Characteristics of God: He understands and still stays
The God of the universe, the one in whom all things are held together, as Colossians 1:17 says, is the same God who came to earth to live in a human body as an example for you and me in how to live well. That is the craziest sentence.
I wish I lived in the days when Jesus walked on the earth. I wish I was one of the women who traveled with Jesus and the disciples, like Mary, who got to live and learn from Jesus himself. I wish I got to see the details, the subtle mundane moments of the every day life that we all experience but that didn’t make it into the canon of scripture. We know that Jesus’ ministry on earth was about 3.5 years long, but the total amount of information from the Gospels that we have only totals up to about 100 days. Luke explicitly mentions 110 days, Matthew writes about only 100. That leaves approximately 1,167 days unaccounted for. How did he live? What were the moments that were too ordinary, too… unimportant for us to need to know?
I trust the Bible when it says “His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness” (2 Peter 1:3). If we don’t know something, it’s because we don’t need to know it….
But still I wonder.
I especially wonder as I welcome the presence of the Lord into my own ordinary, mundane, everyday moments. What does God think of the way I live my life? What does God think of the way I spend time with him — when I chat out loud with him in my cute, little 2002 Honda CR-V? When I tell him I am annoyed at that person who cut me off in traffic? When I talk with a friend or a client who’s hurting and I silently ask him to intervene? When I begin my morning yoga practice with a breath prayer? When I laugh with a friend over an embarrassing story?
Sure. He’s there with me in the moments where I pursue him… but he’s also there in the moments when I forget. What does he think then? Did Jesus ever forget about God’s presence with him?
Something that I’ve learned a lot in my practice and education as a counselor over the past two years is the importance of mindfulness, which, put another way, is really just being present and aware of where you currently are - in your body, your emotions, your thoughts, your surroundings.
As I have practiced the art and skill of mindfulness - noticing what I notice and creating space for whatever it is that arises - I have experienced a whole new side of the presence of God. The simplicity, the presence, the “I’m with you wherever you are” kind of God.
I think of Psalm 139:1-10:
“O Lord, you have examined my heart and know everything about me. You know when I sit down or stand up. You know my thoughts even when I’m far away. You see me when I travel and when I rest at home. You know everything I do. You know what I am going to say even before I say it, Lord. You go before me and follow me. You place your hand of blessing on my head. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too great for me to understand! I can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your presence! If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the grave, you are there. If I ride the wings of the morning, if I dwell by the farthest oceans, even there your hand will guide me, and your strength will support me. I could ask the darkness to hide me and the light around me to become night—but even in darkness I cannot hide from you. To you the night shines as bright as day. Darkness and light are the same to you.”
He's with me wherever I am, whatever I’m doing.
How often do I miss him? How often do I ignore or forget? When’s the last time I ignored or forgot a person in real life? Probably never – at least, probably not intentionally. But yet, the amount of time that I am aware of God’s presence with me is surprisingly little. Did Jesus have that same habit?
My guess is he probably didn’t because as much as he was fully human, he was also fully God. I think of Psalm 8:4, “What are mere mortals that you should think about them, human beings that you should care for them?” And since Jesus is the embodiment of the God in the Old Testament, then I think it’s safe to assume that verse could be said of Jesus, too.
So, how do we increase our awareness of the presence of God in our lives? How do we grow our intentionality with welcoming him into not just the big emotional or spiritual moments, but also the mundane and simple ones?
Unfortunately for you, my answer is kind of annoying. I don’t think it’s clear cut – “do this, don’t do that.” It’s not black and white because spoiler – almost nothing is! We live in a world that is full of ambiguity and gray areas and, personally, I think that is partially our fault. As Christians, we are not fulfilling our side of the agreement to bring order to chaos (more on that later) like God mandated in Genesis. However, I also think there is a lot of ambiguity in the world because gray begets dependence. The more we need to depend on the Lord and his guidance and wisdom, the better off we all are.
While I can’t give you simple black-and-white instructions, I can tell you what has worked for me over the last few months.
I have been practicing meditation, mindfulness, yoga, breathwork, counseling, journaling, self-compassion, worship, learning to play the guitar, doing what scares me, taking risks, sharing more deeply with my trusted people, establishing healthy rhythms and boundaries, honoring the sabbath, eating well, protecting my sleep, drinking more water, reading good fiction books, dancing to music in my car….
Do you see the pattern?
One affects the other.
We are not isolated spiritual beings, or isolated physical beings or emotional or mental or … you get it. We are whole. Integrated. Everything affects the other.
The more in tune I am with my body, the better in tune I am with my Creator (Gen. 1:27, Ps. 139).
The more I honor my commitments and needs, the better I honor my King (1 Cor. 6:19-20; Rev. 4:10-11).
The more I take leaps and risks and step outside my comfort zone, the better I trust my Shepherd to lead me (Ps. 23).
The more I open up and get vulnerable with myself and trusted people, the more clearly the Holy Spirit speaks (1 Cor. 2:10-16).
The more I notice my thoughts and meet them with self-compassion, the more I experience the compassion and comfort of the Man of Sorrows (Isaiah 53).
Increasing awareness of the presence of God in all areas of my life starts with increasing my awareness of him in one area of my life.
Wherever you are… start there.
If all you can do is what you’re currently doing, then welcome him into that. There is no shame. Lord, I cannot change my schedule or make more time, but thank you for being with me on this drive to work. God, show me how my eating habits affect my time spent reading the scriptures. Holy Spirit, open my eyes to the ways that my music playlist is impacting my friendships.
Becoming aware and intentional about the way you are living your life by welcoming the presence of God into the simple and mundane has been the sweetest gift for me. I have felt the closeness of my Good Shepherd more because of it. And that’s my prayer for you, too!
Love you always,
Alicia :)
