Monday, April 26

You are in the Spirit, since the Spirit of God dwells in you.
—Romans 8:9

Most of us are habituated to thinking that God is outside of us— somewhere up in the sky, looking down, sometimes benevolently, sometimes in judgment, sometimes in wonder. Because we think God is external to us, we spend our spiritual time and energy seeking and chasing after a being that we cannot see, but that we believe must be there.

In moments when we connect with that Being, we are in awe—our soul expands and rises like a balloon. When the moment passes, we remember it fondly and try to keep it fresh in our memory, particularly when life is coming at us hard, or we are unhappy or empty of peace.

Yet, if we are made in the image of God, and if we move and breathe because God breathed the breath of life into us, we don't have to search for the Holy One as if we are trying to locate a missing person. 

We can simply bring our mind and attention to the inner core of our being, where the Spirit of God dwells. In that instant, we will connect with the Holy One. It is an easy movement, and without anxious effort we can find ourselves swimming in the ocean of divine love.

The simple shift from seeking God outside of ourselves to recognizing the presence of God within ourselves can utterly transform our spirit and life. Our soul, no longer scurrying about trying to find a missing God, can simply rest in the embrace of that God as if it were a child in a womb being nourished into full life.

Gracious God, give me eyes to see into my own soul where your Spirit dwells.

These Signposts originally appeared on explorefaith in 2008.