Acts 3:20 “that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord…”
The deepest refreshing comes from being in the presence of God. The religious world is overly familiar with the words “spending time with God” but woefully unfamiliar with the experience of God’s presence. How do we position ourselves to experience the presence of the Lord?
My earliest visual memory after landing in Alaska for the first time is of a mural in the Ted Stevens Airport that covered a wall near our arrival gate. It pictured about a dozen Grizzly Bears fishing in a river. I have since come to recognize the spot as the iconic Brooks River Falls in the Katmai National Park. In that moment, I wasn’t even sure if it was a real picture. But I got the impression that the place I had come to was wild.
Living in Alaska, I have experienced some of that wild for myself. My wildlife encounters have mostly happened without looking for wildlife, it just walks across the road in front of me. But there are people who do find it because they are looking. Hunters and wildlife photographers know the tricks and have the skills to get in the right position to experience these animals. I read an article with some of these tips from two National Geographic photographers with a combined 64 years of experience. In the first paragraph they make this general observation, “Wild animals are going to do what they’re going to do. Unfortunately, you can’t ask them to look this way, do something cute, or stand where the light is better. You have to be there, and ready, when they decide to look cute or do something interesting.”[i] Wildlife photographers might position themselves at the best time of day, with the right gear, and a knowledge of feeding habits but calling out “here bear” doesn’t produce the desired results.
We experience wildlife in a similar way to how we experience God’s presence. It’s big and beautiful and thrilling but also unpredictable and beyond our control. With God, as with wildlife, we don’t dictate our experience in his presence we only put ourselves in a position that is more likely to experience his presence.
If we want the times of refreshing that come from the presence of the Lord we must position ourselves to experience that presence.
4 Practices that Position us for God’s Presence
1-Show up where you expect to meet God!
In Acts 3, Peter and John were on their way to pray at the temple, where they might expect to meet God. This time of worship took place in the larger story of Acts 2, when the people showed up in Jerusalem for Pentecost. They didn’t know that Pentecost would be so exciting that year, but they showed up. We position ourselves for God’s presence when we consistently show up in those obvious places where you might expect to meet with God (church services, group meetings, personal worship time, Bible study, service projects…).
I recently saw a moose with her two calves eating by the side of the road. There is no guarantee that I will see them when I go for a drive but one thing is for sure, I won’t ever see them if I stay inside with the windows closed. I don’t expect to see a Moose napping in my bathtub. We are most likely to see them when we show up in the place where they are most likely to be seen.
Peter received a revolutionary vision when he was on the rooftop for a routine time of prayer(Acts 10).[ii] It was that habitual practice that led to the extraordinary experience. We don’t know when the tongues of fire are going to show up. We don’t know when the vision is going to appear. We don’t know when we might be moved by a song or a sermon. We don’t know when we will have a deep life changing moment in the Spirit. But our chances improve when we show up in those places where we expect to meet God.
2-Look for meaning in the strange experiences where you don’t expect to meet God.
Acts 2 and 3 follow a similar pattern. There is something remarkable that gets attention then, once the people get curious, Peter preaches to them. In Acts 3 the attention grabber is the healing of the lame man. That wasn’t normal. In Acts 2 the people saw the tongues of fire above the believers’ heads, they heard the sound of the rushing wind, and they heard the believers speaking in their own languages. In both instances, God’s presence showed up in an unexpected way. They knew it was incredible but they were not sure, just yet, if it was God.
There were two different responses to the outpouring of the Spirit in Acts 2.
Acts 2:12-13 And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” But others mocking said, “They are filled with new wine.”
When the Spirit is poured out in a way we don’t expect or understand we can dismiss it by saying, “they are just drunk” or we can get curious by asking, “what does this mean?” The second option is the better one!
In Exodus 3 God showed up in an unexpected way. The burning bush got Moses’ attention. But Moses wasn’t forced to check it out.
Exodus 3:3-4 And Moses said, “I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned.” When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.”
God spoke when Moses turned aside. He didn’t call out from the bush, “Hey, over here!” God initiated the interaction then waited for Moses to get curious.
Like a wildlife expert who notices tracks in the mud or trails in the brush and gets curious, we should get curious about the unusual things in our experience. They might just point us to God.
We might just call it a strange coincidence but maybe God is in it.
We might just think it is a setback but maybe God is in it.
We might just feel it was an unexpected outburst of emotion but maybe God is in it.
The God who unexpectedly showed up in the rushing wind and the burning bush also shows up in traffic jams, hospitals, songs on the radio, thank-you cards, disappointments, criticisms, fishing trips, conversations with strangers, sunsets, and recreation. When it happens, it is possible to not notice or to notice and dismiss it (“They are just drunk. Nothing to see here.”). But we position ourselves for God’s presence when we look for meaning in the strange experiences where we don’t expect to meet God.
3-Listen to God and to truth about him.
Acts 2:14-15 But Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them: “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give ear to my words.”
Peter didn’t just want them to see the signs and be impressed. He wanted them to hear the message and be changed. When we see the works of God we should then listen for the words of God. Once Moses approached the bush it talked to him. Peter knew that this impressive display was for the purpose of communication.
This was something Peter had to learn. Not long before Peter had another experience with God’s presence. He went up on a mountain with James and John and Jesus where they saw Jesus glorified with Moses and Elijah. He was afraid and didn’t know what to say (Mark 9:6). He could have said, “what does this mean?”. Instead, he declared his plan to make shelters. The voice from heaven pulled him back on track when it said, “this is my son, listen to him” (Mark 9:7). It wasn’t about building the shelters but about hearing a message. Specifically, Peter had just been arguing with Jesus when Jesus told of his suffering (Mark 8:31-33). He needed to know his identity (Son of God) and he needed to be reminded to listen to him and not argue.
Wildlife photographers aren’t done with their work when they find the animal. This is where the work of photography begins. They aren’t trying to catch a glimpse but to capture a picture. So, they linger. The glimpse of God’s glory is impressive but if we linger, we can listen to his voice.
We position ourselves for God’s presence when we listen to him and to truth about him.
4-Repent
In Acts 3:20, repentance is what precedes the times of refreshing that come from the presence of the Lord. When we decide to turn away from whatever else and turn to God, we position ourselves for his presence.
God is omnipresent. I don’t always see wildlife when I go outside but I know it is out there. There is never a moment when I am not in God’s presence, there are only times when I am not aware of, or not enjoying, his presence. God does not try to make it hard for us to be with him. Jesus says, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.” (Revelation 3:20). Repentance is opening that door to welcome the presence that has been with us all along.
If we are consistently turning away from God and turning toward the things that are not from him then we should not be surprised when we don’t feel his presence. We should not be confused when God seems distant. Repent. We position ourselves to experience God when we turn our hearts to him.
There are some incredible wildlife photos. Each image displays an amazing moment that may have taken hours or days to capture. As great as the shot might be, no photo can match the thrill of being in the presence of a wild animal. Don’t settle for a picture of God when you can position yourself to experience times of refreshing in his presence.
[i] https://www.nationalgeographic.com/photography/article/pbb-wildlife
[ii] Listen to my podcast about this, The Habit Leads to the Extraordinary @ (https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-bu84c-10089a2