The Places Where God Shows Up

A Tired Way of Looking at Church

Have you ever been in a cathedral or church, and felt like you were in a sacred space?

Growing up I used to think God only showed up in those kinds of places. I was taught that the church was “The House of God.” So we dressed in our best clothes and our shiniest shoes because we were going to the “House of God” and apparently, it really mattered to God how we looked. What didn’t make sense to me, was if the church was the “House of God”, then why weren’t we spending more time there?

If there was a place where God could be found why weren’t we there every day?

Where God Lives.

In Psalm 24 David writes, “The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it…” (Psalm 24v1, NIV). It’s like the whole earth is God’s cathedral. You wouldn’t buy a house to only live in one room would you? Then why would God, having access to the whole world choose to only be present in church buildings. I am not saying that churches aren’t meaningful. It’s just that so much is made of the church and the worship service that we forget that God shows up in the ordinary moments of our lives. It’s easy to see God in church because we expect him to show up there. But in reality God shows up everywhere. In fact, the picture we see of God in the Bible is that he manifests himself in everyday circumstances.

There is a story of a man named Jacob who has a dream in which he talks to God. God promises to give him a big family and land to live out his days. Which was huge deal because he was literally running for his life. His brother was trying to kill him. In essence God told him he would protect him and give him a long life. When Jacob woke up from this dream he said, “Surely the Lord is in this place – and I didn’t know it!” He followed this epiphany by saying, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God…” (Gen 28). This didn’t take place in a cathedral or some holy site. God revealed himself to Jacob on the side of the road. What made that space so sacred was Jacob’s awareness of this encounter with God.

This is none other than the house of God…”

You are in God’s Cathedral Now.

Life is a lot like that. God shows up when we don’t expect him and he invites us into these sacred spaces, or what we call everyday cathedrals. It’s in these moments when we experience first-hand the abundant life promised by Jesus. For Jesus, abundance was never about having more material possession and wealth, but about experiencing life with eyes wide open. I was reminded of this just the other day when I went for a walk with my 94-year-old grandfather. We didn’t walk far, maybe a quarter of a mile, but within that space I was able to get a glimpse of 94 years of life. My grandfather, who’s name is Jesus (but we call him Chuy) stopped to teach me about the different trees and flowers we saw in his neighbor’s yards. I don’t remember what he said about them, but I still remember how I felt. I knew that in that moment, as he talked about about the trees he wasn’t really talking about the trees, he was simply living, and experiencing life. He was being fully present to his life. I was invited into this everyday cathedral. It was sacred space. Everyday cathedrals is about being aware of the gift of life. It is about experiencing life in all of its fullness. Not just the happy moments, but the sad ones too. It’s about experiencing life in its rawest sense. It’s the good mixed with the bad. The sacred mixed with the profane. The meaningful mixed with the mundane.

This blog invites you to become aware and step into your life before it fades away. I write because I want to spread the good news that God is present everywhere. God is not more present in churches and less present everywhere else. The name for this blog comes from this understanding.

EVERYDAY: Everyday you are alive is an opportunity to step into a cathedral in time and experience life at its fullness. Sometimes it’s just for a moment. Maybe you get a glimpse of something you’ve never seen before. God is present everyday, not just on the weekends at church or when you pray. We don’t have to wait for the Worship Service on the weekend to experience God.

CATHEDRAL: I use the word Cathedral with the understanding that if the earth belongs to the Lord, and everything in it, then God is present right where you are, everyday, everywhere in this cathedral we call earth.

Where do you experience God?