Let’s Get Real!
How often do you encounter the Lord God? Do you and I encounter the Lord daily, sometimes, or not at all? When we spend time in worship and prayer, do we wait to hear from Him, or do we create an atmosphere that invites Him? Let’s get real about our faith, our time with God, and where our heart is.
The key difference between having quiet time with the Lord and an altar before the Lord is the presence of God. It is not just about disciplines, things we do as Christians to stay strong in our faith; it is about being in communion with our Creator, with God our Father, His Son, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. In today’s world, it is not uncommon to be in a room full of people, and no one is communicating. Everyone is on their device, connecting their heart elsewhere.
Let’s look at the significance of this statement from Jesus’ own words.
Matthew 15:8 - These people draw near to me with their mouth, and honor me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me. And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.
Jesus was addressing a crowd, but He was talking about the religious people of His day - to their face! On the other hand, in the Old Testament, many of the Psalms give instructions on how to enter the presence of God.
Psalm 100:4 .- Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him and bless His name.
Many times we come to God complaining, or with our needs, forgetting who He is and the greatness of His Mercy and Grace. Or, unaware we are proud, rebellious, or hurt and don’t realize we need to repent, resist, and receive from Him His great grace and mercy. There is a way to come to God.
James 4:8 - Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. (Condition) Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.
A friend recommended a book that I am reading, and I pulled today’s blog content largely from the book. It is titled Prayer Altars by John Mulinde and Mark Daniel. Let me paraphrase a story from the book.
John was in prayer, preparing to teach. He retreated to his room with the promise of being at the meeting on time. When he arrived, he said to Mark, “I failed in prayer.” Mark thought he must have fallen asleep or something else where he did not get to pray. That was not it. John said he prayed, but he failed to encounter the presence of God.
This cut me to the quick! How many times have I left my prayer time and not encountered God?
I have a couple of questions for you.
Who has the altar of our heart? Is it someone? Your spouse, a friend, or even your boss? Is it something? the TV, or other devices? Food, drugs, and other things we use to hide our hurts and pain? Or does God? God wants your heart. All of you for all of Him. It is truly the Great Exchange!
Where is the altar in your home? You may say as I do, God has my heart. Do you meet with Him daily and carry Him with you all day long? You don’t have to have a special place to meet, but you can. Are you going through the motions, checking off a list, and then on to the next? Do we leave Him at home when we go off to work?
I know that God is everywhere all the time, but if we are not aware of Him, it makes no difference. To worship is to experience His presence. To pray is to experience His presence. To love is to experience His presence.
My prayer for you and me for 2026 is to seek God with our whole hearts and know that we will find Him. Let’s learn to abide in His presence.
Join me daily on our Podcast called Three Minutes in the Word on Time With The Father for a short 2-3 minute devotional. Then every Sunday for our time together in the Word.
Next week, we will have a special guest, and after that, more reading for our upcoming book, The R.A.C. E.
Until then, remember that the heart of the matter is the matter of the heart.
Dr. Michele
