a) What is the presence of God?
God is everywhere, sees everything we do and helps in all our needs. Living the presence of God means to converse with him often during the day to ask for help, give thanks for the little and great gifts we receive continuously, ask pardon for our failures, or to simply renew our love and readiness to do his will.
God normally does not perform miracles to make his will known; rather, he uses the most ordinary events of our life—at home, in school, in the Church, etc. God uses other persons to let an Altar Server know his invitation, first of all, to be a good Christian, and, in many cases, to become a priest. God invites us to follow him closely, not because we are better than others, but simply because he wants to.
b) How do we live the presence of God?
An Altar Server should turn his thoughts to God frequently throughout the day, at home, in class, in the parish, while studying, working or playing, or in any other activity. To help him do so, he may compose short and simple prayers (called aspirations), such as “Thank you, Lord,” “I love you,” “Please help us always,” “I’m sorry, Lord,” etc. (see Appendix for some examples of aspirations). When we see a crucifix or image of the Blessed Virgin or the Saints, pass by a church, or realize that we have pleased or offended God, we remember God’s presence and action amongst us.
The more we think about God, the less we think about ourselves. The more we serve others, the less selfish we become. By living the presence of God, we increase our faithfulness to him even in little things, thus becoming more ready to hear him and respond to his call.