“I Am . . . with you always.”  Jesus The Christ

“Learning to pay attention to God’s Presence . . . is the foundation of the life of prayer.”[1] David Benner

“The Word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart.” St. Paul

When Moses asked God “his” name, the response was simply, “I Am.”  This may have many meanings and connotations, one of which is that God simply IS!  Always.  Forever. Present.  God is never absent from creation (as was the case with the burning bush), nor from anything IN all creation, including us.  God is not only as close as the light, God IS the light.  God is not only as close as our breath, God IS our breath. 

The issue is not that God is absent, but rather that we are unaware of God’s abiding presence. Unfortunately, too often I have lived as though God were distant, like an absentee father who only occasionally makes visits. I suspect this might be true for you as well.  How contrary to what we hear in Scripture, like Jesus’ parting words to His disciples; “Behold, I AM with you always,” and in the above passage from St. Paul.   

The question is not whether Jesus is present with us, but whether we are spiritually aware of His presence, and present enough ourselves to recognize Him.

It is true that the Risen Jesus appears differently, seemingly disguised in a variety of manners.  And yet He makes Himself recognizable in the ordinary and everyday.  One of those is that of Breaking of Bread, a metaphor not only for The Eucharist, but for any “love meal” that is shared with others. The Breaking of Bread is symbolic and representative of any meal in which our mouths are filled with the Living Word and our hearts are opened in love for God and others.  This is why the first followers of Jesus so valued not only the Agape communion meal, but the practice of hospitality.  By welcoming and breaking bread with another they were in essence welcoming Jesus and eating with Him. 

As I reflect on this I am aware of a number of times when such hospitality was offered me, and I failed to recognize who I was truly dining with.  One of the most memorable took place in Ciudad Acuna, Mexico, during my year of vicarage in my seminary training.  I was posted in a small Spanish-speaking congregation in Del Rio, TX. My supervisor, Pastor Gary Martin, would meet regularly with people living across the border in the barrios of Ciudad Acuna.  They were in some cases the poorest of the poor.  One such person was named Augustine.  On one occasion we went to Augustine’s home to do the bible study. It was a blistering hot day at the end of August.  We sat in his house, comprised of basic boards, tin on the roof, and a pallet that served as a doorway.  He had a dirt floor upon which sat a small table with four mismatched chairs.  The study lasted at least an hour.  I lost track of time due to my discomfort not only in not speaking Spanish well, but also due to the fact that I was sweating profusely.  When the study ended I was incredibly relieved, and eagerly anticipating getting into the air conditioned car.  But we remained seated while Augustine left to buy some cokes, and his wife cooked gorditas to feed us.  We waited for what seemed like an eternity for their love offering, and then finally ate the gorditas and drank what had become warm coke.  My relief was immense when we FINALLY made our exit and found respite in the car’s cool air conditioning.

Looking back my heart burns within me—because I realize that it was Jesus hidden in that shack, in the person of Augustine, and in the gorditas and coke that we shared.  Jesus was present there, of that there is no doubt. I simply didn’t recognize Him.

What about you?  When and where have you dined with Jesus?  When have your eyes been opened to see Him in the Breaking of the Bread?  And how do you intentionally pursue the opportunities to practice such hospitality in the hopes of welcoming Jesus yourself?

“As much as you’ve done it unto the least of these, my brothers and sisters, you have done it unto me.”

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[1] “Opening to God”, David Benner. P. 73