Meet God Anywhere

Today I read Genesis 33:9-35:8 and Matthew 17:9-18:10. My favorite verses are:

Genesis 35:3 And let us arise, and go up to Bethel; and I will make there an altar unto God, who answered me in the day of my distress, and was with me in the way which I went.

Matthew 18:10 Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven.

Bethel means House of God; Jacob had a desire to return to that place where he had encountered God years before. But notice that God had not remained in Bethel all those years; He was with Jacob in the way he went. We can go to a church or other special place that we consider to be God’s dwelling place in order to feel close to God; but as His children, we can be close to God anywhere and at any time because He dwells within us! It is good to sometimes return to the place of our salvation or to a place where God helped us in a time of distress. We may feel a special closeness to God associated with the experience we had there originally. But always remember, God is omnipresent; He is everywhere! We do not have to go to any particular place to be near Him. It is the condition of our hearts that causes us to feel close to, or far away from, God.

The verse from Matthew is more closely related to yesterday’s comments than today’s. This verse supports the concept of children having Guardian Angels. If we despise (mistreat, abuse, neglect) little children, we may face the wrath of God because “their angels”—the angels who are responsible for the welfare of these children—stand before God in heaven. They are, no doubt, reporting to him what is happening to the children. God does not intervene immediately in many situations, but I believe He takes note of what is happening and remembers it. There will come a day when He will judge those whose actions have been reported to Him by the Guardian Angels.