For those who’ve read my post on “Practicing His Presence” and are interested in reading the book, I wanted to mention a few more concerns. Because of these issues, I wouldn’t recommend the book for someone who isn’t settled in a solid understanding of biblical doctrine.

Scripture

For one thing, both authors seem to minimize the importance of Scripture. In a book about staying our minds on Christ, I would think we’d be encouraged to meditate on His Word—but the Bible is hardly mentioned once in the whole book. Instead, their motivation for practicing God’s presence seems to flow from self toward God—rather than thinking about His commands and promises and what He has done for us, they talk much about their love for God and desire to do only His will.

Scripture is clear that abiding in Christ is directly tied to keeping (holding, guarding, watching, observing) His word:

“Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.” – Jn. 14:23

“Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.” – Jn. 15:3–4

If we don’t first listen to God—holding tight to His Word and making it the foundation of our beliefs and actions, how can we claim to know Him? Even human relationships don’t grow by one person constantly thinking about the other and saying “I love you” again and again. We also have to listen so we can find out who the other person is and what pleases them. Practicing God’s presence has to start there.

Salvation

Second, both authors fail to write clearly about salvation, which is the very basis of our relationship with God. They seem to feel that the Christian life is merely a mystic journey of learning to love God more and more, and one day being accepted into His presence because we have known Him so well on earth.

Lawrence actually claims “I have always been governed by love without selfish views” (p. 45). Really?!

That sounds like a far cry from the Apostle Paul’s experience:

“This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.” – I Tim. 1:15

“For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.” – Rom. 5:10

Lawrence also says,

“… When I finally came to the Lord, I decided just to give myself up to Him. This gift of myself was the best satisfaction I could hope to make for my sins” (p. 75).

But what of the cross? What of Christ? We aren’t saved by loving God—because we can’t in our own strength. We aren’t saved by giving Him anything—because the best we have is like filthy rags in His sight. We are saved by believing in the Lord Jesus who died for our sins and rose again on the third day (Jn. 3:16, Rom. 10:9–10).

Repentance

Third, in his desire to keep us from wallowing in our inevitable defeats as we develop the new habit of living in God’s presence, Laubach actually tells us not to repent:

“Spending time with the Lord is not a grim duty. And if you should forget Him for minutes or even days, do not groan or repent, but begin anew with a smile.” – p. 36–37

This hardly seems consistent with the Lord’s repeated commands to the churches in Revelation to repent, including the church of Ephesus that had left her first love (Rev. 2:4). Failing in my goal of thinking about God every moment may not be a sin, but letting my affections be turned elsewhere so that I fail to abide in Christ and leave my first love is. But He promises,

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” – I Jn. 1:9

I think maybe Laubach’s caution is meant only to keep us from being paralyzed by our failures, but telling us not to repent ignores a theme common to both the Old and New Testaments. It also seems to reflect a misunderstanding of what true repentance is.

Repentance is an attitude of the heart, not a work. It isn’t confession to another person, and it certainly isn’t doing some sort of penance to atone for our sins (which can only be covered by the blood of Christ). It is a turning from sin to God, in faith, trusting Him to both forgive our sin and restore us to fellowship with Him.

Lawrence seems a little clearer in his perspective:

“If sometimes I have not thought of God for a good while, I do not become disquieted because of it. But, after having acknowledged my failure to God, I return to Him with even greater trust since I was so miserable in having forgotten Him.” – p. 51

Suffering

Fourth, Lawrence especially seems to despise God-given earthly pleasures and glorify suffering in a way that goes beyond the Bible’s emphasis on being willing to suffer for Christ. He says sickness is “an instrument which He uses to bring us to complete salvation” (p. 88). He also tells his friend to stop taking medicine and trust God only for healing. And instead of praying for his friend’s health (as John did for his friend in I Jn. 3:2), he tells him

“I envy you. Pains and suffering would be a paradise to me as long as the Lord was with me … .” (p. 88)

Our suffering rightly for doing right does bring God glory (I Pet. 4:13–14), perfect us (Jas. 1:3–4), and allow us to experience God’s comfort in a way we otherwise can’t (II Cor. 1:3–5).

But that doesn’t mean that we should seek out suffering or despise the earthly pleasures God has given us “richly to enjoy” (I Tim. 6:17). Lawrence claimed that

“God will not permit Christians who desire to be devoted wholly and entirely to Him to take other pleasures except the pleasure of Him alone.” (p. 69)

That’s not the God I know—the God who promised

“Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.” – Ps. 37:4

It’s pretty clear from the Song of Solomon that God expects us to enjoy marriage. He causes the earth to bring forth food and drink expressly for the purpose of gladdening and strengthening our hearts (Ps. 104:14–15). He even commands us to eat honey because it is good and sweet—a picture of wisdom, but certainly not wrong to enjoy for its own sake (Pr. 24:13–14).

We should not demand earthly pleasures or make them an idol, but we should enjoy what God gives us:

“Behold that which I have seen: it is good and comely for one to eat and to drink, and to enjoy the good of all his labour that he taketh under the sun all the days of his life, which God giveth him: for it is his portion.” – Ecc. 5:18

In spite of these problems, the basic premise of the book that we should learn to live in continual fellowship with God is vital, even for busy moms. If you’d like to learn more about how to abide in Christ and pray without ceasing, I’d encourage you to read the post Practicing His Presence and then sign up for my free guide and the Mama’s Refresh course.