Being aware
Prayer and Fasting Tips January 23rd, 2008Genesis 28 16-17 (NIV)
16 When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought, “Surely the LORD is in this place, and I was not aware of it.” 17 He was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven.”
I woke up Friday totally psyched about the prayer meeting to take place that evening. I wanted to get myself ready for an encounter with God and was praying for Him to move in a fresh and mighty way.
The scripture for my Bible reading that morning revolved around Genesis 28 and Jacob’s dream that he had at Bethel.
Now, I don’t know about you, but I have heard this scripture passage many times - Jacob sleeping with a stone for a pillow and angels descending up and down a ladder; then the Lord promising Jacob the same promise that he made to Abraham and Isaac - that he would increase his territory and that all of his descendents would be blessed.
But it was not until I reached verse 16 that God began to speak to me.
Jacob wakes up from his dream - and he has had such an incredible encounter with God that he declares “Surely the Lord is in this place and I was not aware of it!”
In that moment, God began to deal with me.
As tears streamed down my face the Lord spoke to me, “You have already received what you asked me for - I am here now.”
So many times in life we go around asking God for these “neon signs” to prove to us that He really is there. That He is aware of what is going on with us and what we are surrounded by.
I know I do.
I often ask God to give me some sort of revelation of His presence in my life. However, after reading that verse, I am reminded that God is ALWAYS with us. He promises to NEVER leave us or forsake us. God constantly surrounds us with His love and protection and sometimes we are just “not aware of it.”
I do not want to live my life this way. I want to always be aware of God’s presence.
Not only do I want to be able to see His hands in the obvious things, but also to be aware of His presence in the small things. To see Him in the ordinary; from the praise and worship service, to my quiet time, to a conversation held between friends, to helping a stranger.
I know that God is with me.
One thing I pray through this time of fasting and prayer is that, as a church, our faith and our knowledge of Christ would increase. That we would all be able to experience the presence of our God in our daily lives and that we would truly take the experience that we have here at church on a Sunday morning into the rest of our week.
Lindsay Vartanian
Celebration Staff
January 23rd, 2008 at 1:37 pm
Lindsay you are so right. We so often overlook the small things. We take for granted the fact that He wakes us up, allows us to see, and allows us to walk and talk. He is always with us yet we are always looking for that one miracle that will let us know He is there. It says in the last part of Hebrews 13:5 I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.
January 23rd, 2008 at 2:45 pm
Lindsay,
It’s funny to me that you ask God to give you “some sort of revelation of His presence in my life” when it’s obvious you go into the presence of God whenever you sing. Be happy to know that every time you sing, you make God more real to those of us who hear your voice. You give others the “revelation of His presence” in their life in that moment.
You are such a Blessing to me and so many others as you reach out your hand to take us to His Throne along with you. Thank you for tirelessly sharing your gift to help bring others to Christ.
January 25th, 2008 at 9:23 pm
Wow, Lindsay! God never ceases to amaze me. It’s funny because I have been praying the same things for our church as a whole. It’s always great to see/hear that God has put the same thing on different people’s hearts, then you know He definitely has a plan (although we know this anyway). I just love it when God sends confirmation to let you know you are on the right track with Him. Thank you.