God Is Here and God is There

Psalm 119:151 - "Yet you are near, O LORD, and all your commands are true."

You know one of the things that I love about God? He is here. He really is. And, He is with you. I'm in Eden Prairie, Minnesota as I type this. You may be in California, Guatemala, Australia, China, or another part of Minnesota as you read this and God is there. I love the doctrine of the omnipresence of God. And, I love the fact that Satan is not. He's not omnipresent. He's probably not here or there. Satan can only be one place at a time.

Yesterday's verse covered the fact that David was concerned that the evil were near him. There are always evil people around. If you believe in spiritual warfare, and Scripture teaches that there are demons at work behind the scenes, then we must believe that demons are around as well. If you are a Christian, a demon cannot possess you. But, they are mighty oppressive. And, isn't it good to know that as hard as they try to oppress us, God is here. God is more powerful than any of Satan's hoard. He wants us to know that He is here. He tells us to draw near to Him and He will draw near to us.

I think it's possible for God to be present everywhere, but not be near to us. What do I mean by that? I mean that God is present, but His presence does not mean that we have a close relationship to Him. He wants that. He wants to commune with His creation. But, the Creator will not force the created to draw near. That is up to us. And, David knew it. That's why when his enemies were all around he was at peace. He was, after all, a man after God's own heart. "Let the enemies come after me!" David must have thought. "Let them hit me with their best shot! God is on my side. God is by my side. God is near!"

Aren't you glad?

If you don't know Christ, this would be the day to let Christ in. Draw near to Him. Confess your sins. Ask Him to be your Savior and Lord. Tell Him that You need what only He can offer. Draw near, and He will draw near to you.

Dear God,

Thank You for Your presence. In our dark days, we need You. We need Your peace. We need Your power. We need Your strength. We need Your mercy. We need Your goodness. We need Your gentleness. We need You. We draw near. And, we await.

In Jesus' name,

Amen.