The Promise of His Presence - March 17

Read Psalm 145:18-19

The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. He fulfills the desire of those who fear him; he also hears their cry and saves them.

Reflect

How have you felt God’s presence recently?

“God, are you there?” I’ve seen variations of this question in TV shows, movies, songs, and books. I am sure it has been written down in countless journals and uttered in many bedside prayers. Maybe you’ve wondered the same thing. Is God really there? Can He hear me when I talk to Him? Does He really care about me?

Today’s verse from the Psalms answers all of those questions. Yes, God really is there! But He doesn’t merely exist. He promises that He is near! He is with us! He hears us when we call and He cares about us enough to listen to our cries, meet our needs, and step in to save us.

We may wonder where God is because we can't physically see Him. But His Word promises that if we seek Him—if we call out to Him with sincere hearts—we will find Him. Deuteronomy 4:29 says, “But from there you will seek the LORD your God and you will find him, if you search after him with all your heart and with all your soul.” God promises that if we truly want to find Him, He can be found!

In Matthew 7:7, Jesus preached: “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.” God is not hiding from us! He wants us to seek Him because He wants us to find Him! Sometimes, it may feel like God is far away but the apostle Paul said, “...he is actually not far from each one of us…” (Acts 17:27). James urged his readers to “draw near to God, and he will draw near to you…” (James 4:8). God isn’t far away from any of us. If we call out to Him and draw near to Him, we will find Him and He will draw near to us.

In addition to the promise of His presence, we have the promise that He hears us when we call out to Him in prayer. The apostle John wrote: “And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us whenever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him” (1 John 5:14-15). We can be certain that He hears our prayers but this verse doesn’t mean that God will give us absolutely everything that we ask for. The key phrase is “according to his will.” The more we seek Him, the more we will understand God’s will, and the more likely our requests will be in line with God’s will.

Finally, God promised peace in His presence. When we call out to Him in prayer, we are given the protection of His peace: “...do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7)

When we go back to the Bible, we are comforted with the answer to the question “God, are you there?” Yes! He is there! He’s not only there, but He is near. God is with us, He hears us when we pray, and in His presence, we have the gift of His peace. You can be confident of this—draw near to Him, and He will draw near to you. Reach out to Him in prayer. Seek Him and you will find Him.

Respond

Lord, “You have said, ‘Seek my face.’ My heart says to you, ‘Your face, LORD, do I seek’” (Psalm 27:8). I praise You because You are God and yet, You are near to me. I know that You hear me right now. Thank You for Your presence and Your peace. Amen.

Reveal

Do you have a friend who could use a reminder of God’s presence? Prayerfully consider how you can reveal the Lord’s presence to that friend this week.