Wednesday, March 7, 2007

The World is Your Temple

Do any of you just get a feeling of wonder and awe when you enter a church building? Somehow, many churches seem to give us this feeling- that in that very spot, we are closer with Him than in our normal daily lives. While the Spirit of God does indeed dwell in many of these places of worship, He also dwells among us each and every day.

For me, I feel closest to God when I am out in nature. How can one not just see and feel the presence of God when sitting and watching a sunrise or sunset? To me, that is the ultimate masterpiece... the still quiet hours of morning when it just seems as though it is I and the Lord sitting and He is putting on an exhibit just for me. I can not help but just be filled with His love and just praise Him for all He has done in my life, when surrounded by His creation.
Throughout the Bible we can see where we are called to praise Him... not just in a church, but in all aspects of our lives. Psalm 113:3 states that from "the rising of the sun to the place where it sets, the name of the Lord is to be praised.". Psalm 34:1 says "His praise will always be on my lips". Even the earth will praise Him. (Isaiah 55:12)

When living in a cold and grey place such as I do, sometimes it is hard to be inspired by nature, but I challenge you, and myself, to look outside of our traditional places of worship for areas where you can see and feel His presence. He is here with us, surrounding us in all of our daily activities, He is just waiting for us to take notice. "When you see the world as God's temple, you do more than visit God, you are constantly rubbing shoulders with Him."

Take time today to rub shoulders with Him.

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