Thought for Friday, April 19th

April 19, 2013

The Altar

  And it came to pass after these things, that God did tempt Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham: and he said, Behold, here I am.  And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.  And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son, and clave the wood for the burnt offering, and rose up, and went unto the place of which God had told him.

Genesis 22:1-3

“…People at the altar
Are kneeling down to pray
Some are finding mercy
Forgiveness for their sin
Some are fighting battles
And they're struggling to win
The time has come
To give them to the Lord
That's what the altar is for
That's what this altar is for
You don't have to carry
Those burdens anymore
There's a light in the darkness
There's a love that's true
And Jesus is waiting
He is waiting here for you…”

-          Ray Boltz (lyrics from ‘The Altar’)

The altar is a place to meet with God, too gain strength for the trials and test of life and to receive His blessings.  It is a place where our attention is captivated by His presence and our focus is totally on Him and everything that we are there to do is for and about Him and His place in our lives.

Sadly the altar seems to be a relic of the past in so many churches today and even more sadly it seems that the idea of the altar has become often almost extinct in our hearts as Christians.

In a world of fast paced, rushed engagements and experiences: we seem to have lost the ability to linger at the altar of God’s feet to find ourselves enveloped in the power and majesty of His presence.

The altar is just a place, designated or set aside for connecting with Him.

Do you have a place that you can call your altar?

And if you do, when is the last time you have been there to spend some quality time with God?

Prayer:

Father, when you call me, may I come: when I need time alone with you may I come to an altar of your or my choosing – but for the sole purpose of spending quality time with You and with a willing heart to offer up to You whatever you may request of me.