Resting in God’s presence

I find it almost too wonderful that Jesus is my burden-bearer. I can allow him to take the burdens from my shoulders. Whatever these troubles of mine (and yours too) may be, whether worry, unconfessed sins, fear, etc., whatever they may be, the Lord Jesus has comforting and promising words to us all.

~Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. Matthew 11:28-30

All these unnecessary troubles that we carry can be obstacles which prevent us from resting in God’s presence. We must remember that Christ Jesus dealt with everything on the cross and He only asks us to believe that He has done away with all our sins. He has also done away with all our sorrows. Isaiah 53:4 says that “Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows”.

One of my favorite Psalms is chapter 91. I invite you to read it in its entirety, it’s quite short.

~ He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. Psalms 91:1

Having found that place of rest, we then need to dwell in that secret place, under the shadow of the Almighty. This secret place, to me, is an intimate communion; a place where I can make known my heart, with its needs and wishes, its thoughts and feelings, its doubts and anxieties, its sorrows and its joys to Christ my Lord. It’s a place of refuge from the storms of the world where I can cling to Him.

If we abide with him and abide in His WORD we shall remain under his care. His outstretched wings of power and love cover us. This protection is ours if we abide constantly in Him. He is our refuge and we can fly to Him. He is our fortress. The Lord of Hosts stands between us and the enemy.

How do we come to dwell in this secret place and rest there? We make it ours by faith and prayer, "I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust” Psalm 91:2.

In times of trial and temptation, difficulties and problems, we can only fly into the secret place of God and we can rest in the shadow of the Almighty. When we're weak and struggling, striving against sin and sorrow, hurting from the attacks of the world, He then is our safe, quiet and resting place.