06/10/2022
Do we live our faith in the moment, or is our relationship with God based on what He has already done, or what we want Him to do for us tomorrow? Do we spend so much time in the past and dreaming of the future that we allot little time to what He is doing in our lives right now? There is a verse that we often use to settle ourselves when we are facing troubles, and to strengthen our trust in the fact that although God has done wonderful things in our past, that He will handle our future troubles. We use this verse to overcome our worry about tomorrow, but if we pause here, and read carefully, we will see that, although it speaks about our troubles, it is actually telling us to live in relationship with God right now! Our relationship with Him has a history, but it is more than that, and if we place so much emphasis in what we want to do for Him, or we want Him to do for us, then we will neglect the most important part of any relationship… the embrace, the kiss… or in other words… living in our love, our joy, and our togetherness, right now!
““Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.”
Matthew 6:34 ESV
When we read the Bible we are tempted to see its historical significance, and look at how we can use what has occurred within its pages to mold our future lives. We take the past, and look at how it changed who we have since become, or how it can provide us with a better future, but scripture after scripture tells us what occurred, and then links itself to the right now… our present. The Bible tells us what was, and leads us to what will be, but nothing can occur unless it happens in the RIGHT NOW! Now is the focus of our life, but oh how tempting it is to attempt to live in the past, or to live lives of Hope without realizing that if we don’t act, or take action, RIGHT NOW, then that hope we have will remain just that… an unrealized dream.
The first time I saw my wife I thought to myself that she was beautiful, energetic, and full of life, but I also remembered every other girl I had known, and weighed out Ann’s looks and personality with theirs… could I be happy with her, was there a future with her, or were the odds of heartbreak just too high? I could have played it safe and walked away without talking to her, or been shy and simply lived in the hope of what dating her might have been, but instead I spoke to her, and we started a relationship in that instant; in that point in time we call “the present.” This weekend we will have been married for 46 years, and our past together is filled with many memories, both good, bad, tragic, and sublime, but that is only who we were. We have hopes and dreams of things we would like to do, and of seeing our grandchildren grow up, but those things are simply vapor and may or may not happen as we have dreamed them. However, what is real, and what is our true relationship is what is occurring right this instant. It is choosing to say the word “I” then in the next instant to say “love”, and then in the next to say “you!” The present is where we live, and it is also where we interact with God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. The present is the crucible in which our relationships are formed, and exist. But what does this mean in terms of our belief in God? It means everything… it means that when He told us that He was with us always He was saying more than He was in our memories, and in our dreams, He was in this instant that we call the present… and never abandons His place there. This is why He told Moses to tell the people that “I Am” sent him… Our God is ever present.
“God said to Moses, “I am who I am.” And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘I am has sent me to you.’””
Exodus 3:14 ESV
This is who God is, Jesus is, and the Holy Spirit is, and our relationship with them exists RIGHT NOW! So how are we approaching them? Are we overlooking the present in scripture? Are we remembering and hoping, but not acting? Listen to the present in this often recited scripture…
“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”
Romans 8:28 ESV
“Those who love” meaning they LOVE right now! “All things work” meaning they are WORKing right now, and finally… “for those who are called” which is also in the present tense… it does not read that they HAVE BEEN called, or WILL BE called, but ARE called. And this occurs over and over again in scripture if we will only read it in the moment, practice it in the moment, and love God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength in the moment! Our relationship with God is meant to be NOW… ever present, and eternal. Do we pray now? Do we love now? Do we remember now? Do we hope now? Is our relationship of faith, and belief occurring now, and in this way do we know the great I AM?
““I, Jesus, have sent my angel to testify to you about these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.””
Revelation 22:16 ESV
Prayer:
Father thank you for the past, and the future of our relationship with you, but thank you most for the present nature of life, and for how all things begin in this instant… in a Word you created, and in the instant of your love you sent Jesus to redeem us. In this our understanding hear us as we say with all of Heaven… “Holy, Holy, Holy, IS the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!” Father, be with us always in this moment, for none is more profound or important than RIGHT NOW. In this moment we will live, in this moment we will believe, in this moment we will be redeemed, and in this moment we will be both judged, and experience eternity with you. Now is our life, and our relationship with you… praised be your name, and all glory be yours.
“And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and within, and day and night they never cease to say, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!””
Revelation 4:8 ESV
Rich Forbes