The Daily Grace - God's Presence at Church

I love reading church slogans. You know, the ones you see on the marquee in front of churches. Recently I noticed a slogan that said, "Come in and experience the presence of God". That one caught my attention, primarily because it's an important promise to make and sometimes a hard promise to keep. Hard, because if we're not careful our churches might reflect the presence of its people more than the presence of our God.

So what would a church have to do to display the presence of God? Its people would have to live like Him! Dynamics like hospitality, the loving acceptance of all kinds of people, a quickness to serve, a tangible love for one another that makes people feel safe and included regardless of color or class, and a patient tolerance of one another's weaknesses would all be a great way to start. Paul said we should walk in a manner "worthy of the Lord" (Col. 1:10). And he also said that being worthy means that we will be humble, gentle, bearing with one another in love, eagerly maintaining the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace (Eph. 4:2-3).

Let's live in such a way that others will experience the presence of the God who lives in us - wherever we are, but especially at church. Those who walk with Christ bring the presence of God to everyone around them. The world gets a glimpse of God when those who claim to be the followers of Jesus Christ are living righteously.