Funny how time changes things.
I was reading over my last post and turns out when you tell people what the situation is, they rise to the occasion. Giving has been good. Before I would have been so proud but now it just seems God still has a work to do in this community. I'm thankful that He sees a near future for this temple of His.
It's Silent Saturday. The eve of Easter - the greatest day in history. A wonderful lesson here that not hearing from God doesn't mean that He isn't working. On the contrary, He is always working for our good.
It has been one rollercoaster after another getting here. It's been one long month of stomach things, strep, and UTI's + sports, potty training, ballet, school events and performances, and spring break. My house has been messy which is one indication that I'm having a hard time holding it all together. And yet, God is somehow making a way for there to be joy in the in-between. Joy in the middle of hard things. Joy in the service of Him.
My mind keeps wandering back to the veil that was torn in the temple the moment that Jesus died. The veil that hung in the temple to separate the holy place from the most holy place. Only the High Priest could enter there and only then one day a year. The veil was symbolic of the separation between the Israelites and God. Even while with them on earth, His glory was too much for them to be in His direct presence. God was too holy!
The burning bush with Moses. God comes down into a bush to talk to Moses but what does God say? "Here I am. Do not come near.." Exodus 3:4-5 Do not come near.
And because of this separation, the Israelites failed to obey the Lord and keep His commands. Again and again failing to obey, failing to trust, failing to only worship God.
Beth Moore said, "Scripture bore witness to sins capacity to take advantage of the greatest gift God gave the people of Israel." His presence!
So God realized He must get closer.
He sent His Son to die on the cross and to rise again on the third day so that the veil would be torn indefinitely. So He could reside directly within us. Not next to us. Not near us. But within us.
James 4:8 says "Draw near to me!" What a stark contrast to "Do not come near!"
Proximity to God is a big deal. The closer I get to God the more I am compelled to praise Him. To glorify Him. The more I understand the character and heart of God the more I become aware of my own sinfulness and brokenness and the more I need to give Him all the praise.
Jeremy Riddle once mentioned the living creatures and the elders in heaven who, day and night never cease to worship God saying, "Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!" Revelation 4:8-11
They are not forced to worship God but because of their proximity to God they are compelled to worship Him all. the. time. They can't help themselves!
So tonight, the even before the greatest day in history is celebrated, I praise Him for allowing His most precious possession, His Son, to be ridiculed, mocked, beaten, dragged, starved, hung on a cross, and killed, so that we can have the power of the Holy Spirit within us.
Undone by the love of God.
