His Presence Brings Rest
Exodus 33:14
The LORD replied, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”
Day in and day out, in the mundane, repetitive activities of daily life, in the stress of work, family, tragedy and crisis, we tend to miss out on coming to the acknowledgement that God’s presence is with us. In the moment of panic over finances or in the stress of things going wrong – in the challenge of illness or in loss, fear, anxiety, there is a necessity for us to know that God’s promise of His Presence stands. GOD HIMSELF is present and His presence provides us with the peace we crave for.
In our text, God is speaking to Moses here after Moses asks God for help in knowing Him better and leading the people of Israel. God not only promises His presence to Moses, but also to give him rest. Rest is always a function of God’s presence, a conscious awareness of His ever abiding presence makes us go on the journey of life without fear, because we always know He is in and with us.
God’s presence is rest from the conscience of sin. “I will remember their sins no more.” God’s presence is rest from weariness. There is in each of us a fund of natural energy, determined largely by health or temperament, or favourable circumstances. But at times this is crushed by disappointment and failure, and the sense of its inadequacy for some great task. But when God is near it falls back on Him like a tired child on a father’s strength, and is at rest.
So when you find yourself, feeling guilty and condemned, getting frustrated or feeling overwhelmed, like you just can’t do it anymore, remember to stop, get your focus back on Him and enter into His rest once again. Your rest is an act of faith in God’s ability to take care of me and my stuff, He is already there – He already has it covered.
CONFESSION
I constantly aware of God’s abiding presence
I rest in His Ability to get things done for me.
Amen!
