I'll confess: I used to find God and feel sanctuary mostly in certain places.
Church. That was the certain place.
One certain building.
A certain kind of music.
Certain words, spoken by a certain person, in certain ways.
And as certainty has fallen away from my life, I have felt the loss of those certain things.
Slowly slowly slowly though, I've started to find God, to see Love, in new places.
Unexpected sanctuaries, the not-certain--these have become places of joy for me lately.
This week, I found God in blue skies.
I found God in hidden city gardens.
I found God at the Granada Theater, singing along with The Oh Hellos.
I found God in the embrace of my family.
I found God on my yoga mat, in deep breaths and deep gratitude.
If God is, as I was always taught, omnipresent, present everywhere, then this should be no surprise to anyone. But somehow it's been a surprise to me
Sanctuary, it turns out, is everywhere.
I just didn't know how to see it, outside the certain places.
And maybe I needed to leave the certain places, to find the sanctuary that is everywhere.
I can never escape from your Spirit!
I can never get away from your presence!
If I go up to heaven, you are there;
if I go down to the grave, you are there.
If I ride the wings of the morning,
If I dwell by the farthest oceans,
even there your hand will guide me,
and your strength will support me.
Psalm 139:7-10