Tozer’s words remind me that as we seek to know God, the desire begins both on an individual and corporate level. It’s a hunger. A longing. A desire that stirs above other. Is it possible that the Christian church is now satisfied to accept God as simply the God of history? Does it feel no need for individuals to meet God in living, personal experience?
We do have God in history and Christ in history. But where is the emphasis on the need for a transforming encounter with the living God who transcends history?
In what I have to say I may not be joined by any ground swell of public opinion, but I have a charge to make against the church. We are not consciously aware of God in our midst. We do not seem to sense the tragedy of having almost completely lost the awareness of His presence.
I do not say that to condemn. I say it with a grieving spirit. I pray that the churches in this day may yet reap the joys and fruits of gracious revival and the deep inward awareness of God’s presence.
—A.W. Tozer (Men Who Met God, pg 121)
I read Tozer’s words and do not find them an indictment against the church at all, but rather an invitation to pursue the presence of God in my life.
God, Give me the desire to pursue you and give me a deep inward awareness of your presence. May the revival we long for in our communities and nation begin in our own hearts. Amen.
