And I will be with you always, to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:20b, GNT

 

Sometimes, it is good to have a bit of solitude, but it is never nice to be lonely. We all need the presence of other people, especially if it is someone you love. It is wonderful to share something beautiful with another person and it is of great comfort to have someone who can support you in a crisis.

 

How much more should we long to be close to God? We need to actually feel God’s presence every day. In our very hectic society, a time and place to meet God becomes less and less. Sometimes, even in some church services, I do not experience the quietness that I need for real contact with God and to feel that the Holy Spirit is present.

 

Why do we have a need to be in the presence of God? My granddaughter came to sit close to me one evening, saying, “When I sit so close to you, Grandpa, I feel completely safe and I am not afraid of anything.” I think this is one of the main reasons why we need to be close to God – we feel completely safe and we are not afraid of anything.

 

In Psalm 16, the poet notes three things why we need the presence of God. The first one we have already mentioned – I want to feel safe. The second is because God shows us the way through life. Without him, we are like children who got lost in a dark world. In the third place, his presence brings happiness to our lives. Without God, our lives would be pretty dull.

 

Hans du Plessis wrote an Afrikaans poem based on Psalm 42, called "Griekwagebed". I am going to try to give something of this Griqua prayer in translated form: "I sat there crying on the big dune, my soul is in torment and it feels to me that God has left me alone again, but then I look and see it is not true, for here, close to me, sat God."

 

God will always be close to us. Jesus promised it: “And I will be with you always, to the end of the age.”

 

Prayer: Father, thank you for being so close to me day and night to take away my fear. Please use me to make your presence a reality to other people, so that they may also experience a life without fear. Amen