God’s sanctuary

Sanctuary

Posted on by Betsy

Where do you go when you don’t feel safe? For some, that place is home. I chatted with a friend the other day and she talked about people coming to her door unannounced. This is something that truly bothers her: Her home is her safe place, a fortress of comfort and security, and intrusions like someone knocking on the door are problematic for her. I feel exactly the same way.

For others, the sanctity of family, a deep friendship, or a happy marriage provide refuge in times of trouble. When you find yourself picking up your phone in stressful times to call or text, that person on the other end of the phone truly can be a bright light of salvation for you.

Every church has a special place called the “sanctuary” where worship is held, and God is encountered. Many of us know to flee to church when we feel we are under assault. From the root word sanctify, or holy place, sanctuaries over time became places of refuge and protection for persecuted people. Pardon my word nerdiness, but take a look at this excerpt from Etymology Online:

Since the time of Constantine and by medieval Church law, fugitives or debtors enjoyed immunity from arrest and ordinary operations of the law in certain churches, hence its use by mid-14. of churches or other holy places with a view to their inviolability. The transferred sense of “immunity from punishment by virtue of having taken refuge in a church or similar building” is by early 15c., also of the right to such. (Exceptions were made in England in cases of treason and sacrilege.)

The general (non-ecclesiastical) sense of “place of refuge or protection” is attested from 1560s; as “land set aside for wild plants or animals to breed and live” it is recorded by 1879 in reference to the American bison.

Even the bison have a place of sanctuary! So, too, have we.

Psalm 27 (Common English Bible)
The Lord is my light and my salvation.
        Should I fear anyone?
    The Lord is a fortress protecting my life.
        Should I be frightened of anything?
2 When evildoers come at me trying to eat me up—
    it’s they, my foes and my enemies,
    who stumble and fall!

All of us have some type of foe or enemy. David had entire nations of enemies rising up against Israel in war. Ours our probably more local: the neighbor who disrespects boundaries, the Facebook poster who disrespects your opinion, the ex-spouse who disrespects you in front of the kids, etc. But David reminds us to not be afraid because we can trust in the Lord and look forward to that time when we abide with him in his house where we will all get along. Heaven is our ultimate sanctuary. And do you know what won’t be part of heaven? Facebook.

3 If an army camps against me,
        my heart won’t be afraid.
    If war comes up against me,
        I will continue to trust in this:
4     I have asked one thing from the Lord—
    it’s all I seek:
        to live in the Lord’s house all the days of my life,
        seeing the Lord’s beauty
        and constantly adoring his temple.
5 Because he will shelter me in his own dwelling
    during troubling times;
    he will hide me in a secret place in his own tent;
        he will set me up high, safe on a rock.

Are you fleeing from trouble? Do you feel unsafe? Is there a danger knocking on your door making you feel uneasy? You know where to go.

11 Lord, teach me your way;
    because of my opponents, lead me on a good path.
12 Don’t give me over to the desires of my enemies,
    because false witnesses and violent accusers
    have taken their stand against me.
13 But I have sure faith
    that I will experience the Lord’s goodness
    in the land of the living!

Lord, teach us your ways and lead us to a safe haven. Bring us to that place of your goodness in the land of the living! We shall not fear if you abide with us.

14 Hope in the Lord!
    Be strong! Let your heart take courage!
        Hope in the Lord!

Be strong.

Safe Place by Becca Ziegler

Peaches’ Bone

Posted on by Betsy

We have a staff dog named Peaches at my church. She is a little mixed breed who is always happy to see us as we come through the door. (Except for one staff member, who keeps threatening to send her to the pound. We think he’s joking, but Peaches isn’t taking any chances.) She barks until she ascertains that you belong there; then she offers her small, warm tummy for free rubs.

Peaches attends staff meetings, and it’s good to have her there if the conversation gets tense, WHICH OF COURSE IT NEVER DOES BECAUSE WE ARE A CHURCH STAFF. (OK, well hardly ever.) She goes around the room as we talk, and helps herself to a piece of the couch that seems the friendliest. Soon enough, the staff member seated there will find themselves with lap full of Peaches. There is nothing better in a meeting than the warmth of a happy little dog.

Peaches has taken to hiding her bone in the chair in my office. My office is located in the back of the building, farthest from the busy front area. I discovered her hiding place one Sunday when I was meeting with a prospective church member. I was focused on greeting him, and when I sat down, I did not expect a sharp poke in my lower back. It was a Princess and the Pea moment. As I dug through the back of the cushion, I discovered Peaches’ bone. Now I look before I sit. I’m not sure who Peaches is hiding her bones from, as nobody on the staff really wants one. But Peaches understands the value of a good hiding place.

Psalm 27

One thing I ask from the Lord,
    this only do I seek:
that I may dwell in the house of the Lord
    all the days of my life,
to gaze on the beauty of the Lord
    and to seek him in his temple.

5 For in the day of trouble
    he will keep me safe in his dwelling;
he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent
    and set me high upon a rock.

It is good to know that on the day of trouble, God is our hiding place. He will keep us safe from harm in his dwelling. He will set us upon a high rock where we can spot trouble coming from a long way off.

Worship happens in the house of the Lord in places commonly referred to as sanctuaries. For one hour a week, God offers a place of refuge and respite from the trouble that the world gives. We have a brief sabbath from the normal routine when we get to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and hopefully think of nothing else.

As important as that one hour is, God’s dwelling is everywhere, and the shelter of his sacred tent is available at any moment of any troubled day. HE is our hiding place. When we open scripture or go to him in prayer, we enter into his temple, where peace and safety abide.

What is troubling you today? What do you wish to hide from so that you might catch your breath and regenerate? When hard times come, it is good to know where to turn. God is your rock, your salvation, and your 24/7 sanctuary. Flee to him in your time of trouble. His door is always open.

Peaches and Her Hiding Place by Amy Berge