I’ve been exploring some of the very modern worship songs as an old guy 😀. But now, I’ve decided to alternate between very modern hymns, old hymns, and in-between hymns, namely the worship songs from the 60s to the 90s that feature in hymnbooks such as Mission Praise. Today it’s the turn of the in-between hymns.
Today’s song is Be Still for the Presence, from 1986.
The sense of awe at being in the presence of God is found throughout the Bible. For example:
Genesis 28:16
16 When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I was not aware of it.”
Exodus 3:4–6
4 When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!” And Moses said, “Here I am.” 5 “Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.”
Revelation 1:17
17 When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said: “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. 18 I am the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades.
God is omnipresent, meaning that He is present everywhere, but at times, He manifests His presence to bless in a special way. We might not always feel His presence deeply, but He is present when we come to Him for prayer and worship. Sometimes, He might manifest His presence. Other times, we ourselves might cultivate a sense of His presence. Maybe it’s often a combination of both.
The writer, David Evans, was involved in the charismatic movement but felt that some worship styles treated God too casually. I’ve often felt that way too, but perhaps there’s a place for different moods in worship. In Scripture, you get people falling down before God in worship, but you also get people dancing with joy and celebrating him with music. But perhaps, the writer just saw too little of that deep sense of reverence. I think that today’s hymn is an excellent way of starting a time of prayer. For prayer, people sometimes use the ACTS acronym:
- Adoration
- Confession
- Thanksgiving
- Supplication
The supplication is when the actual prayer begins, but to get ourselves into the right frame of mind, and because we should do it anyway, we begin with adoration, confession, and thanksgiving.
Here are some other versions of today’s hymn:
Hibernia Gospel 