AWARENESS OF GOD'S PRESENCE
My dear friends, have you ever wondered what life would be like without God? For some of us, it would be devastating and yet, for so many people today, it wouldn't matter a bit! They are too busy being “tuned in” or “plugged in” to worldly distractions. We should be tuned in, but not to the television set or an i-pod or any other gadget; we should be tuned into the air waves of the Holy Spirit! The signals from God's station are constantly being beamed into our homes, into our lives, into our hearts and souls – we just have to make time for them; we have to become aware of them.
At the beginning of the fifth chapter of the Gospel according to Luke, we read how Peter became aware of Who was with them in the boat, how he became aware of being a sinful man, not worthy to be in the presence of the Lord. Yet, he decided to “tune in” and left everything behind to follow Jesus. He chose the right station! Even the nets with all the fish, the full boats, his friends and family did not matter at that moment, for he had found TRUE LIFE!
It is a shame how religion gets pushed aside in our world. Spiritual matters don't seem to be important any more. Only the things that one can experience, see, taste or touch are relevant these days. By pushing God away, society has made room for the evil one to do his work. He knows how to take advantage of weaknesses, how to direct lives into ways of wickedness. You see, the more we pay attention to distractions, the less time we have for God and spiritual matters. It is all part of Satan's plan for taking souls away from God. The ungodly television shows have become persecutors of Christianity – more and more immoral activities are being broadcast over the air waves. Immorality becomes normal, as lives are drawn away from prayer and are led along the road to self-satisfaction, selfishness and even to self-destruction.
Despite all this, God NEVER gives up on us. He tries to awaken us and make us aware of HIS air waves (the Holy Spirit). It is up to us to recognize God's presence like Paul did – once a persecutor of Christians, he became a true follower of Christ, preaching and teaching the Good News for the rest of his life. Knowing full well that he was not worthy, he not only recognized but also answered God's call!
So, I urge you to try to tune in more often to the channel of Christ and to remain "tuned in" for extended periods of time. You might feel unworthy at first but I assure you that you will have chosen the "right channel". You might feel like Isaiah did as he recognized God in His glory and holiness, when he said: "Woe is me; I am doomed! For I am a man of unclean lips ... " Afterwards, when he became aware of God's call, when he became aware of God's presence within him, Isaiah recognized that he had to change his life. It meant no more evil thoughts, no more unclean talk, no more wickedness. It meant that he had to turn away from the ways of the world and to tune in to God's waves. Do you recall his response? "Here I am, Lord. I come to do Your will."
So, let us all make that effort to "tune in" to God and to cry out with all the holy men and women: "Here I am, Lord!"