Sunday, December 5, 2010 - Brush of Angels' Wings

   One of the first songs to usher me into the Presence of God was "Surely, the Presence of the Lord is in This Place," written by Lanny Wolfe in 1977, a year after I accepted Jesus as my Savior, Lord, and King and whoever else He wanted and wants to be to me. Here are the words and I hope you know the melody.
SURELY, THE PRESENCE OF THE LORD IS IN THIS PLACE.
I CAN FEEL HIS MIGHTY POWER AND HIS GRACE.
I CAN FEEL THE BRUSH OF ANGELS' WINGS;
I SEE GLORY ON EACH FACE.
SURELY, THE PRESENCE OF THE LORD IS IN THIS PLACE.

     In the midst of His children,
The Lord said He would be.
It doesn't take very many;
It can be just two or three
And I feel that same sweet Spirit
That I've felt oft times before
Surely, I can say I've been with the Lord
     There's a holy hush around us,
As God's glory fills this place.
I've touched the hem of His garment;
I can almost see His face
And my heart is overflowing
With the fullness of His joy.
I know without a doubt
That I've been with the Lord.

     Jacob, Old Testament chef who tricked his twin brother out of his inheritance, found the Presence of the Lord as a fugitive sleeping unsheltered in a strange land, with a stone for his pillow. He was literally between a rock and a hard place when the Lord opened the night sky with a stairway of angels to send comforting promises of His eternal Presence. 

     Unruly shepherds on a hillside experienced a similar cracking open of the night sky as angels delivered promises of God's Presence and salvation. An obedient young couple under the shadow of scandal found the Presence of God in a stable surrounded by the earthy smells of tired, sweaty donkeys. Praise God, He doesn't wait until we've Windexed our souls or sanitized our surroundings to be available to us. God's Presence is for anyone, anytime, in any situation: alone and wrong, just doing their jobs, or smack in the middle of God's world-changing will. 
Thank You, Father, for the open door to Your Presence. Thank You Jesus, for opening that door. Thank You Holy Spirit for ushering us into the Presence of God, the Almighty, the Great Three in One, whenever we ask. Teach us to stay alert to Your Presence and obedient to Your guidance, like Mary and Joseph. Break into our everyday responsibilities with Your Light and Love to remind us of Your greater purposes, as You did with the shepherds. And Lord, when we feel alone in our sin, running from problems we've caused and people we've hurt, use even our dreams to remind us You will never leave us nor forsake us and that You still have plans for us in Your kingdom work.


In the name of Jesus, who stands knocking at our hearts' doors


"In the shelter of Your Presence You hide them from the intrigues of men; in Your dwelling You keep them safe from accusing tongues." Psalm 31:20
     
"When he (Jacob) reached a certain place, he stopped for the night because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones there, he put it under his head and lay down to sleep. He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of god were ascending and descending on it. There above it stood the LORD, and He said: 'I am the LORD, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. i will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed by you and your offspring. I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.'  When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought, 'Surely the LORD is in this place, and I was not aware of it.'" Genesis 28:11-16