God Is Here. In This Space. Do You See?

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“God is a God of the Present”  
wrote Henri Nouwen, a massive influencer on this blog.

​His powerful words and insights have come from others as well. It’s not so much that they are original but inspired to awaken the Divine in us all.

​Nouwen went on to explain what he meant, leaving us with this to contemplate in his absence. 

“The real enemies of our life are the “oughts” and the “ifs.” They pull us backward into the unalterable past and forward into the unpredictable future. But real life takes place in the here and the now. God is a God of the present. God is always in the moment, be that moment hard or easy, joyful or painful. When Jesus spoke about God, he always spoke about God as being where and when you are. “When you see me, you see God. When you hear me, you hear God.” God is not someone who was or will be, but the One who is, and who is for me in the present moment. That’s why Jesus came to wipe away the burden of the past and the worries of the future. He wants us to discover God right where we are, here and now.”

Where do you feel the divine presence of God right now in your life, in this moment? Maybe in the silence of snowfall. Or the noise of a preschool. Is it in the wind blowing across the harbor? Or in the cold morning air as you walk to your car for work? Maybe you feel it the steady (or unsteady) rhythmic beating of your heart?

Perhaps God isn’t so easily recognizable to you right now. Maybe your brain is elsewhere. But even with a thousand images and ideas zipping through your head God is there. Between worry over money and finding time to get Christmas presents. Between calls that need to be made and relationships that need to end. The presence of God's goodness is all around us.

Our goal is to train our eye to see what our heart desires. There is no one special way to do that other than knowing that every space is an opportunity to workout that special muscle. But if it helps, whenever I get stuck or simply can't see God around me, I look at my reflection in a mirror. Instead of picking myself apart like I might be tempted to do, I simply breathe slowly and welcome the divine light that is within me.

Like Jesus said, “when you see me you see God.” We are not God, but we are made in the divine image of God…if only so we can always remember that God is always present, always there and here and even over yonder. However, it’s up to us to take the first step by opening our eyes to see what our heart desires.


Nouwen, Henri J.M.  "You are the Beloved" Published by The Henri Nouwen Legacy Trust and  Convergent Books: 2017.