The (Consistent) Pursuit of God's Presence

[Sam Park]

I think that one of the most affirming things for a Christian leader is the recognition of the presence of God in their lives. I used to think that the presence of God simply comes with the position, but after several years in leadership myself, I discovered that that’s not necessarily true. When things are going well, it’s easy for people to say that they can see God’s “presence” in the leader’s life. I guess it’s normal for people to equate only the “blessings” with God’s presence. The true test of God’s presence, however, comes during the crisis moments. When things are not going that well, will people recognize the presence of God in our lives? It is a lot easier to “blame” the absence of His presence during the most difficult times. It is my experience, however, that His presence is potentially most “visible” during these crisis moments—that is, if we choose to embrace it. Not everyone seems to. As for me, I have no one else to turn to. My wife is the greatest supporter of my life. But she is not always there. And even when she does comfort me, it is only because of His presence manifesting in the most tangible form in and through her. This has heightened my awareness of my pursuit for the consistency or constancy of God’s presence in our lives. This should be the norm, and most leaders do at least desire it. But again, not everyone seems to actually purse it.

The presence of God was evident when Moses led during the good times and the bad. And it seemed like crisis was perpetual. What impresses me is that God’s presence in his life was something never questioned. Even when the Israelites were grumbling to Aaron about Moses’ lack of presence (right before they made the golden calf), they complained that he went to meet with God. They were actually complaining about Moses’ pursuit of God’s presence! That seems to be one of the biggest obstacles in our pursuit of His presence in our lives—the demand of those around us for our presence. They will complain and argue and even abandon us (that must be what Moses felt when he returned with the stone tablets), but as leaders, we stand at a crossroads. We must decide what is more important—our presence or His. We say that it is His, but if we looked for carefully at our decisions, our actions say that it is ours. The desire and pursuit of God’s presence in the leader’s life can never be taken for granted or compromised—especially by the leader, but also, by those that follow as well.