When the Holy Spirt comes for a visit to your house, do you offer your best chair? Do
you sit in the chair that rocks a little and sits uncomfortably near the bathroom? A meditation
of mine lately has been on the journey of Mary to find a place to give birth to the Messiah. As
the Spirit brings about new life in my heart, what place do I give for this abundance of newness,
this space for grace and growth? I must admit that I can be in unabashed denial. Of course, I
give him my favorite spot on the couch. The one that fits the shape of my curled-up knees. I put
that aside for Him…most of the time. Of course, there are those times when I make him sit in
the other room because I want to watch TV instead of listening to His voice. There are also the
times when I wake up late and I need to sit in my spot because, how else will I start my day
properly if I don’t finish my to-do list before I leave the house. At dinner, He just can’t sit in my
seat. I want to talk to my husband, and the kids are complaining, and I just don’t have time to
listen to Him. I don’t have time for Him to talk to the kids, we need to finish up dinner so that
we can finish off that to-do list from the morning. Now it’s bedtime. I could give Him that cozy
rocking chair in the kid’s room. We could read the Bible and spend extra time in prayer. I’m sure
it would be great for the little ones…. ok, He can sit there for a few minutes, but we really need
to hurry it up, I’m tired and I only want to read from the short kid Bible tonight.
Giving Jesus the favorite chair takes time! It demands that you don’t rush Him. He could
decide to stay for a long time. He could decide to change up my schedule, my plans, my routine,
my habits. It simply might take up more energy than I have to give. Mary was inconvinient at
the doorway of each desired lodging. A birthing room in not the most soothing situation for
guests. Isn’t it the truth that new birth can be incredibly disruptive? It can be painful and
jarring. Yes, giving the Spirit the prime spot in your house for this type of life altering change
and disruption is just plan inconvenient.
Holy Spirit, help us to be ok with the inconvenience of letting you have our best. The best place
in our humble hearts, and the best of our attention and time. Open our hearts to see that we
long for you to sit there and be with us, more than we will ever know or understand!
Jennifer Fortosis