“Lord, May I Be Your Dwelling Place” by Colleen O’Sullivan
That night the Lord spoke to Nathan and said: “Go, tell my servant David, ‘Thus says the Lord: Should you build me a house to dwell in? I have not dwelt in a house from the day on which I led the children of Israel out of Egypt to the present, but I have been going about in a tent under cloth. In all my wanderings everywhere among the children of Israel, did I ever utter a word to any one of the judges whom I charged to tend my people Israel, to ask: Why have you not built me a house of cedar?’ ‘The Lord also reveals to you that he will establish a house for you. And when your time comes and you rest with your ancestors, I will raise up your heir after you, sprung from your loins, and I will make his Kingdom firm.’” (2 Samuel 7:4-7, 11b-12)
Piety
O Lord, may the eyes of my heart ever search for you. May the ears of my heart always listen for the sound of your voice. May the doors to my heart stand open, ready to welcome you.
Study
God has a somewhat different perspective on what it means to be God and where God dwells than we human beings sometimes do. David is feeling a bit guilty that he lives in such a fine cedar palace, while God has nothing but a tent in which to abide. I’m sure David had the best of intentions when he suggested that he build the Lord a house, but God didn’t want to be limited to the four walls of any building at that moment. God liked the tent concept because God could always be in the midst of God’s people. A tent was portable. If the people moved, God could pull up stakes and move with them.
I remember being taken aback years ago when a church member asked me if we could have longer times of silence during worship. She confided that the church was the only place she found God and the only place where she ever prayed. I said, yes, we could have more extended periods of silence, but I wish I had had the presence of mind to tell her that God is a tent dweller, that God pulls up stakes at a moment’s notice to be anywhere we are. I wish I had had the presence of mind to help her find God dwelling within her.
God asks Nathan to tell David not to bother building God a house. On the contrary, God is going to create a house for David, not a house of cedar or brick or any other building material, but a dynasty. Moreover, God says, tell David that his dynasty will last through the ages and, long after David is laid to rest, God will raise up an eternal heir through whom the House of David will last forever.
That heir, Jesus, isn’t confined to any one building either. A literal translation of the “Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us” (John 1:14) is that the Word pitched his tent among us.i Where we go, Jesus picks up stakes and goes, too. We are never alone.
Action
God is certainly to be found in our houses of worship. But I think God’s message to David defines “house” in a more personal way, as well. God wants each one of us to put out the welcome mat. God desires that we make room in our hearts for God.
What do you need to do to make your heart a more hospitable home for God? Lent is only a few weeks away and could be the season when you rid yourself of whatever prevents you from opening wide the doors of your heart and graciously inviting the Lord to enter.
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