By JMathis

I’m hurriedly walking on the wet sidewalk, doing my best to avoid the wind and sleet as it whips violently against my face. A cold, wet afternoon is often just part and parcel of a “bad day” for me—I worry that my suit is drenched, my laptop is getting soaked, and that my cold symptoms are worsened by the calamitous weather outside.

A fleeting thought hits me that I need to be grateful. Grateful that I have a heated car to run into, grateful that I am clothed and grateful that no problem is too big for my God.

But, it’s fleeting and my grumbling persists.

In the mayhem of this storm, in that fleeting thought, He was gently reminding me that He was there. The problem was, though, that I just didn’t want to listen.

The rain was overpowering, and kept flooding over into my very thoughts.

My problems seemed great, and He seemed far away.

Is that why we don’t see Him in the Here and Now? Why we cannot enjoy the Present?

While your heart is saying that the storm is temporary, is your head losing sight of Him when the elements come crashing in over you?

He is the safety of your Here and Now. He is the refuge of your Present.

What will it take for us to remember this Truth? Do we need a constant reminder of the holes in His hand? The blood pouring out of His sides? The bruises on His face and back?

He died for your Here and Now. He lives to be your Present.

See Him. Feel Him. Listen for Him. Breathe Him into your spirit.

He is Here. He is Now. He is Present.