How Awesome Is this Place!

At my workplace, our Tech department is going through the book of Isaiah as early morning devotions. Many a times our reading of scriptures follow interesting discussions of biblical lands, peoples and how it relates to us today in our current world and lives. Two days back we had an discussion of Edom and how God chose Jacob over Esau. My thoughts went back to my visit in Shanghai to an international church we had visited for Sunday fellowship. The worship team at this church was completely led by African blacks all professors and resident doctors in that part of the world. (Interesting isn't it..people of God worshipping him in different and far away lands) In the call for prayer I still remember one of these Doctor guys prayed over me and interestingly asked me to read Genesis 28 Jacob's vision of the ladder and told me my life is like that of Jacob and its important for you. That's it. I have meditated on the passage many a times of how it relates to my life.

We as human beings are creatures of awe and wonder. At the same time, we are fearful of what we experience as wondrous, but cannot understand. There are times in our lives when God intervenes and gives us hope and a vision of our life. There are some of us who wake up like Jacob did and acknowledge with fear and awe the awesomeness of His presence and there are some of us who may sleep off on Holy Ground. The edge between fear and awe is razor thin; fear and awe are two sides of the same balance beam. We are at once fearful, because of the extent of our vulnerability, and at the same time awed at the mysterious experience of the holy that fills our world. As the book of Genesis describes Jacob upon awakening from his dream exclaimed:

“Mah nora hamakom hazeh, ein zeh ki im beit Elohim v’zeh shaar hashamayim,”“ “Shaken, he said, ‘How awesome is this place! This is none other than the abode of God, and that is the gateway to heaven’” (Genesis 28:17). Jacob'’s theophany might also be translated: “He feared/was awestruck [by the power of his experience] and said, ‘What an awesome/fearful God this is. This is none other than the dwelling place of God, and this is the gateway to understanding that which is in the heavens.”

What shall we do today then? Lay asleep on Holy Ground when God comes and wakes us or shall we say like Jacob How Awesome Is this place this is none other than the house of God.

Blessings

SK