Now that we are beginning to measure our time under “stay at home” orders in months, more than days or weeks, I am finally getting down to real business with God.

Maybe like you, my life used to be so filled with activity, that there were several areas of my house that had become cluttered with incomplete projects, piles of books, and things I could never seem to find the time or the energy to organize. But once I was forced to stay still and look at these things, I turned my attention to this housecleaning. Packing up things to give away. Pulling out things that no longer helped us as a family move forward and prioritizing placement of items that we do need in this season.

After several weeks of that, I was gently reminded that I needed some heart housecleaning as well. In addition to my house, it was time to give the Holy Spirit permission to declutter my heart from things that no longer help me grow spiritually, and prioritize placement of what will help me grow closer to Him in this season.

What I really needed was to open up my heart to God’s correction and His redirection. To stop trying so hard to hold everything together in a time when it felt like the world was starting to fall apart, and to purposefully give God access to the broken and messy places of my heart.

So I said, “Okay, Lord. Have at me. Show me what You need to correct or heal in my heart, and do the heart repair that only You know how to do.”

Sometimes we know we’re a mess, but we really don’t even know how to start to fix it. And God, who shaped our hearts, is the author and finisher, the pioneer and perfecter, of our faith, and He knows exactly what to do, but He will wait until we ask Him.

God began revealing things so I could repent, and He redirected my heart back toward Him.

Then He brought to mind a scripture from Revelation 1. He reminded me, “I am the God who is, and who was, and who is to come.

You have known me as the God who was... “

In fact, I often cry during worship because I remember so many ways that God has been with me and rescued me over the past decades, and fulfilled His word in my life. But God showed me I have a weakness in knowing God as the God who IS. Who is with me right now in this moment.

You see, I am often looking forward in my planning and my thinking, and it has been hard for me to slow down and know God right now in this moment.

And guess what? The one thing that has been stripped away right now more than anything else right now is planning for the future. When and how my county will open up. When my state will open up again. There are no solid timelines. I’ll be honest, I have been struggling with this!

But perhaps this is my greatest gift right now. I am forced to be in THIS moment. To know God in THIS moment. My NOW is really all I have.

And there’s more. When I googled this scripture (in true scholarly fashion), I stumbled across James Oakley’s breakdown of this verse in the Greek. I always assumed that the God who “is to come” referred to the future, to God’s eternal nature.

But you know what? “Is to come” is not the future tense of the verb “to be.” It is a present tense verb “to come.” It’s not about tomorrow. It’s about now. It has a sense of his imminent arrival. He is coming. He is on His way.

Right now God is with us in this moment. He is our Emmanuel, God who is with us. The Holy Spirit who indwells us as believers in Jesus Christ. And He is coming as our powerful rescuer. Both! At the same time!

Have you been feeling alone? Isolated? Far away or lost your bearings a little bit like me? He is the God who paid a horrific price in allowing His own Son to die so that you and I could be brought near. He prioritizes intimacy with you in such a profound way. He is here. In this moment. Not when our lives have restarted. He is the God who is right here. And He is on His way right now to rescue in a most absolute way.

So my challenge and encouragement to you today is to take some time with the God who is, and get to know Him in this moment, through His Word, through His presence. He’ll carry you to your tomorrows.