at church — again.
If you didn’t feel God’s presence, whose fault is it?
What do you do when you want to feel the presence of God but don’t? Is there anything you can do?
If you struggle with these questions, or if you’re wondering whether God is with you, don’t panic. You are not alone.
You Aren’t Alone in Not Feeling God’s Presence
“Why, Lord, are You far from me?”
“Why do You reject me?”
“Why have You forsaken me?”
These are words you may have thought or prayed but not dared to speak out loud. You may have felt embarrassed by these questions or wondered what they say about you and your relationship with God. Well, here’s some good news. Several heroes in the Bible, who were some of God’s most faithful servants, uttered these exact words, including His very own Son.
David was called a man after God’s own heart (Acts 13:22). He probably spoke about feeling God’s presence more than anyone else in the Bible. Yet he wrote,
I cry to You for help, Lord; in the morning my prayer comes before You. Why, Lord, do You reject me and hide Your face from me? — Psalm 88:13–14
That wasn’t just an anomaly. In many of the psalms that David wrote for the congregation to sing together, he expressed a feeling of being abandoned by God. For instance,
How long, Lord? Will You forget me forever? How long will You hide Your face from me? — Psalm 13:1
and
You have rejected us, God. — Psalm 60:1
and
Why are You so far from saving me, so far from my cries of anguish? My God, I cry out by day, but You do not answer, by night, but I find no rest. — Psalm 22:1–2
Imagine the worship leader at your church displaying any of these words on the screen next Sunday and asking everyone to sing along. What if he or she calls out, “C’mon, church! Lift your voices and join me. ‘You have rejected us, God!’” Kind of puts David’s bold honesty in perspective, huh?
If you’ve ever felt a strange absence of God’s presence, if you’ve cried out for God to speak but heard nothing in return, you are not alone. David understood.
You know who else does? Jesus. No one was closer to God than Jesus. In John 10:30, He says,
The Father and I are one. — NLT
The two walked intimately together every day of Jesus’ life on earth. His mission was to glorify God in every way, and He was obedient even to death. On the cross, Jesus was insulted and mocked. On the cross, Jesus became sin for us. And, on the cross, in some mysterious way, God pulled back or looked away — because He is too holy to look on sin — and Jesus’ soul was flooded with all our sin.
While this is very difficult for us to understand, here’s what I do know: Jesus, the Son of God, who had done nothing but His Father’s will, cried out in desperate agony,
My God, My God, why have You forsaken me? — Matthew 27:46
This is one of the many reasons that Hebrews 4:15 says of Jesus,
We do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses.
If you’ve ever wondered why you don’t feel the presence of God, you are not alone. Jesus understands.
Excerpted with permission from The Benefit of Doubt by Craig Groeschel, copyright Craig Groeschel.
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Your Turn
If you don’t feel God’s presence today, or recently, or in this season, hang on! He is with you whether you feel Him or not. He will never abandon you. Never! ~ Devotionals Daily
