Pressing Into His Presence...

Don't you love it when you attend an event and you see that wealthy and influential ‘big’ man/woman you know(and off course they know you as well)? You go to greet him/her and the reception is so warm, you have a nice conversation with a few respectful back-slaps. It’s really a big deal especially when it comes to showing off to the onlookers who underestimated you before…(Yes, shameful i tell you) Sometimes you're lucky to leave with an unexpected, but much needed cash gift, a subtle exchange of envelopes between the PA and you(if you're in Nigeria that is)…  and a very sincere expression of dismay at the fact that you don't come around them when they could be of help to you and a sincere invitation to come over to the office when you want to. This would be great only if the protocol around this person wasn’t crazy.

I went for a function and saw this 'influential' man. After a very warm reception and a spirited conversation. I requested(more like demanded) for a meeting(not like i had an idea what i wanted to discuss, but seize the moment they say)… He said of course I could stop by, just get to one of the Personal assistants and he’ll make it happen. Now it’s that easy right? Only this PA would make things difficult, you call one day and he picks up and gives you some flimsy excuse and a time to call back, you call at the time and he says meet up, you sigh in relieve, finally!!! Only he just wants to use it as an opportunity to have lunch with you. You get angry and pissed, choosing to forget about seeing the 'oga' altogether. It doesn’t matter that he’s nice, and he sincerely gave the invite. The stress of meeting up for the bigger deal is just not worth it, the staff/protocol around him choose to make things difficult for those he's invited. They use their position for their own personal gain/pleasure, to extort and to gain dates. Thus you resign to faith and hope you'll meet him at the next meeting or wedding or dinner and carry on from there.

We go to church and we meet with God. We’re all excited about the preachers sermon, and we feel so close to God in that moment. It’s easier to pray to Him and talk to Him and feel like He’s giving you special attention during the service. You leave church feeling blessed, with a lightened heart and a free pass to visit him whenever you want to. The goody bag of meeting with a big man
But when you’re ready at night, when you hit the floor and get ready to pray, you meet obstacles, you remember to do this and do that… you think of this and that, get distracted by your blackberry and lost in some day dream, right before you sleep off. Breaking through the resistance and protocol of sleep and distractions to get to Him in prayer can be a pain. Remember, when you met Him in public, He gave you a blessing, how much more will He give you when you meet Him in the privacy of His throne room? (Mark 11:24 "Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.")He’s so easy to approach and talk to, if only they’d just let you in.

You've got to push through the resistance, stay kneeling/sitting and keep calling on the Holy Spirit to lead you there, He will. And once you’re in His presence, you wonder why it was so hard for you to get through to Him in the first place. You feel such a peace and a joy, that it’s all worth it, the fighting off the protocol of sleep and distraction pales in comparison to what you get in there. A president whose aides keeps you away even after he's asked you in... but when you get in, the reception is so warm, and you're dining with the king, you forget what the struggle felt like.

Jeremiah 29:13 "You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart."


Like going to some exclusive club, the bouncers try to make it hard for you to get in, even when you’ve got all the money to spend. Because its exclusive, you do all you can to get in and rub shoulders and be written about in the society page… How you cajole, bribe, and probably fight with the bouncers is the same way you should do all you can to get into Gods presence. (If you understand this analogy better…here’s a raised eyebrow for you. What in the word are you still going to clubs for?)

Likewise, the protocol of not knowing the right things to say in prayer is such an obstacle. Sometimes we may be clueless as to what to pray about, just like i had no idea what i wanted a meeting for, but don't let that put you off. Just start having an honest conversation... be sincere about your uncertainty of what to say, be sincere about how inadequate you feel, be sincere about how your day went and in confessing your sins. (after all God knows our heart, we may as well tell Him what we're thinking instead of trying to hide it from Him.) Give thanks, there's always something to be thankful about, fact that you're breathing is enough to be thankful. It helps a lot to be able to pray in the spirit. It breaks the ice of not knowing what to say, more like, how a mans tongue loosens up after he has thrown down a shot or two of whiskey. Sometimes, following formulas for prayer makes it more of a religious exercise, than a sincere conversation and relationship builder between you and your God, thus making it a tedious exercise.(Matthew 6:7 When you pray, don't babble on and on as people of other religions do. They think their prayers are answered only by repeating their words again and again.")
 
Prayer time is battle time, if you don’t press to be in His presence, you’ll keep postponing prayers, till you discover you no longer have a prayer life. You've got to be strong enough to fight through the selfish, self appointed protocols that stand between you and your prayer life. Use all the connection you can lay your hands on, the Holy Spirit and music... the right music finds a way of ushering you in unannounced, before the protocol can waylay you. I’ve noticed the moments I fight my way into prayer are one of the best prayer times ever. Not like every prayer time isn't special, but the ones that you pushed through to get to, seem to have all sorts of awesomeness attached to them.

 Start pressing!

Comments

  1. May God continue to grant us the grace to "push through" to his presence. Amen!!!!!!!

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  2. Amen! Pressing your/my way through. Not by power, not by might, but by my Spirit saith the Lord!

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  3. Yes o, we have to press. The Bible let's us know that we don't know what to pray, the Holy spirit will help us with groanings that cannot be uttered.

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  4. I have to press harder. Prayer time is my time to unbundled all my aches, cares and worries to God

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  5. Pple dnt read long writeup anymor pls make it short nd interest my luv,am jus sayn sha

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I guess same way people don't write complete words anymore... sad where we're headed :(
      Thanks for the advice... :)

      Delete

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