God’s presence not altered.

It is true that there is great benefit in asking for God’s presence to be an important influence within your life. You are thereby inviting God to be a part of life. But if God’s presence is always within you, what is the need for your invitation? By asking God to be a part of your life, you are really asking that you be influenced by God’s presence. That influence is somehow very recognizable, but it is much more often never perceived. Nevertheless, that influence is there. When you pray for God to be a part of your life, you are asking that your life be a part of God, for it is your life that can be altered, not God’s presence. It is you who chose to be sensitized to the presence of God.

It is possible for the atheist to receive God’s strength. It is not only possible, but it is natural and entirely expected. God bestows strength just as a parent bestows love upon a child who never asks for it. This love is given because the love is felt. The child can either respond to that love or ignore it. But the love is offered because that is the nature of love. When God is perceived rightly, in part as the Force of Love, that love just does not wait to be given. It is offered, it is given, and it is sent out. It may be received warmly or rejected coldly, but that does not change its being given. If a child does not respond to a parent by saying, “Thank you for your love,” the parent still offers love continuously. If you do not consciously say to God, “Thank you for your love and your strength and faith and peace,” it is still offered. It is still inside you. You are filled with its potential, but it is you who decide whether or not you are sensitive to what is within you.