Perfect Presence

 ”Now therefore, I pray, if I have found grace in Your sight, show me now Your way, that I may know You and that I may find grace in Your sight. And consider that this nation is Your people.” And He said, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.” Then he said to Him, “If Your Presence does not go with us, do not bring us up from here. Exodus‬ ‭33‬:‭13‬-‭15‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

If anyone in our days is privileged to be guided by the pillars of cloud and fire like Moses and the Israelites, he would probably be spared from the global stress of anxiety, instability, and insecurity in the land. Even those who crave the protection of political powers and the barrel of guns are not in any way lighted by the presence of their political and material prosperity. For Moses, besides the privilege of divine interference, he had experienced the inherent frustration of leading the disobedient and stiff-necked people through the constantly evolving challenges in the wilderness. Even today, managing imperfect people without the abiding presence of the grace of God can be too complicated. When Moses prayed “If Your Presence does not go with us, do not bring us up from here”, does he truly prefer to end the race in Mount Sinai in the absence of the desired Presence of God? Obviously, in spite of the granting of answer to the prayer of Moses, the havoc of the presence of the imperfect children of Israel still prevented Moses from entering the promised land of Canaan. Likewise, we need grace to practice the perfect presence of God on a daily basis; to withstand the conflicting influences and manipulation of our wicked and sinful world.

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