Last Friday my wife Cheryl completed her time at St Paul’s Centre, 23 years of service with much joy and a few challenges. Kind words were offered and received along with flowers and cards to read. One friend brought a beautiful copper wall plaque with the words ‘Bidden or not bidden God is present’ inscribed on it.
This was a reminder that where we are is where God is. Many years ago Cheryl wrote a song in which she placed this line ‘I have an invitation Lord addressed to You from me to come into my home Lord and remain eternally, to be the unseen guest at meal times Lord and through the coming years… The words go on to describe the need for the invitation, because God is gracious and personable. God chooses not to barge in on our lives but wait for an invitation.
If you want to invest some time in a good biography Abandoned to God will take you through the life of Oswald Chambers. Whilst reading this book I came across the story of how he came to enter Christian service. Chambers spent the night in prayer on a hilltop, Arthurs Seat above Edinburgh. Oswald says that at some point in the night he heard an audible voice that spoke the words, “I want you in My service – but I can do without you”. Chambers became one of the 20th century’s greatest exponents of a Christ centered life. His legacy remains to this day.
You see, that plaque our friends gave ‘Bidden or not bidden God is present’ is true of all our lives and in every individual circumstance. Cheryl wrote the song to invite God into her life eternally. Oswald discovered if he were to serve God it would need to be service given not extracted. That God is present is not in question, that we respond is.
We can become so independent and resourceful that we forget to invite God in on the detail of our lives. I confess to being a big picture person full of ideas about what and how and when. Easy to get carried away and caught up in your own contribution. For many years I had a sign on my office door which read Jehovah-Jireh meaning God my provider. During those years I trained myself to not own any credit for anything the charity achieved. It was hard particularly when standing on a platform or even on TV receiving awards or praise. The key was to know in each circumstance that – invited or not God was present.
I wonder what difference it might make to our daily lives and our future plans if we move beyond the knowledge that God is always present to acknowledging Gods presence? An encouraging friend once said that God might be in the room but you still need to lift the receiver – we used to describe phones this way! She went on to say let me give you God’s number 333.
My guess is that we don’t want God to just be present; we want God to be part of our every thought. Maybe today God is saying – ‘Call me and I will answer and tell you great and unsearchable things…’ Jeremiah 33:3
Rob Wykes 