Finding God's PresenceSýnishorn

Present in the Ordinary

An enemy army surrounded the town of Dothan and the prophet Elisha within.

This prophet had a servant who panicked, woke him in terror, and dragged him outside to see enemy forces surrounding the city and beginning to advance.

Elisha didn’t flinch. He prayed, “Open his eyes, LORD, so that he may see.”

Suddenly, the servant saw a fiery angelic army between Dothan and the enemy force.

Elisha prayed again, and the enemy army was temporarily blinded. They were led to Israel’s king, met and fed with hospitality, and sent home. God saved His prophet and His people.

The Bible insists that there is always more going on than we see. Both God and spiritual beings are present, near, and influential. They interact with us, and we affect each other.

Ephesians 6:10-20 takes this story and angelic armies to a new level.

Paul says that we’re always in a battle against principalities and powers we don’t see. An invisible war rages around us.

Paul challenges the Ephesian Christians to put on the “armor of God,” and yells encouragement for Christians to hold the battle line they’re struggling to see.

This chapter of Ephesians begins with Paul telling men to love their wives, not to exasperate their kids, to honor their parents, and to work hard as if working for God Himself (even if they’re slaves) (Ephesians 6:1-9).

This ordinary stuff seems anti-climactic alongside teaching about the battle between good and evil.

Paul’s astonishing point is that the way we live our ordinary lives is the way we engage in the eternal battle between good and evil alongside the God who is with us.

Loving your wife is advancing against the Satanic horde. Calling your mom on the way home from work is taking your stand against the Devil’s schemes. Shoddy work is desertion. Exasperating your children is sedition against our King.

God, angels, and demons are present. Are you engaging in the battle with Him or deserting?

Gents, your answer to that question is determined by how you live amidst the ordinary today.

This week is about engaging the presence of God. Experience will confirm the biblical teaching of a God who is surprisingly present in the ordinary. The little stuff matters more than you think.

Prayer: Lord, open my eyes to see You amidst the ordinary and show me how to serve You today. Convict me where I’m falling short in the little things. Open my eyes to Your protection, gifts, and goodness amidst these things. Amen.

Reflection: Ask God to remind you of the impact of parents, teachers, and spouses on you. Whose impact positively shaped you? Hurt you? As you recall these relationships and stories, consider again Paul’s teaching that the ordinary is part of an eternal battle.