Adult Teachable Moments

Rethinking Presence: Is Showing Up Enough?

Apr 11

By Crystal Shepherd

Presence doesn’t seem like much. Webster’s defines it as “the fact or condition of being present.” It doesn’t suggest preparation, work, energy, motivation, or even effort. It doesn’t really suggest anything considered inherently valuable or honorable by our world. Presence is just showing up. Could that possibly be enough?

But even in trying to minimize it, the definition of presence seems to expand. Presence is more active than the term first suggests. Ask a 6-year old the importance of a significant adult showing up at a baseball game or a ballet recital. There’s no preparation required, but physical presence speaks volumes about love and commitment. In the rush of living, we forget what our absence communicates. How much family time can we miss without reducing daily communication to emptiness? How many Sundays can we miss without compromising the fellowship of church? God’s promise of presence is the cornerstone of our faith, yet being present to God receives little of our thought.

It was the morning of surgery for a girl who had recently turned twelve. I had the privilege of being the first of a team of ministers who entered into sacred space with the girl and her family. After introductions, her parents and I began that morning by each laying a tender hand on her and reminding ourselves of God’s presence—that we are never alone, that God promises always to be with us. As Sarah was taken to surgery, her parents and I made our way to the waiting room already full of aunts, uncles, grandparents, friends from church, a girl from church who had experienced the same surgery just a year earlier, an employer, and another minister from our church. People who, whether they know it or not, believe in presence. God’s presence is never more real than when it’s experienced in the presence of God’s people. That family will never forget that Presence. Maybe showing up means more than we think.

Questions for Reflection
• Is presence enough? When has it been enough for you?
• For what, for whom are you present?
• As you reflect on your schedule, where do you need to be more present?