Session 2: Presence
Becoming a modern monk is about learning to practice the ways of Jesus in a modern world
and finding the rhythms of grace as we do so.
Recap from Last Class:
* What we practice is what we become
11 Practices of Jesus Christ That Develop Us from the Inside Out
1. Practice of the Presence of God
2. Practice of Prayer
3. Practice of Spiritual/Divine Reading
4. Practice of Stillness, Silence, Solitude, and Divine Guidance
5. Practice of Faith for Daily Living
6. Practice of Obedience
7. Practice of Fasting
8. Practice of Radical Sacrifice & Generosity
9. Practice of Community
10. Practice of Living in The World
11. Practice of the Miracle of the Monastery/the Miracle of Becoming a Monk
How to Practice the Presence
Key Thought: There is no leader and no spiritual formation without the presence of God, but
there is no presence without the leader who is practicing the presence and being formed.
Romans 12:2 NKJV - And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the
renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of
God.
We can either be malformed, deformed, or transformed.
Transformation occurs from the inside out.
There can be no formation without the presence of God.
Spiritual formation is not an instant occurrence, but a gradual process. We are shaped
by our practices.
Spirituality is the conscious turning of the mind and the spirit to God, who begins to
shape and reshape our hearts.
Exodus 33:12-14 NLT - 12 One day Moses said to the Lord, “You have been telling me, ‘Take
these people up to the Promised Land.’ But you haven’t told me whom you will send with me.
You have told me, ‘I know you by name, and I look favorably on you.’ 13 If it is true that you look
favorably on me, let me know your ways so I may understand you more fully and continue to
enjoy your favor. And remember that this nation is your very own people.” 14 The Lord replied, “I
will personally go with you, Moses, and I will give you rest—everything will be fine for you.”
God’s presence brings rest to our souls.
Our world is in a state of agitation and unrest and needs the kind of rest that can only
come by the presence of God.
The Bible categorizes the presence of God in three ways:
1. Omnipresence
a. God is everywhere
b. Maybe you have never felt the presence of God. That doesn’t change the fact
that his presence is always here.
c. Psalm 139:1-12 NLT - 1 O Lord, you have examined my heart and know
everything about me. 2 You know when I sit down or stand up. You know my
thoughts even when I’m far away. 3 You see me when I travel and when I rest at
home. You know everything I do. 4 You know what I am going to say even before
I say it, Lord. 5 You go before me and follow me. You place your hand of blessing
on my head. 6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too great for me to
understand! 7 I can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your
presence! 8 If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the grave, you are
there. 9 If I ride the wings of the morning, if I dwell by the farthest oceans, 10 even
there your hand will guide me, and your strength will support me. 11 I could ask
the darkness to hide me and the light around me to become night— 12 but even in
darkness I cannot hide from you. To you the night shines as bright as day.
Darkness and light are the same to you.
i. God is not only omnipresent, but omniscient, meaning that he knows
everything.
ii. God will never have an “aha” moment
2. Manifest Presence
a. Judges 16:20 NLT - Then she cried out, “Samson! The Philistines have come to
capture you!” When he woke up, he thought, “I will do as before and shake
myself free.” But he didn’t realize the Lord had left him.
i. As part of his consecration to God as a Nazarite, Samson had to honor
three standards:
1. He could not touch a dead body
2. He could not shave the hair of his head
3. He could not drink wine, or touch grapes
b. We know when God’s presence manifests, but sometimes we don’t realize when
His presence lifts or goes dormant.
c. Sometimes in ministry, people adopt a certain style which people then associate
with the presence, anointing, and grace of God. Sometimes, they then move
away from God or are no longer submitted to him as their leader, and think that
they will continue in the same style as before, not realizing that the presence of
God has become dormant.
3. Personal Felt Presence
a. If we say that we’ve had an experience with God and yet leave that experience
unchanged, we need more than just a manifest presence- we need a personal
felt presence.
b. Genesis 28:15-17 NLT - 15 What’s more, I am with you, and I will protect you
wherever you go. One day I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you
until I have finished giving you everything I have promised you.” 16 Then Jacob
awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I wasn’t
even aware of it!” 17 But he was also afraid and said, “What an awesome place
this is! It is none other than the house of God, the very gateway to heaven!”
i. “I am with you” speaks to personal felt presence
ii. “I will protect you wherever you go” speaks to omnipresence
iii. “Surely the Lord is in this place” speaks to manifest presence
c. How do we as believers begin to personally feel and experience the presence of
God in a noisy, crowded, busy culture?
d. “Statio” – a Latin word meaning “the space or pause between moments”
i. Practicing the presence means pausing between moments and
consciously bringing our minds back to God. This could look like:
1. Waking up before everyone else to read your Bible
2. Praying with your children as you drive them to school
3. Praying or meditating on Scripture while doing house chores
ii. You can experience the personal felt presence of God in the moments
between the moments
iii. Where do your thoughts go in the space between moments? Are
you practicing a lower nature instead of practicing the presence of God?
1. 1 Corinthian 2:14 NLT - But people who aren’t spiritual can’t
receive these truths from God’s Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them
and they can’t understand it, for only those who are spiritual can
understand what the Spirit means.
e. We as believers need a schedule
i. A schedule does not suffocate the life of God, but rather allows us to
recognize the presence of God.
ii. We will not practice “statio” without a schedule. How will we know the
moments between moments without a schedule?
iii. God had a schedule
1. Genesis 1:1 NLT - In the beginning God created the heavens and
the earth.
2. Genesis 1:14 NLT - Then God said, “Let lights appear in the sky to
separate the day from the night. Let them be signs to mark the
seasons, days, and years.