Sacred space

I went to church this morning and had an encounter with God.

Before I was going, I was anticipating that God would do something in my life and through my life today. I was thinking about the idea of "sacred space" that is a part of my husband's research for his PhD thesis. Since he's still in the process of finishing his thesis, I won't go too much into what he has told me. But in looking at the history and practices of the church his grandmother started, he discovered that they provide a "sacred space" at the front of the church (like an alter). From what I remember, he said that there are certain objects placed on this table covered with a white table cloth. That "alter" provides a place for the Divine (God) to interact with us or an interaction between the supernatural and the natural, Creator and the created. I remember the same idea is very much a part of the Celtic spirituality and practices when I was auditing a class on Christian history.

So this morning when I entered the auditorium, and started to sing along with the worship team, my heart was moved, my spirit was moved. In my past experiences, if the Holy Spirit's presence is moving strongly in a place, the way I encounter the Holy Spirit is by shedding tears. I was praying for people and tears kept streaming down my face.

But besides that, I was praying for a friend and her family in particular that they would encounter God today as well. I was praying that God will provide people whom they already know so that they might go back to church more frequently and that God will change their lives and help them in the issues they are facing.

When the pastor finished his message, he asked us to close our eyes and imagine ourselves as a 5-year-old child sitting there with God. He asked us to learn to hear from God and of what He desires to do. As we started, he prayed particularly for the removal of distractions and of the removal of evil presences and influences. He was creating or helping to create a "sacred space" for us to encounter God.

Actually when I first stepped into the auditorium, I already heard God telling me something about the future our my family. At that moment of seeking to hear God's voice, I also heard specific instructions for me in loving my children with His overwhelming love and to love them well. As I went to sit with my friend that I had prayed for in the beginning of the service (or even before we went to church), I started to hear from her of how well she liked being at the church and how her son even had an invitation from his school friend to come to this church.

Although I've been a Christian for a long time and I have encountered God numerous times (and even on a daily basis), I am still amazed at what He is able to do. I am also still contemplating over this idea of "sacred space".