The Power of His Presence

Reading of the Day: 1 Samuel 5-7

1 Samuel 5:4: And when they arose early on the morrow morning, behold, Dagon was fallen upon his face to the ground before the ark of the LORD; and the head of Dagon and both the palms of his hands were cut off upon the threshold; only the stump of Dagon was left to him.

We often talk about our times at church & say things like, "It felt so good to be in the house of The Lord today!" And, "There is such a peace in His presence." Any way you say it, it's all true! But we cannot forget the POWER of His presence! We cannot forget the POWER God has to change things and turn situations around! In these chapters, we see just a glimpse of how powerful His presence can be! The ark of God was taken from Israel after the Philistines attacked. Eli the priest's sons were killed in battle for their disobedience to The Lord, which in turn made Eli fall over dead as well-but one of the greatest reasons he fell down & died was not only for the death of his sons, but because the ark of God was taken by the Philistines. The Israelites understood that this ark represented the powerful presence of God among His people, and without His presence, the people were devastated! Soon, all the surrounding cities would also know what Israel knew. They would understand just what it means for the power of God's presence to dwell in their land! The Philistines put the ark of God in the house of their god Dagon, and what we see take place in the above Scripture must have been unbelievable for the Philistines-the statue of their god fell down before the ark of God! It actually did this once before, but they set it up again before it came to this point, where only the stump was left. Now things weren't so unbelievable anymore...they were starting to recognize the magnitude of their decision to steal the ark! So, they passed it on & passed it on, and every city the ark went to experienced judgment as the power of God's presence shook up those places! Finally, the ark of God makes it back to Israel in a miraculous way, and when the Israelites are under attack from the Philistines, Samuel sacrifices & prays for the people. Then, God's powerful presence manifests among His people once again! 1 Samuel 7:10: "And as Samuel was offering up the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near to battle against Israel: but the LORD thundered with a great thunder on that day upon the Philistines, and discomfited them; and they were smitten before Israel." God makes all to bow before Him! Even those who do not believe! In a church service, God does not only want us to feel more cheerful as we leave the building. He wants us to experience the power of His presence, and believe that He CAN do the impossible! He CAN heal disease! He CAN help you win in a losing battle! He CAN restore your finances! God is not just a "feel good" God, He is an "it is DONE!" God!! Let us always embrace God's gentle touch, but let us never forget the POWER of His presence!