Lessons from Prepositions

Last week I went to Nicaragua with some of our college students to work with Vida Joven (Young Life) and to get to know some kindred friends and fellow Young Life leaders in Esteli as well as help them with a construction project they have in the works. And I learned a little something. You could say the old adage is true... I was in the right place at the right time.

You see I learned some things and grew in some ways while I was in Nicaragua that I just couldn't have if I had spent the week at home, in my comfort zone, in my ergonomic life that fits into my daily plan. It all seems to fit nicely- meals, job, car, home, friends, family, paycheck, Target. They are all right where I need them. I use them to meet "my needs" and sometimes I ask God what He thinks. I'm pretty comfortable right here.

But you know, that's the problem- Comfort. You realize that when you lie on something for too long, you get bed sores, and then something has to change.

While down in Nic, I had the time to get up early every day and spend time in the Word. I had the gift of my phone not having service and not having Wifi everywhere I went while the inconvenience of not knowing the language meant that I talked less and therefore listened more.

And I read a Psalm everyday. Psalm 63 was on Tuesday.

I've read Psalm 63 countless times. It's one of my comforting go-to's.

You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you;
I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you,
in a dry and parched land where there is no water.

I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory.  

Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. 

I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands.

I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods; with singing lips my mouth will praise you.

On my bed I remember you; I think of you through the watches of the night.

Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings. 

I cling to you; your right hand upholds me.

This time, however, the phrase "in the sanctuary" jumped out of the page to me like never before. It stuck out, and I read it again... looking for a clue. Why did this jump out? Then I read some more and the phrases "on my bed" and "in the shadow of your wings" jumped out too.

Ok, give me a clue here Lord... hmmm I see prepositions. I know, things you can do to a cloud?

No, but close! The phrases indicate being in a place. So I looked back. What happened in these places?
     *God was seen
     *God was remembered
     *God was praised

And then an "aha" moment. I realized WHERE I am matters in terms of how I know God. Don't get me wrong. I'm not limiting God. I'm just paying attention to what scripture says.

If I want to see God, go to the "sanctuary"... the place of quiet, where there are no distractions, the place of holiness, stillness, calm, peace, respect, rest, retreat... where I can stand in awe of my Creator, because the storm of my life has cleared. When I see Him, I am humbled.

If I want to remember God, go to the place where I rest... stop working, controlling, manipulating, battling, fixing, trying, pushing, talking and simply remember that He is the One who holds all things together. He is the One who is the author, the potter, the master, and I am simply the letter, the clay, the instrument, the vessel. When I remember Him, I am set right.

If I want to praise God, go near to Him and ask for help... go to his Word, his attributes, his gifts, his path and no one else's. When I recognize that no one else will fix me or save me or fill me, that He is the One, I find myself "helped" and resting in the shadow of His wings. Clinging to Him. Soaring with Him, letting everyone know- He is my rescuer. He did it. Everyone can see. I'm not the wing or the bones or the muscles. I'm the passenger along for the ride. When I praise Him, I am set free.

My mom used to always say,  "nothing good happens after midnight" and she never wanted me to be anywhere else but safely home at that hour. (The older I get of course I realize she was right). But I think the bigger point she was making was- where you are matters and whom you're with matters.

Do we take the time to go to these places of sanctuary & rest, places where we can see that only God can help, places where we're reminded that the Good Shepherd protects us from the one who longs to steal, kill and destroy? Do we come near to Him and see Him fulfill the promise in James 4:8, "draw near to God and He will draw near to you."

In Nicaragua, I had that opportunity. I had that chance to see God. I went to the sanctuary. I asked God for help. I stopped the busyness of my life,  and I remembered God. I clung to Him, and I praised Him.

Most of us can't go to Nicaragua or Africa or even an actual sanctuary every day to "get away." So we must find those places where we can turn off the world, turn away from self and seek God in order to see Him. I fear if I don't, if you don't, our spiritual bed sores will keep us shifting in our own selfishness, distracted by pain and poison, busily patching them up with good deeds and good television shows.

So go...move, leave, change, seek... Learn from the prepositions in Psalm 63. Get out of the stale comfort of your life and go where you can see God, remember Him and praise Him. I can promise you, no matter where you are now, it's a better view from the shadow of His wings.