Immanuel - The Power & Possibilities of Presence (Video)

The alarm blared at 5 am. It was a cold, foggy autumn morning. I wasn’t overseas on a ministry trip heading out early, there were no appointments in my diary, and I only planned to start writing at 8.30. Why the early start?

There was no hesitation, however. I leapt out of bed, dressed appropriately, switched on my headlamp, and went to meet the four other morning joggers waiting at the local pub.

Halfway home, I huffed to the guy running next to me, “I wouldn’t have done this if it wasn’t for you lot. Not only did your presence motivate me, but you also made it enjoyable.”

“Same,” he gasped.

That’s the power of presence.

“Look, the virgin shall become pregnant and give birth to a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel,” which means, “God is with us.” (Matthew 1:23)

Christmas is about the power and possibilities of presence.

Presence changes everything. In Jesus, God is with you, despite the worst of you, outside of your circumstances, and regardless of what others think of you. You have his very presence living within you through the Holy Spirit.

You now begin to see yourself as incredibly loved, one in whom the Father delights. Even when you feel abandoned, you can declare out loud that you are chosen and loved.

This is the message of Christmas. Jesus enters this world and your world. He dies in your place and is raised to life to be present with you always.

How different would life be if you knew that you were never alone, that your problems don’t cut you off from God but instead move his heart toward you? That’s the power and possibility of presence. It releases you to think in a new way—about God as your Father, about yourself, and about others.

Pr. Peter Steicke