The last couple of weeks, in my spare time, I have been reviewing old photographs and videos from my family’s history. The bittersweet process has brought back fond memories, amused me, and made me wish I could relive seasons of time. I’m grateful for dear relationships, special experiences, and even formative trials. My past has helped me develop into who I am, but I can’t stay there reveling in the good times or shackled by regrets and mistakes. Likewise, I can’t live solely in the future either enticed by dreams, or worrying about what ifs, dreading what I dislike, or fearing the unknown. In contrast, I must live in the present. Have you come to that realization? The past and the future are important, but secondary to making the most of now. Doing so is not merely an exercise is mindfulness, but rather a call to walk daily with God. Only God can heal the brokenness of your past, assure you of a blessed future, and lovingly guide you as he provides for your every need in the present.
Jesus, God the Son, captured the essence of living in this affirmation, “Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent” (John 17:3). Here are a three practical ways you can know God and experience his peace and presence each day.
Recognize God
The first step to a relationship with God is to recognize that he loves you and wants to bring about the best for you. David, the king of Israel, understood this, “Keep me safe, my God, for in you I take refuge…You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand. (Psalm 16:1, 11) Accept God’s invitation to life with him by confessing any wrongdoing and ask him to forgive you, to teach you, and to empower you to live for him. As you walk with God, you will face opposition and trials especially spiritually. Know that God will help you. The apostle Paul encouraged believers to bring opposition and needs to God, “The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:4-5). “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:4-7). The prophet Isaiah wrote, “You [God] will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you” (Isaiah 26:3). He also wrote, “Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint” (Isaiah 40:31).
Rely on God
Isaiah continued with “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand” (Isaiah 41:10). God is your savior and provider. Jesus is inviting you, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-29). As you submit your life to Jesus and cling to him, God gives you a new life, a greater purpose, and divine understanding. Paul wrote, “Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will” (Romans 12:1-2). In contrast, to any other pursuit, godliness has value for all things both now and forever (1 Timothy 4:8). That’s why Jesus said to seek for God to rule in all areas of your life and in this world, to pray for his will to be done, and to desire for his righteousness to prevail. When you do there is no need to strive in your own strength or to worry. Instead you can rest and rely on God (Matthew 6:5-34).
Respond to God
God is always at work saving and accomplishing his purposes throughout the universe he created. I have mentioned how he loves you and wants you to be with him, to be like him, and to do what he does. He makes this possible through Jesus. You enter into a relationship with God and his truth and power become a present reality for you when you trust and obey Jesus. That’s what faith is: placing your hope, loyalty, trust and obedience in Jesus. The author of Hebrews put it this way, “Faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not yet seen” (Hebrews 11:1). When you respond to God in faith you substantiate and make tangible the good he desires to work out in your life and through your life for others. Wow, that’s amazing!
God even gives you his Holy Spirit to help in your faith walk with him. His Holy Spirit comforts, counsels, corrects, enlightens, and empowers you. Be teachable and alert to the Holy Spirit providing opportunities to grow closer to God and to help others do the same. That’s why Paul encouraged believers to be filled with the Spirit and to respond to God by walking in light—doing what’s right and proclaiming the truth. Walking in wisdom—discerning God’s will and pleasing him. Walking in unity and in love—showing kindness and forgiveness, making peace, being grateful, lending support, and offering encouragement (Ephesians 4-5).
If you trust Jesus as your savior and Lord you can live eternally now. You can experience abundant life and peace with God today and forever. As you do he will transform you into all you were designed to be, train you to reign with him, and work through you to save and equip others. With that in mind, I want to have the same outlook as Paul did. I hope you do to.
“But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith. I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead.
Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:7-14).