How to Stay Grounded in God’s Presence

Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth: God’s presence changes everything. Here’s Kim Cash Tate.

Kim Cash Tate: When you know the Lord is with you, you don’t have to tremble or be dismayed about the situation, the diagnosis, the heartache, the hardship, the closed door—whatever it may be—because the Lord is with you. Just that one truth that He’s with you means a million things. It means everything.

Nancy: We’ll hear more about the significance of God’s presence today on Revive Our Hearts. It’s Wednesday, November 10, 2021. I’m Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth.

When you know God is with you, your perspective on everything changes! Your current situation, the challenges you're facing, your family, your friend . . . everything. I’m hoping today’s program will do that in you. Kim Cash Tate is relatively new to the Revive Our Hearts platform. She's a wife, a mom, an author of numerous books, and a Bible teacher. You can find a lot of her videos on YouTube. I love that Kim also serves on the advisory board of Revive Our Hearts.

Yesterday, we heard Kim share about clinging to the Lord and the impact of His presence. It was part 1 of a message she gave at Revive '21 just over a month ago. She shared her personal story and how God has used the ministry of Revive Our Hearts in her journey. If you missed that episode, you can find it on the Revive Our Hearts app or at ReviveOurHearts.com.

Today, we’re going to listen to the second part of her message as she gives us some practical ways to stay grounded in God's presence. Here’s Kim Cash Tate.

Kim: I want to share three vital ways I have learned to cling to God, three vital ways to stay grounded in His presence.

One, we have to stay in His Word. We might even have to change how we view time in His Word—not as an obligation, but I get to spend time with the Lord. I get to spend time in His presence as I behold Him in Scripture! Your soul stays grounded as you’re reminded who He is, reminded how great He is—greater than whatever may be causing upheaval in your life.

I love that God says dozens of times in His Word, “I am with you.” He knows how much we need to stay grounded in His presence. Just reading those words will settle your soul and invigorate your spirit.

We see this displayed beautifully with Joshua. Moses, the leader of Israel, had died. Joshua had been especially close to him during those forty years in the wilderness. The Bible says he had been the attendant of Moses from his youth. 

Joshua was also a warrior. When Amalek fought Israel in Exodus 17, you might be familiar with Moses having the staff of God in his hand. Whenever he raises the staff, Israel is winning; when he lowers the staff, Amalek is winning. So Aaron and Hur have to stand on either side of Moses and keep his hands lifted. But it was Joshua who was actually doing the fighting.

In Exodus 24, when God told Moses to come up to Mount Sinai to receive the commandments, Moses told Aaron, Hur, and the elders, “You all stay right here; I’ll be back.” But Joshua was the one that he brought with him up to a certain point (Ex. 24:13). Joshua was the only one who got to see a little bit more on that remarkable, sacred occasion.

In Numbers 13, when God told Moses to send twelve men, one from each tribe, to spy out the land God had promised, Moses chose Joshua to be one of those spies. Ten of the spies were shaken by what they saw (giants in the land). Instead of grounding themselves in the presence of God, they grumbled in His presence and railed against God. Joshua, along with Caleb, brought the good report. They said this in Numbers 14:7–9: 

“The land which we passed through to spy out is an exceedingly good land. If the LORD is pleased with us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us—a land which flows with milk and honey. Only do not rebel against the LORD; and do not fear the people of the land, for they will be our prey. Their protection has been removed from them, and the LORD is with us; do not fear them.” 

The Lord is with us. They knew that meant everything. They grounded themselves in the presence of God. God rewarded the faith of Joshua and Caleb. They would be the only ones in their generation to enter the promised land. What’s more, Joshua found out he would be the one to lead them.

All of this is important to understand about Joshua. He was a man of great faith, a strong leader. He wasn’t shaken about the battle against Amalek. He wasn’t shaken about giants in the land. But Moses’s death? That shook him. It wasn’t a sudden death; he knew it was coming. But you don’t know beforehand how much grief will overtake you . . . or fear, or disappointment, or pain, or heartbreak. You don’t know how much you’ll be shaken by a circumstance until you’re in it, until you’re overwhelmed by it and don’t know what to do, don’t know how you’ll go on. Maybe you even want to give up.

The Lord knows our human frame. He knows we can be shaken. He was gracious and started preparing Joshua before Moses died. Near the end of Deuteronomy, Moses and God told Joshua to be strong and courageous and that God would be with him. I’m sure Joshua was like, “Right. You know I know! I was saying that back after the spy mission. I told them that!” But again, you don’t realize it until you’re in the situation.

So Moses dies, the people weep and mourn for thirty days. Deuteronomy ends with a tribute to Moses. But now it’s time to move on, time to enter the Promised Land.

The next book in the Bible is Joshua. It chronicles how they conquered the people in the land and took possession of the land. But when we turn to the book of Joshua, we don’t see warrior Joshua. We don’t see someone poised for battle, readying the troops. “Let’s go!” We see someone who desperately needs the Lord’s presence.

Here’s how it begins in Joshua 1:1–2. 

Now it came about after the death of Moses, the servant of the LORD, that the LORD spoke to Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’s servant, saying, "Moses my servant is dead; now arise, cross this Jordan, you and all this people, to the land which I am giving them, to the sons of Israel.” 

“Moses my servant is dead.” The first thing the Lord says to Joshua is something he already knows, but it’s as if God is putting a hand to his shoulder, comforting a man who is still grieving, still shaken. God reminds him of the mission. Then He says in verse 5,

“Just as I have been with Moses, I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you.”

Joshua knew this truth, but oh, how it had to minister in this moment! The comfort, the reassurance. “Moses is no longer with you, but I will be with you.”

God then tells Joshua the words we love, the words we see on wall art and coffee mugs and T-shirts. He repeats it three times. Verse 6, “Be strong and courageous.” Verse 7, “Be strong and very courageous.” Verse 9, “Be strong and courageous.”

But how is Joshua—or any of us—able to be strong and courageous? We have to look at what comes before and after those verses. In verse 5 God says, “I will be with you.” Verse 9, “Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” 

That’s how Joshua would get grounded and stay grounded, knowing the Lord was with him.

Passages like this keep us grounded in the presence of the Lord. You’re reminded, He is with me. We know that Jesus said, “I am with you always.” When you know the Lord is with you, you don’t have to tremble or be dismayed about the situation, the diagnosis, the heartache, the hardship, the closed door, whatever it may be, because the Lord is with you. Just that one truth, that He’s with you, means a million things. It means everything.

So, stay grounded in His presence by first staying in the Word.

Number two, stay talking to the Lord. I could have said, “Stay praying.” But we attach our own ideas of formality with prayer and end up thinking it needs to be a certain time, place, posture. If you are a believer in Christ, the Lord is with you all the time, and you can talk to Him all the time.

I talk to the Lord about everything. When I’m studying His Word, I’m asking for understanding. When I’m weary, “Lord, I’m tired. I know I’m supposed to do x, y, and z. Please give me strength.” When I need wisdom . . . Somebody might be talking to me; I’m talking to the Lord about what to say in response. Anybody else ask the Lord what to cook for dinner? (laughter) 

First Thessalonians 5:17 says, “Pray without ceasing,” which can sort of seem impossible, but this is how we pray without ceasing, taking everything to the Lord. When prayer is your lifestyle, you will stay grounded. If you’re in the habit of taking everyday frustrations and disappointments to the Lord, when you encounter a big trial, you already know where you’re going: straight to His presence.

Hannah is such a beautiful example of this in 1 Samuel, chapter 1. She was married to Elkanah, but Elkanah had two wives: Hannah and Peninnah. Peninnah had sons and daughters by Elkanah; Hannah had no children.

Also, Hannah was the one Elkanah loved. He openly favored her. So you already know how that made Peninnah feel! First Samuel 1:6 says, “Peninnah would provoke Hannah bitterly to irritate her.”

One year they all go up to Shiloh on their yearly trip to worship and sacrifice to God, but on this particular trip, Hannah cannot take it anymore. Peninnah’s provoking her; Hannah is weeping; she can’t eat. She gets up and goes to the house of God. It says this in 1 Samuel 1:10, “She, greatly distressed, prayed to the LORD and wept bitterly.”

This is how we get grounded! Just laying it all out before the Lord. Take your heartache and your tears to the Lord. He cares for you. He wants to hear from you.

Hannah asked the Lord for a son, saying she would give him to the Lord. She prayed silently but so fervently that Eli the priest thought she might be drunk. But Hannah said this in verse 15: “No, my lord. I am a woman oppressed in spirit; I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I have poured out my soul before the LORD.”

When was the last time you poured out your soul before the Lord? No one understands you like He does. No one loves you like He does. Elkanah loved Hannah, but there was nothing he could do for her in that moment. She needed the peace, power, comfort, and joy of the Lord. He is the only one who can restore our souls.

Look what happened. After this time of lingering in the Lord’s presence, pouring out her soul, it says in verse 18, “So the woman went her way and ate, and her face was no longer sad.” She didn’t know whether God would answer her prayer! God did eventually give her a son, but right then it was not answered prayer that grounded her. Just being in His presence grounded her very soul.

I really want us to get this. We don’t need things around us to change in order to get grounded. We don’t get grounded because God answered a prayer. You can get grounded as you wait, because of the power of His presence.

Hannah wasn’t the only one who determined to get away from what was happening around her and get in the presence of God alone. Jesus did this as well. Luke 5:15–16:

But the news about Him was spreading even farther, and large crowds were gathering to hear Him and to be healed of their sicknesses. But Jesus Himself would often slip away to the wilderness and pray.

He did this after He multiplied the bread and the fish and fed thousands. It says in Matthew 14:22–23: 

Immediately He made the disciples get into the boat and go ahead of Him to the other side, while He sent the crowds away. After He sent the crowds away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray; and when it was evening, He was alone there.

What an example for us! We live in an age where people crave more and more followers and bigger platforms. Do we consider what this may be doing to our souls? Do we take the time to get alone with the Lord? If our Lord and Savior needed time alone in the presence of the Father when He walked this earth, how much more do we?

One more, number three. We stay grounded in the presence of God when we stay praising and giving thanks. Back to 1 Thessalonians 5, this time verses 16–18: 

Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

“Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks.” These are all-the-time actions that bring you into the presence of God. We’ve talked about prayer, but all three are powerful ways to stay grounded in any situation. 

Have you ever noticed, when you start praising and giving God thanks, your whole temperament changes? I can be in tears and say, “Lord, this is hard. I don’t understand what’s happening. I don’t understand why You’re not answering my prayer. But I praise You because You are faithful, and I thank You that You’ll work this, too, for good.” And my spirit is lifted! Right there, you get grounded in the presence of God, dwelling on who He is and what He has promised.

Rejoice with worship music, like Shane and Shane. It’s an awesome way to ground yourself in the presence of God.

It says, “This is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” It brings glory to God when we rejoice and give thanks and pray, but the Lord knows it’s also good for our own souls. He knows it keeps us grounded in His presence, which is where we need to be. That’s really the heart of this message. 

It’s not so much, Okay, something has happened, and now I need to get grounded in the presence of the Lord. No. It’s about staying grounded in the presence of the Lord. It doesn’t mean you won’t be shaken by circumstances, but you’ll know how to get grounded when you are shaken. You will know how to run to the presence of the Lord. Even then, you might find yourself uttering the prayer I’ve prayed for years: “Lord, help me to cling to You.”

I want us to pray right now. I just want us to go into the presence of the Lord, because we need Him, amen? We need Him. I don’t know if anybody is shaken by anything right now, if you came here today shaken by something happening in your life, in your home, with someone you know. But I would guess we’re all dealing with something. Let us seek the Lord.

Dear Lord, we thank You and praise You because You are with us. Thank You, Lord God, that in Christ, You are in us always. You are with us always. But Lord, sometimes we need to be reminded that we need to draw near to You. You’re with us, but are we with You? 

So I pray, Lord God, that for all of us in this room and on the livestream, that You would cause us to draw near to You. Give us hearts that want to stay grounded in Your presence, to stay in Your Word, to behold You in Scripture. Let us look at that as time that we get to delight ourselves in You, see Your goodness every day, see Your faithfulness every day, be reminded of Your power every day through Your Word. Let that be a time that we cherish, Lord.

I pray that we would stay grounded by talking to You, just unloading our cares, as Hannah did; that we would know there’s nothing too big and nothing too small. You care about it all. If You care about the sparrow that has fallen to the ground, You care about the things that concern us. So Lord, I pray that we would make it our lifestyle to pray to You, to look to You, to talk to You—even if it’s not a burden or a care. Lord, to just talk to You about our day, to talk to You about decisions we need to make, to get Your thoughts on the matter, be led by Your Spirit. 

I pray, Lord, that we would stay praising You and giving thanks in everything. We might not be thankful for the thing that is happening in our lives, but we can be thankful for who You are. We can be thankful that we are saved and will spend eternity with You. We can get an eternal perspective as we deal with earthly situations, and we can give You praise that we don’t have to cling to these situations. We can cling to You and know that You are at work, that You love us, and that You will work all things together for good. We can thank You and praise You for that in the circumstances.

So Lord, give us hearts that desire to cling to You always, hearts that stay grounded in Your presence. We thank You, Lord, that You love us and that You care for us. We give You all the praise and the glory, in Jesus’ name, amen.

Nancy: Amen. I hope this message Kim Cash Tate shared at Revive '21 has been a helpful reminder to you that God is with you. Cling to him! When we stay grounded in His presence, nothing can shake us, because we are clinging to the Lord is steadfast and always faithful.

Dannah: He remains firm even in the craziest storms of life, and that makes me grateful. And this coming year we want to help you stay grounded and grateful every day. In fact, we want to help prepare your heart for the coming holiday season and the year ahead with the 2022 Revive Our Hearts Wall Calendar. Each month is beautifully designed and hand-lettered with encouraging quotes from Nancy and Scripture to keep your heart and mind focused on God’s truth. 

As I'm looking at this calendar, I'm thinking, What a great gift this would be for your family and friends. Right now, it is now available to you when you make a donation of any amount to Revive Our Hearts. It’s one way to thank you for your support of this ministry. Of course, if you do want extras for gift, you can find out more about that and make your gift at ReviveOurHearts.com, or call us at 1–800–569–5959 to request your calendar.

Nancy: And thank you so much for your gift! We can’t continue to do this ministry day after day—over twenty years!—without the support of friends like you!

Now, how can someone hold onto hope, even in the face of the loss of a child? Tomorrow, we’ll hear Pastor Chris Brooks share his moving story, and tell how he’s stayed grounded in hope.

Pastor Chris Brooks: As believers, we know some questions are too big for us to look within for answers to. The gospel doesn't tell us to look within, it tells us to look up. From whence comes my help, the Psalmist said. My help comes from the Maker of heaven and earth. How many know that God is faithful.

Please be back for Revive Our Hearts.

Revive Our Hearts with Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth is calling you to freedom, fullness, and fruitfulness in Christ.

All Scripture is taken from the NASB.

*Offers available only during the broadcast of the podcast season.