Premium on His Presence.
When we put a premium on something, we regard or treat it as particularly important, valuable, or precious. When value is placed on a thing, one’s attitude to that thing is one of esteem.
Psalm 16:8 — I have set the Lord always before me; Because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved.
Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend into heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there. If I take the wings of the morning, And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, Even there Your hand shall lead me, And Your right hand shall hold me. If I say, “Surely the darkness shall fall on me,” Even the night shall be light about me; Indeed, the darkness shall not hide from You, But the night shines as the day; The darkness and the light are both alike to You. (Psalm 139:7–12)
The objective of this write-up is to create a consciousness of God’s presence within a believer.
Let’s look at some scenarios.
Case 1: Joshua takes over from Moses. Let’s look at Prophet Moses’ Resume
Raised as a Prince. Confronted Pharaoh. Marshalled the Exodus. Author of the first Five books in the Bible (the Pentateuch). Facilitator of the Twelve Plagues manifestation in Egypt. Red Sea parting, drying of the sea-land, and Closing the sea. Receiving the 10 Commandments. Meekest Man alive. Speaking with God face to face. Manna deliverables. Rock pouring out water. Stopping the snake bite. Ground opening to swallow some people, etcetera.
Now, Joshua is taking over from this same Man. Understandably, he would be feeling inadequate. Moses’ portfolio is loaded — Moses na Senior Man.
We see something amazing though, during God’s Charge to Joshua in Joshua 1 –God was giving Joshua the 411, in vs 5, he said “As I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you nor forsake you.” What God used to furnish his directive of being strong and courageous to Joshua was to let him know that He (God) is with him wherever he (Joshua) goes (vs 9).
And boy did Joshua do his own exploits by God! That consciousness of God’s presence with him induced him with strength and courage.
God is present in situations where we are weak.
Case 2: Joseph is finally stabilizing in a strange land.
He is doing well abroad. He is in charge of all that his boss has, and because of Joseph, the Lord’s blessing was upon Potiphar’s house (Gen. 39:4–6). Finally, Mrs. Potiphar cast her eyes upon Joseph, putting pressure on him day after day (Gen. 39:10) but what kept Joseph through this season was his consciousness that God was present with him in real time.
The consciousness of God’s presence taught him to say NO! to ungodliness despite the pressure.
God is present with us even in temptation.
Case 3: Psalm 46:1–5.
God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging. There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells. God is within her, she will not fall.
Friends, truly when things are rough and tough, when we are in that wilderness season; when things are quaking; when we are hard-pressed on every side; when we are abasing, when we pass through the waters, and when we walk through fire — God is not on vacation during this period.
He is right in the middle of it with us unperturbed by the situation. He is not a fair-weathered God. He is not fazed by the situation. The story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego is a good example. The truth is at times, he heals us after the event, other times he saves us from them, and other times he says His grace is enough for us through adversity.
In all, He is present with us in adversity.
Case 4: 2 Samuel 5:10 and Acts 10:38
So David went on and became great, and the Lord God of hosts was with him.
How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.
Sometimes, it could come across as if God is not present when we are in the season of prosperity. Everything is now plum and technically you don’t need to pray for things to happen, you can just sort them with money. Or maybe the systems you put in place are now working efficiently.
Prosperity can separate you into self-sufficiency, it is very subtle. That is why God warned the Israelites in Deuteronomy 8 that when they start to prosper they shouldn’t think they prospered because of their work ethic. They are not to forget God because he is the true plug to their wealth.
That feeling that God is only with us when we are roughing things — Taaaaaarrrrrrrh, Dead it.
We must know that God is with us in prosperity. He wishes that we prosper and that prosperity doesn’t have us. He wants us to be conscious of him being with us in prosperity when we are abounding.
When we are lying in greener pastures, He is present with us.
Let’s tie this charge up, I heard an interesting analogy about examination settings.
In the exam hall, we usually have our examiner with us but he/she is not there to answer questions. They are there to supervise/invigilate. We have been taught throughout the semester, now is the time to evaluate if we understood what we were taught.
The examination hall is not the time to ask the teacher questions about what you have been taught. The lecturer is counting on the fact that you have been taught well and that you will be able to answer whatever questions are asked about the subject. (I hear you, I am talking about an ideal exam situation😁😁)
In life, fearful situations, adversity, temptation, and prosperity are questions that come to evaluate the believer’s consciousness of who is with him/her. So ask yourself:
Have I placed a premium on his presence? Will my faith fail or will it be strengthened?
Where you are, or wherever you have been — take heart for God is with you.
Hebrews 13:5–6: Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, “I will never leave nor forsake you. So we may boldly say: “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?”
I am writing this to you and myself.
We have HIS presence. It means that nothing happens apart from God’s ultimate purpose. I am never alone. Even in my darkest times, He is with me. He is omnipresent and He is with me.
Have a Blessed Week! Grace, Growth, and Glory.
Ayomide Arowele
Instagram / X (Twitter): @thearowele
Push Buttons is a weekly devotional of The Powerpoint Tribe.
