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A Portable Sanctuary

The introduction to Richard Foster's "Prayers from the Heart":

"My whole life, in one sense, has been an experiment in how to be a portable sanctuary - learning to practice the presence of God in the midst of the stresses and strains of contemporary life. Some people who read my books are surprised to learn that I have never been drawn to a monastic life, as important and valuable as that way of life is. For me, the great challenge has always been to experience the reality of God in the midst of going to work and raising kids and cleaning house and paying the bills."

When my children grow older, I will:
-have more time
-do more for the church
-spend more time with God
-read more books
-pray more
-witness to my neighbors...

We may not make such an explicit list as this, but this has become the adopted lifestyle of many young parents, such as ourselves. We always dream of our children getting older, thinking life will get easier without the demands of little toddlers and preschoolers. We are realizing time and time again that these are NOT TRUE! Thus, Richard Foster's example rings true to our hearts. Especially as young parents, we are called to learn to practice God's presence in the midst of feeding our children, dealing with their temper tantrums, comforting them in their tears, playing with them...Just as Daniel and his friends had to go through the fire to experience the power of God's manifest presence which saved them, all of us, no matter what season of life we are in, are called to walk through that fire and experience God in ALL our circumstances. Such a vision and paradigm shift bring radical freedom to parents who seem so bogged down with the demands of life. We pray every day that we would choose to practice His presence through the busyness of the day. There is no time to delay or waste. Practicing His presence and allowing our children to walk in it is an urgent message God is speaking to His church. Why wait til tomorrow, when things will calm down? Start today, start now, no matter what circumstance you're in. Let us become the portable sanctuary of God's manifest and living presence to shine forth. This is the ONLY way life will get easier, through God Himself. Less of us, more of you Jesus.

April 05, 2006