Recognizing When God Visits

“The LORD said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by.” Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper.”

1 Kings 19:11-12

We live in unbelievable times. I have been studying about God’s timing and intervention in the affairs of man throughout the ages. The Word of God not only gives us a historical account of God’s interaction with man, but it also shows us how to live in this present time, and connects us to eternity.  

One of my favorite phrases in the Bible is “I would not have you ignorant” meaning “I know you’re ignorant about this subject, but you don’t have to be.” (1 Corinthians, 1 Thessalonians). The Lord would not have us ignorant of His Word…

I don’t profess to fully understand the end times, yet I am seeking an understanding of God’s plan for the ages as written in the Old and New Testaments. There will be situations and events that will exist on earth at the time of the culmination (climax, completion) of all things. Several years ago I heard the Lord say, “I am coming soon.” We must all realize the coming of Jesus is imminent.

God has been there from the very beginning. He is involved in our daily coming, going, doings, and being. We must choose each day to follow and serve Him. To make everyday count and not miss our opportunities to participate in what He is doing, and to praise and glorify Him!

There are occasions when God visits in a powerful way, and our decisions in those seasons can have lifelong significance. Times when He shows up differently than what we expect. We must be discerning because God may visit unexpectedly we must live with the anticipation that He could visit at anytime.

God has a divine timetable of when things are destined to happen in the process of time. A perfect time to bring about change so that His covenant will be fulfilled. (Exodus 2:23-25) There are occasions when God visits in a powerful way, and our decisions in those seasons can have lifelong significance.

Jesus burst into tears with uncontrollable weeping over Jerusalem when He caught sight of the ruin of the city.  They were unprepared for His coming. He said, “If only you could recognize that this day peace is within your reach! But you cannot see it.” He also said to them, “For the day is soon coming when your enemies will surround you, pressing you in on every side, and laying siege to you.^[r] 44 They will crush you to pieces, and your children too! And when they leave, your city will be totally destroyed. Since you would not recognize God’s day of visitation, your day of devastation is coming!” Luke 19:41-43

I can only imagine how He must feel today …. when we ….

Exodus 19:17-20 gives us an historic moment when God visited the children of Israel during the time they were wandering in wilderness. Moses bought the people out of the camp to meet God at Mt. Sinai. Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke because the Lord descended upon it with fire; the smoke went up, while the whole mountain shook violently. As the blast of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses would speak and God would answer him in thunder.

Some visitations from God are hard to miss. But even after meeting with God on Mount Sinai, the people began to worship a golden calf less than two months later. They didn’t recognize the significance of God visiting them at Mount Sinai.

I have been blessed to experience several visitations, albeit was not … While writing this post, I had to stop for a moment and remember the day Lord unexpectedly visited me when my son Jon passed. He was about to welcome him home to the place he belonged after a long battle. I didn’t see angels (although I believe to one day), bright lights or smoke. I simply heard the voice of the Lord whispering to me that He was about to bring me son home. At that moment God revealed Himself once again as I AM, my living hope!

At times we miss events during significant times and seasons when God is moving because we are playing it safe. We ignore current events assuming they have no significance in God’s plan. Yet, Matthew 24-25 clearing provides insight on what these last days will look like Jesus said in John 16:4 (TPT, “I’m telling you this now so that when their time comes you will remember that I foretold it.”

In the midst of your circumstances, are you watching for God to intervene? Are you willing to turn aside from your daily activities to see and commune with Him?

May God speak to you mightily through this series of messages.