We’re continuing our blog journey through the book inSPIRE®–Faith for a “Whole” Life – now available! Peer into this exerpt from chapter six and consider the “I” of the SPIRE–Intellectual wholeness–our minds and what influences them …
A Walk to a Church
I set aside a day to meet with God at the National House of Prayer, nestled in the heart of Canada’s capital city, Ottawa. In conversation and contemplation, God and I spoke about the whole topic of our minds and the “I” of the SPIRE. it’s so incredibley important to think about, well, what we think about. How do we safeguard our minds, and thus our hearts?
When it was time for some fresh air, I left the House of Prayer to go for a walk in the area. I was in the neighbourhood where my husband Rick grew up, and I wanted to visit the French Catholic church he and his family attended. It was directly behind the National House of Prayer.
Never having been there before, I headed around the building, filled with anticipation.
Peering Into the Past
The church was easy to spot—Église Sainte-Anne is a unique, old stone church built in 1873 in a French Colonial-style architecture. It stands in contrast with the urban apartment buildings and shops directly beside it.
I took in the building’s pitched roof, three-tier belfry, and stone façade, complete with a medieval-style window. Beautiful. Notably, twin spires sat on top of the corners of the roof, and another crowned the belfry. I couldn’t have imagined a more fitting scene.
After appreciating the spires in my dear hubby’s history, I turned my attention to what looked like ancient, wooden, impenetrable double doors beckoning me to come inside. In my imagination, I could see little Ricky with his mom, dad, and three older sisters arriving at that front entrance and walking through the heavy wooden doors. What would the inside of such a unique, historical structure look like? What images and furniture graced the sanctuary? Where had Rick kneeled to take communion?
Closed Doors
I never found out. I made my way to the arched entrance, ready for the building to reveal its secrets, but there was no way in. There were no handles on the doors. None at all.
It was clear that permission to enter would only be given from someone on the inside, and I was an outsider.
Controlled Access
Access to Rick’s childhood church is controlled. The sacred spaces in Église Sainte-Anne are worth protecting. The church sits in the midst of Lowertown, a downtown neighbourhood that faces the challenges that come with few social services and limited safety. The church sits in the middle of real life and real people, right where it needs to be, influencing the community for good. But that means it also resides in an environment where there is property and drug-related criminal activity. The church can’t control the harmful activity that goes on outside of its walls, but it can control what influences enter in.
Like Sainte-Anne, we have influences all around us that we can’t control. But that doesn’t mean we don’t have choices. We too can restrict access and monitor influence to our minds, hearts, and souls by filtering input and deciding who and what gets in.
Guarding What is Sacred
Scripture states that we need to guard our minds and our hearts, like Sainte-Anne guards its historically significant and irreplaceable inner sanctuary. In Ephesians 6:11-18, we are called to go beyond removing the handles and locking the doors. We’re given the vivid image of putting on armour to stand firm against the strategies and attacks of the devil, our enemy. Armour indicates we’re at war. We armour-up to actively take a stand against the rulers, authorities, and powers of a dark world and the spiritual forces of evil.
But wishing evil away isn’t a strategy. There are sacred and beautiful things worth protecting. You are one of them. I am one of them. We need a plan …
Continue reading in inSPIRE®–Faith for a “Whole” Life – available at your favorite retailer.