Return to the Self: Addendum
Do you want to feel closer to God?
by Evan Mehlenbacher,
special to the Tri-City Herald, Kennewick, WA¹
published 09.18.21 Reprinted by permission.
It’s a question many people ask, “How do I feel God’s presence?”
With the hustle and bustle of everyday life, long lists of tasks to complete, and a thousand other distractions to occupy thought, finding and feeling the presence of heavenly comfort may sound like a fairy tale proposition.
But feeling God’s presence is easier than many realize. The real question is not whether God is present, for God is omnipresent love. God is always present!
The real question is, “Am I tuned into God’s presence?”
Like tuning a radio to the channel you want to hear, we can tune into God’s presence through a faculty called spiritual sense. Spiritual sense is built into our being as children of God. We all have it.
It might seem hard to find at times when thought is embroiled with the noise and clamor of the material senses, but through prayer, we can tune out the noise and tune into the divine presence where comfort and love are found.
Years ago, I took my family to see “The Lion King” on Broadway while we were in New York City for a few days. Walking back to our hotel after the evening show, we quickly found ourselves on the edge of Times Square, which was a spectacle I will never forget.
The Square was filled with a sea of humanity at elbow’s distance as far as we could see. Dozens of massive electronic billboards streaming ads in blaring reds and yellows reached to the height of the skyscrapers.
Noise, commotion, happy faces, sad faces, yelling, screaming, honking, bright lights, the waft of popcorn and pretzels, pushing and shoving through the crowd were everywhere. It was an aggressive assault on the five physical senses that quickly engulfed our attention.
As my wife and I stood on the edge of the street, a bit mesmerized by the whole scene, and gripping the hands of our two children for dear life so not to lose them in the crowd, I decided to put myself through a simple spiritual test.
I wanted to see if I could shut down the five physical senses with all their loud noise, flashing lights, smells and pressing sensations from around, and feel the peaceful and quiet presence of God.
In prayer, I shut my eyes, turned off my ears, and lifted thought out of Times Square into a consciousness of infinite love. In seconds, the noise vanished, and a quiet and calm peace took over. Then I brought my thought back to the sidewalk where nothing had changed, with noise all around. Then I left it again.
Like flipping a light switch, I was able to turn off the onslaught of the physical senses and tune into God’s peaceful reality at will. It was a powerful exercise on our ability to find God’s presence, no matter how dominating the physical senses appear to be.
The Bible says, “Come close to God, and God will come close to you” (James 4:8, NLT). Spiritual sense is our means of feeling close to God. Everyone has it, including you!
Pray, tune in, and let the peace of God take hold.
Notes for Return to the Self: Addendum
[1] https://www.tri-cityherald.com/living/religion/spiritual-life/article254310063.html 09.28.21
