Honoring God in this Place

10 Jacob left Beersheba and went toward Haran. 11 And he came to a certain place and stayed there that night, because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of the place, he put it under his head and lay down in that place to sleep. 12 And he dreamed, and behold, there was a ladder[b] set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven. And behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it! 13 And behold, the Lord stood above it[c] and said, “I am the Lord, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. The land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring. 14 Your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south, and in you and your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed. 15 Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” 16 Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.” 17 And he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.”

18 So early in the morning Jacob took the stone that he had put under his head and set it up for a pillar and poured oil on the top of it. 19 He called the name of that place Bethel,[d] but the name of the city was Luz at the first. 20 Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat and clothing to wear, 21 so that I come again to my father's house in peace, then the Lord shall be my God, 22 and this stone, which I have set up for a pillar, shall be God's house. And of all that you give me I will give a full tenth to you.” Genesis 28:10-22

Give ear to my words, O Lord;

consider my groaning.

2 Give attention to the sound of my cry,

my King and my God,

for to you do I pray.

3 O Lord, in the morning you hear my voice;

in the morning I prepare a sacrifice for you[a]and watch. Psalm 5:1-3

We shall all have an opportunity in our lives to encounter God. Some will be blessed to be raised in a household who knows Him and who follows Jesus. Others may obtain pieces of information that will be evidence of God's goodness. In all cases, we shall be able to experience Him, the creator of the Universe and only righteous God. The question is, how do we respond after this encounter?

Many times, the way in which we encounter God, is the way in which we shall respond to Him. Some who encounter God in a church setting, will want to serve Him within the church. Others who hear of God through media, will want to find more of this media and share it with others. If the encounter was in business, then possibly serving in business. If in school, then perhaps carrying out God's mission in schools. For this reason we can be assured that God desires to touch upon all aspects of our world, bringing His people to Him. Although fellowship and discipleship happen within a church setting, all parts of our community are important to God.

Where does that leave you? It places you in a unique position to do what you're most effective at doing, but doing it in concert with following God. Make no mistake, God can take you out and place you anywhere, but if He does not do this and keeps you where you are, then this is the opportunity for you to serve Him.

Jacob, after experiencing God personally, took the stone which was under his head and set it up as a pillar and worshipped the Lord. In that specific place where he encounters God, Jacob says, "how awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven."

Now, was that very spot the gate of heaven? No, not really. But it was where Jacob experienced God and therefore it was special to Him. He set up a pillar to remind himself of this experience, and renamed it so that he would not forget.

What should we do when we personally encounter God?

1. Recognize that what we experienced was special. Our finite minds so quickly forget what God has done for us. Place a marker either at that place, or in our social media timeline, or in our journal, to remember what it was that we experienced. We may have to go back to this later so that we can recollect God's presence in our lives.

2. Respond by asking the Lord what He means by His encounter with us. As David the Psalmist wrote in Psalms 5, seek out the Lord and meditate on His encounter with you. Then keep watch to see how God answers you. There is usually a message that He desires to give you which makes the meeting more meaningful.

3. Remain committed to what it is that you were doing at the moment you encountered Him. Perhaps whatever it is you are doing at the time, is exactly what He wants you to be doing; except that you need to recognize it as part of His plans and not just yours. Allow God to breathe new life into your work, and keep watch for His next command.

Jacob woke up the next morning from his vision and worshipped the Lord in that very spot he slept. We can also worship God at the very spot we encounter Him.

Father,

I know that you have given each of us a purpose and a plan. May we understand the significance of our encounter with you and change the world around us as we are changed.