Spirit and Truth

The woman said to him, “Sir, I see that you are a prophet. ²⁰Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you say that the place where people must worship is in Jerusalem.” ²¹Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. " John 4:19-21

There are occasions at church when someone will come, during now worship times, to pray in the sanctuary.  It doesn't happen too much, but when it does it is someone who seems troubled and is seeking out a space to connect with God.  God is certainly present in the church and it is understandable why people seek out so called "sacred spaces" to connect with God.  But is it only in the sacred places that we can meet God?

When the woman at the well meets Jesus she discusses the sacred space of the mountaintop which had been important to her ancestors and the sacred space of the temple in Jerusalem for the Jewish people.  Jesus refutes this whole worldview be asserting that it is not a space which makes an occasion sacred but the presence of the spirit.  We can have a moment with God anywhere at anytime.  We do not need to be at church, or in nature, or at an appointed time.  Jesus teaches the woman that God seeks those who will worship in "spirit and truth" (4:24).  What is needed to worship God in spirit is an openness to God's presence in our life.  God is everywhere all the time.  When we become aware of God's presence in our life and have eyes to see and ears to hear, then any place or time can be sacred.  To experience the sacred with must slow down, open our hearts, and let God's presence be revealed.