Feel the Presence

All it takes is to have an encounter with God that will change your life forever. 

Soaking in the Presence on a beanbag.

While God encounters is just one piece of the puzzle to bring about life transformation, surely it’s the most desirable. God brings life into the lifeless, brilliant light into the darkness and thick, warm love into the souls that ache. Everything changes in a moment, and there is no else to give credit (or pay) and there is no messy or painful process. No lengthy and expensive counselling, no uncomfortable inner healing sessions, and no painful rehabituation. It’s the Christian equivalent of waving a magic wand!

That’s why its tempting to make it the only way to go, and some people keep waiting for such encounters instead of doing what sometimes is required and what God knows is best for lasting change: the necessary renewal of the mind through learning the truth, exchanging lies for truth and disciplining the sinful nature that so besets our spiritual growth. 

Here at Piringa Retreat we do it all! We have the lovely accommodation, the stunning vistas, the experienced facilitators and support for spiritual disciplines. But our favourite is the Prayer House - which is proving to be a special place of encountering God’s presence. 

When you enter you’re immediately struck by the cathedral-like open space, the polished wooden floors and scattered beanbags with benches around the perimeter for seating. Most space is for standing, lying down or dancing. A series of large windows face the west, overlooking: first the green meadow, then the life-size cross on the near hill, then the serene blue harbour of Omapere, then the distant large hills before the expansive sea. 

One person put it this way: "As this place is physically elevated by its location, I could feel lifted in my soul when I entered." I felt it too, but didn’t have words to describe it. For me, the acoustics allow one’s whispers to be heard. A few ordinary worshipers become a polished choir. There is a sense of no hurry. The view invokes the grandeur and majesty of God. One senses His pleasure and His invitation. Beyond the physical manifestation of the senses, everyone remarks of feeling God’s presence.  

We are praying for more, more and yet more of God’s manifest presence! Years ago Anne and I were gobsmacked while reading Roy Godwin’s The Grace Outpouring - about God’s presence rocking the world of all who came near to the grounds of Ffaldybrenin in western Wales. That is our greatest desire for what happens here at Piringa Retreat. The Prayer House is dedicated to worship and prayer and earnest fellowship - and we are there every day increasing the incense of our love for Him.