Savoring present moments becomes a catalyst for practicing the Presence of God.
“What do you think?” a voice interrupts your thoughts.
Suddenly you’re brought back to the present. Your spouse, your child, your friend has been sharing something important, but you were thinking about what was next on your never-ending to-do list. You have no idea what they just said. Busted!
On another occasion, you miss a magical moment on your family vacation because you’re dwelling on a regret from your past.
God has given us five senses to bring awareness of His creation around us. These senses are available now, not yesterday, not tomorrow, but now.
What are some of your favorites?
For me:
Sight: Sunset, or sunrise over water or mountains
Sound: Water rushing past rocks in a mountain stream
Smell: Tea olive, gardenias
Touch: Sea breeze, fall wind in my face, soft sheets
Taste: Chocolate pie, dark coffee
When we savor now, we’re enjoying a gift from God. A lady on a plane once told me that’s why “now” is called the present. It’s a gift.
This is the day which the Lord has made; Let us rejoice and be glad in it. (Psalm 118:24 NASB)
Why do the Living not Understand?
There’s an old movie entitled Our Town which drives this point home.
One character, named Emily, dies while giving birth to a child. However, the stage manager allows her to go back to the past and observe the morning of her sixteenth birthday.
From her vantage point, she has a profoundly nostalgic appreciation of the transient beauty of life’s insignificant moments. However, she realizes that people, including her younger self, don’t understand how precious the moments of life really are. She is stunned that nobody savors and fully appreciates “now”. They all seem so disengaged. Later she would say of the living, “They don’t understand.”
Paul – “Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead.” (Philippians 3:13 NASB)
Jesus – “So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” (Matthew 6:34 NASB)
God doesn’t want us to be imprisoned by the regrets of our past or fears of our future. He wants us to be present with Him moment by moment.
Abiding is Staying Present with Jesus
Jesus tells us in John 15 to “abide” in Him. Other meanings of this word are to “tarry” or “stay present with.” Jesus says in the same chapter that there is complete joy found in “staying present” in His love and loving others as He has loved us.
Staying present with Jesus is essential to our spiritual lives, and it leads to experiencing and savoring life’s moments. Otherwise, life quickly passes us by.
Savoring present moments becomes a catalyst for practicing the Presence of God.
Quiddity
Of his friend, A. K. Hamilton Jenkins, Lewis wrote that he “seemed to be able to enjoy everything, even ugliness.” [1] From Jenkins’ example, Lewis learned to, “attempt total surrender to whatever atmosphere was offering at the moment; in a squalid town to seek out those places where it’s squalor rose to grimness and almost grandeur,”[2] He called this a “serious, yet gleeful determination to rub one’s nose in the very quiddity[3] of each thing, to rejoice in its being (so magnificently) what it was.”
What I learn from this is that in our endeavors to “enjoy” the nature of something and experience it with our senses, we notice the “good” and the “bad”.
Challenge
Take notice of what you see and hear right at this moment. Do you smell anything? Perhaps you’re drinking a cup of coffee and feel a gentle breeze upon your face like I’m experiencing as I write.
What calls you away from being fully present? Is it a looming duty, a past regret, a worry about the future? Whatever it is robs you of fully embracing the gift of now. Give these things to God and don’t take them back.
During life’s “nows,” we show love by caring for the people in our lives. In an instant, our present moments become memories. When we savor our times with the people God places in our path, there’s a richness which touches our hearts and slows the swirl of life.
But what’s most important is being present with God. The Holy Spirit of Jesus indwells us, and we are never alone. God is in us and around us. We are in Him and He is in us.
Tarry, remain, abide in Jesus. Now, we feel His presence.
In your presence is fullness of joy. Psalm 16:11b.
Prayer
Lord, I need you desperately on this one. I can determine with all my might to stay present, but my mind quickly wanders. By Your Indwelling Holy Spirit, please keep me in the moments of life, fully savoring all which surrounds me, receiving all things from Your hand.
In my moments of now, my I, above all things, recognize Your nearness and show Your love to all You bring my way. May this be the overarching goal of every day, to receive Your love and give it away.
Amen
And now, O Lord, for what do I wait? My hope is in you. (Psalm 39:7 NASB)
[1] Surprised By Joy, Harcourt, p. 199
[2] Ibid, p. 199
[3] From the Oxford Dictionary: Quiddity – the nature or essence of someone or something.
Other posts in our series In the Moments:
Sorrowful, Yet Always Rejoicing
Exploring Grace and Joy together
Joy in the Journey is about the gladness of God’s nearness in the midst of life’s adventures.
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Nonfiction books by the Author:
Because joy is rooted in God and is eternal, it doesn’t ebb and flow with the waves of circumstances. In fact, as we grow in our understanding of joy, we can even experience it more acutely when life is hard. Why? Because God uses trials to conform us into the image of Christ. With this awareness, which gives us glimpses of God’s greater purposes, we rejoice because of His masterful work to free us from needing anything but Him.
For these reasons, and many others, joy in the Lord is commanded in scripture. It’s not just a good idea, it’s vital to our journey as human beings. Rhythms of Joy
Novels by the Author:
What happens when a professor figures out how to send messages to his younger self to try and avoid the suicide of his best friend? Did he change more than he bargained for? Beyond Time
By finding two undelivered letters in an old shack deep in the woods, Cassie and Daniel unknowing set off a series of events which uncover a plot to wipe out a whole family Hope Remains
Please Check out the Cola City Podcast . Discussions that impact the vision of reaching every man, woman, and child in a city.
