© Kdshutterman

Third Sunday in Lent
Sunday, March 24, 2019
Lectionary C

Exodus 3:1
“…remove the sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.”

I have been richly blessed to have stood or knelt in many holy places. I have been to the Holy Land and walked on the Temple Mount. I have touched the foundation stones of the Temple of Solomon and seen the sign in the rabbinical tunnels in Jerusalem acknowledging the proximity to the Holy of Holies and the place where the divine presence “rests.” I have celebrated Eucharist with my son at the garden tomb and prayed with fellow pilgrims at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. I have knelt at the stone of shame, where the Apostle Paul was beaten in Philippi, and climbed Mars Hill, where Paul preached to the people of Athens.

I have also been blessed to have revisited the hospital where I was born, the church where my wife and I were married 45 years ago and even revisited the hospitals where our children were born. I have also revisited the churches where I was ordained to the diaconate and the priesthood and where I have served as priest for the last 40-plus years. These places are all places of power. These holy places, set apart by God, are places where the grace and presence of God is so real and so powerful that I have also felt called to remove my shoes!

Our parish church is one of those holy places. The worship space is a place of beauty and inspires awe among parishioners and visitors. Our glass-walled nave provides a view of a manicured landscape and beautiful gardens. Standing behind the altar and facing God’s people also reminds me of what a precious and gracious gift I have received to celebrate the sacraments at this altar of grace.

Too often, we get caught up in the busyness of church and the commonness of our surroundings. We only see the neglected maintenance issues, the weeds growing in the memorial garden plantings, or the room in need of painting or the broken AC unit. Imagine if we looked beyond these distractions and sensed that our prayer-filled worship spaces, the parish hall fellowship areas, even the church kitchen are such holy places, set aside by the same God and used by the Lord for His purposes. I cannot help but think that every activity that occurs in those places would take on a more godly, awe-inspiring tone.

Holy places set apart by God need not be mountain tops or religious shrines in distant lands, they may be places that we visit daily or weekly. What we lack is the vision and the perception to see the power and presence of the Lord in our midst. When is the last time that you felt called to take off your shoes?

Holcombe

When is the last time that you were driven to your knees by the overwhelming presence of God? When is the last time that you took the time and dared to look for God breaking into your ordinariness and hum-drum and had your socks knocked off?

Holy places are places of encounter, places of revelation, places of power, places of testing. Visit one soon!

– The Rev. Scott T. Holcombe is rector of St. David’s by-the-Sea Episcopal Church in Cocoa Beach.