Anticipating His Presence

Expect to meet God. Anticipate Him drawing near to you.

1 Peter 1:8 | Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory...

One of the best places to have a very personal and intimate encounter with Jesus is in the midst of corporate worship. People talk about releasing inner inhibitions, inner self-protection and resistance by yielding to the Holy Spirit, who always ‘shows up’ to worship gathering. Holy Spirit touches their soul in a very intimate way as worshippers stir each other up in worship and surrender to His ever so render voice and unctions.

In some cases, people may feel a sense of inner joy, experience a revelatory thought, vision or weep as God kindly begins to touch an area of pain in their life. When God is near, and we welcome His gracious presence, anything can begin to happen if we’re willing. Are you willing and expectant?

In 1 Peter 1:8, Peter shares that while God is unseen physically, He connects with us intimately with our needy hearts. Sometimes, we are flooded with with an unexpected and unexplainable sense of His love and affection for us, causing us to weep. This is God's presence.

It never fails. God seems to draw near to the heart that longs and thirsts to be near Him. It's as if God is drawn to the soul that has faith and expects to engage with Him. We can choose to 'draw near', and begin to pray, 'Lord, I welcome a greater intimate connection with you no matter how I respond emotionally. I expect You to reveal Yourself to me, and I'll listen to my heart, mind and soul for thoughts and feelings that line up with Your personality as revealed in Your word."

There is an old song I am reminded of as I write this article. Chorus goes...
I want to know you

I want to hear your voice

I want to know you more

I want to touch you

I want to see your face

I want to know you more

Is this your expectation when you come to worship? If what this song communicates is your hearts desire, I believe he will come near you as you worship!

Experiencing God is like tuning your heart’s frequency to pick up on the frequency of God. He is always speaking, but it takes being attentive to hear him.

If what you’re hearing in your heart [impression, thought, images, scriptures, vision] lines up with the love of God, expressed in Jesus in the Gospels, you’re probably hearing God. Worship can open us to God’s presence and responding with love.

We have a part to play in experiencing God - raising our expectation. If we don’t anticipate God’s meeting with us, we can miss Him completely even though He is present. If we raise our expectation, we will find Him [Jeremiah 29:13] -- that’s His promise.

Pray: Holy Spirit, I want to respond to your touch. I want to respond to your initiation when it comes to touching your heart with my own. Teach me how to respond to your approach. In Jesus Name! Amen!