Living in Luz

In Genesis 28:16-17, Jacob says the following:

"Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it. How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven."

Have you ever been to Luz? Luz is the place where we fail to recognize our Father's presence for what ever reason. In Jacob's case, Luz was the place where he finally had to sleep even though he was under stress of fleeing his brother, whom he cheated out of his rightful blessing.

In my case, it might be the rudeness of a self centered, 18 year old girl, whose philosophy is "it's all about me". Or it might be the sadness of living among neighbors who believe drinking and gossiping is the definition of a good time. Or it could be the stress of working in an office where young people do not wish to learn from the wisdom of the older generation. Or many other such similar places, but you get the idea.

Luz is the place where we focus on other things and fail to see that God is right here with us. While Jacob was making his bed that night on the hard, cold ground in Luz, he wasn't thinking of saying any bedtime prayers. Perhaps he was thinking that God was back home with momma, or perhaps he wasn't even thinking about God at all. Yet, that evening while sleeping on a stone pillow, God revealed Himself to Jacob and spoke to him. Upon awaking, Jacob screamed out the two verses above. What had changed? Was Luz a desert sandy place when he went to sleep, but on awaking became an oasis of trees, water, nourishment and rest? Of course not, the place had not changed one bit during his sleeping to awakening time. It was the same dreary, desert place as before, but the difference was he recognized that God was there. And where God is, there is His house, and the place can no longer be seen as dreary instead it becomes an awesome place.

Oh, how I can kick myself for letting other things and others take my focus off my Father. He is here! Right here, right now! My Father wants to reveal Himself to me. I've gone to sleep too many times in Luz. I've laid my head down on stone pillows with angry thoughts reliving slights from others. I've tossed and turned on a lumpy mattress of being excluded from social gatherings. I've simply gone to Luz because that is where I wanted to be. But in truth, I was always in Bethel (verse 19), I just didn't recognize it. And the sad thing is while God is there, I can absolutely not see Him at all if I so choose.

The power of this choice is we can then make the whole world a Luz. That choice does not alter the fact that God is still here, it just means I will not see the awesomeness of wherever I happen to be at the moment. I think I would rather wake up in Bethel, than go to sleep in Luz, because I want to remember who is with me, wherever I may find myself. I believe it must be wonderful to wake up each morning in an awesome place. I think that's what I'm gonna strife to do each day. Reveal your presence to me God, so that I will quit focusing on the wrong things. Your house is awesome, and that is where I want to be.