Rooted and Grounded
"You are God's Building"
The vision statement of "His Global Love" prayer
apostolate reads:
'To form the hearts of God's people through a deep,
personal relationship with God so that they may become, within themselves, a "house
of prayer for all peoples".'
This
reference to "house of prayer" comes from Is. 56:7, "for my house shall be
called a house of prayer for all peoples." This house of prayer originally
referred to God's temple in Jerusalem. The exterior facade of the original
temple in Jerusalem that King Solomon had overseen the construction of ("the
temple I have built in your honor" (1 Kings 8:48)) was adorned with gold. This
was intentional. For, at sunrise each day as the sun's rays struck the gold the
overwhelming brightness of the reflected light was such that the temple
appeared to be on fire. After all, the temple was said to be the place of God's
presence and fire expresses God's holiness and love. This house of prayer
appeared to be a "house of fire": "The house of Jacob shall be a fire, and
the house of Joseph a flame"(Obadiah 18). King Solomon may have had in mind
the history of his people and Moses' first encounter with God on Mt. Horeb
(Ex.3:1-2) in fire flaming out of a burning bush, or how God led his people through
the desert journey as a column of fire at night. Neither Moses nor King Solomon
could have imagined, however, that one day this fire of God's presence would
dwell within human beings beginning at Pentecost. No more fiery facades, but
now fire within! Each person in the upper room on the day of Pentecost would
become in themselves a "house of prayer", a "house of fire". This is our
calling, too.
Historically, we know that for all of its grandeur and
splendor King Solomons' temple was destroyed by the Babylonians during the time
of the Babylonian exile. Even the second temple would be destroyed by the
Romans in 70a.d. In John 2:19-21, in the scene of Jesus' cleansing of the
temple, he speaks forth an amazing revelation: "Destroy this temple and in three
days I will raise it up…he was speaking about the temple of his body"
(verses 19,21). Indeed Jesus, the "true Solomon" had "built this temple for
himself" in the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary, a temple of perfect praise and
worship to the Father. Jesus is the "temple" not made by human hands. In his
life one sees fulfilled the prophetic words that God had spoken centuries
earlier through the Prophet Haggai: "Greater will be the future glory of this
house than the former, says the LORD of hosts."(Haggai 2:9). Truly the
"house" of Jesus' body, the body of the only Son of the Father, bears the glory
of the divine Spirit: "Blessed are you in the temple of your holy glory"
(Dan. 3:53).
One of the most amazing truths about the Sacrament of
Christian Baptism is that at our baptism we begin to "house" Jesus in his
Spirit within ourselves. When we speak of our becoming within ourselves a
"house of prayer for all peoples" we are saying that we "house" the sacred
presence of God within ourselves: My heart becomes a "tabernacle" of his divine
presence. St. Paul speaks of this to the Corinthians when he says to them, "For
the temple of God, which you are, is holy" (1Cr.3:17); and, "a dwelling place
of God in the Spirit" (Eph. 2:22); and, "You are…God's building" (1Cr. 3:9).
Each of us must be formed through the help of God's grace to grow in the
awareness of this baptismal truth. The heart of the formation process of "His
Global Love" Ministry is focused on the transformation of lives. The word,
transformation, is another word for the word, change. A true Christian is
really a converted--a changed--human being: One who has experienced an interior
change of heart and mind. This is certainly so for a contemplative intercessor.
As one grows in his/her faith one should begin to believe more and more in the
truth that they "house" the sacred presence of God within themselves. The Holy
Spirit, who is the Spirit of the Father and Jesus, is the fire within us. At
some point in our faith journey we hopefully begin to realize that we exist to
serve the "life", the sacred presence, of the One who now lives within us
through the Sacrament of Baptism. One way in which to serve this life of Jesus
within us is to live an intercessory lifestyle of praise and prayer with a
willingness to pray for "all peoples" (Is. 56:7). Hopefully, each of us can
experience the joy of belonging to God completely, living as God's "house of
prayer", interceding as led by the Holy Spirit, and radiating the fire of God's
holiness and love for all people.
Scriptures:
Luke
2:49; 2Cr.13:5
Questions:
1. How on fire for God and for the salvation of souls am
I?
2. Where in my life may I be resisting interior change in
my heart and mind?