October 30, 2014

So many times in the Bible people have voiced their desire to be in the house of the Lord, gazing at His beauty or abounding in love. Psalm 23 is a perfect example.

What is it about the house of the Lord that makes it a wonderful place? Jesus's PRESENCE. It isn't the architecture, the worship there, the people... its all about Jesus. Thats where the wonder and adoration are focused. And it may sound kind of creepy, to be eternally worshipping Jesus in heaven, but unlesd you have truly worshipped, you won't get it. Its when you are drawn into His presence and its just you singing for Him, and love and grace crash down on your head and its all you can do to keep singing in the midst of such beauty. And thats just a glimpse of what we'll experience in heaven, because we are confined to this earth.

Jesus's presence is everywhere, because He is omniscient. There are a few special places He dwells! First of all, in His church. When believers go to God's house, His dwelling place, and gather to worship, beautiful things happen. To be a part of a Body that is so much more than just one congregation... its beautiful. Imagine this: not ONE DAY goes by without someone, somewhere, praising Jesus every second of the day. He has literally set up perpetual worship for Himself throughout this entire earth. And everyday, more and more voices are added to the ever-growing choir. How beautiful!

Jesus also dwells in nature and our hiding places. Everywhere we look, we see beauty and intelligence exemplified in nature. Also, many people have one spot they retreat to so that they can hear God's voice. For me, its my room. Its different for everyone. But Jesus clearly reveals Himself to us wherever we happen to be; we just have to be LOOKING. We often miss the small glories of God because we are focused on ourselves. Once we look up, we'll see so many miracles displayed all around us.

And Jesus dwells in US. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 talks about how we are a dwelling place, a temple, for Jesus. He is happy to be in us! He is glorified through our actions; He is also grieved by our actions. Its when we choose to make our life-song sing - meaning our actions and choices - to Jesus that He is magnified. We can worship Him through the choices we make, the food we eat, even exercising. Keeping our bodies fit is a great way to worship Jesus, because then our temple is in good repair. 

And once we get to heaven, we will be PHYSICALLY in His presence, not spiritually, and our faith will be made sight and our worship made whole! That day cannot come soon enough!