Have you ever had one of those weeks? The kind where the to-do list feels endless, the stress piles up, and you feel like you’re just surviving. You get through it, but you feel drained, battered by the circumstances of life. In those moments, it’s easy to feel like a victim, tossed about by whatever the world throws at you. But what if I told you that you weren’t created to be a victim of your environment? What if, instead of just reacting to the temperature of the world around you, you were designed to set it? You have the incredible honor and privilege of hosting the very presence of God, and understanding this truth can shift you from a place of mere survival to a life of spiritual victory.
From a house of cedar to a house of flesh
The story begins with a king who had a noble desire. In 2 Samuel chapter seven, King David, established in his beautiful palace made of cedar, felt a sense of unease. He lived in luxury while the Ark of the Covenant, the symbol of God’s presence, resided in a simple tent. His heart’s desire was to build a magnificent, permanent house for the Lord. It was a good intention, one that the prophet Nathan initially endorsed. But God’s perspective was different, and infinitely grander. Through Nathan, God sent a message back to David that would forever change the understanding of where God chooses to dwell.
God’s response was profound. He essentially told David, “You want to build a house for me, but I am going to make you a house” (see verse 11). God wasn’t talking about a physical structure of wood and stone. The word “house” here meant a lineage, a family, a dynasty. God was shifting the focus from a physical building to a relational legacy. He was promising David a family line that would endure, a destiny that would ultimately lead to Jesus Christ, the everlasting King on David’s throne. God wasn’t interested in being confined to a building; He wanted to dwell in a family. He wanted a relationship with His people.
This is the incredible foundation for our faith today. You and I are the continuation of that relational legacy. The promise made to David finds its ultimate fulfillment in us, the Church. The apostle Paul drives this point home with staggering clarity. He asks the believers in Corinth, “Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you?” (1 Corinthians 6:19). This isn’t just a poetic metaphor; it’s a foundational truth. The same God who holds the universe in the span of His hand has chosen to make His home inside of you. The desire of God has shifted from a physical location to a personal relationship. You are now the place where Heaven and Earth meet.
You are a living stone, not a uniform brick
When you think of a temple, you might picture grand cathedrals or ancient structures, meticulously built with uniform bricks. But that’s not the imagery the Bible uses for us. In 1 Peter 2:5, we are called something far more dynamic and organic: “You also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house.” Think about the profound difference between a brick and a stone. Bricks are man-made, forced into a mold, all identical. Stones, however, are made by God. Each one is unique. It has a unique shape, a unique history, a unique texture, weathered by time and circumstance.
Imagine walking through the ancient cities of Europe, seeing walls and roads that have stood for centuries, built from these unique, interlocking stones. The strength of those structures lies not in their uniformity, but in how each distinct stone has been perfectly fitted together. You can’t just knock one out; its unique shape binds it to the others, creating a formidable, unshakable whole. This is the beautiful picture of the Church. God doesn’t call us to be identical bricks, all looking, sounding, and acting the same. He takes you, a living stone, and fits you together with others into a spiritual house, a place for His presence to dwell. Unity is not uniformity; it’s a beautiful harmony of different unique instruments. Together, we become something far greater than we could ever be alone—a holy temple for the Lord.
The incredible benefits of hosting God’s Presence
When we grasp the reality that we are called to host the very presence of God, it’s not just an abstract theological concept; it comes with tangible, life-altering benefits. It changes how we navigate our daily lives. When the God of the universe makes His home with you, everything changes.
First, we receive rest and relief from our burdens. Jesus’ invitation in Matthew 11:28 is not just a nice sentiment; it’s a practical reality for the one hosting His presence. “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” He offers to take our heavy yoke and give us His, which is easy and light. We see this beautifully illustrated in the story of Mary and Martha. Martha was busy, worried, and troubled about many things—all in an effort to physically host Jesus. But Mary chose the “good part”: to sit at His feet and simply be in His presence. Martha was trying to impress Jesus and Mary was busy being impressed by Jesus. Serving is good, but it should never overtake our primary calling to love the Lord. The strength to serve well flows directly from the time spent in His presence.
Second, we experience a peace that surpasses all understanding. The world is full of anxiety-inducing situations, but Philippians 4:7 promises that when we bring our requests to God through prayer, His peace will guard our hearts and minds. This doesn’t mean we’ll always understand why things are happening, but it does mean His presence acts as a garrison around our inner world, keeping us stable in the storm. We also receive direction and guidance. In a world of confusing choices, His presence brings clarity. It is the “still, small voice” that whispers, “This is the way—walk in it.” Finally, we receive comfort, companionship, and incredible inner strength. He is the Helper who walks with us through the valley of the shadow of death, and His power works within us to do “exceedingly abundantly above all that we could ask or think” (Ephesians 3:20).
How to create your own spiritual weather
So, if we are hosts of this incredible presence, how should we live? We are not called to be passive containers. We are called to be active partners with the Holy Spirit. Too often, we live like thermometers, simply reflecting the temperature of the culture and circumstances around us. If it’s a bad day, we feel bad. If things are stressful, we are stressed. But God has called us to be thermostats. We are meant to walk into a room, a situation, or a relationship and set the spiritual temperature. We are called to create a spiritual updraft.
Think about the science of wind, as explained through the geography of Cape Town, South Africa. On one side, you have the warm Indian Ocean, and on the other, the frigid Atlantic. The warm air over the Indian Ocean rises, creating a low-pressure system that pulls the cooler air from the Atlantic across the land. This constant dynamic creates a powerful, consistent wind known as the “Cape Doctor.” Jesus compares the movement of the Holy Spirit to the wind in John 3. If we can understand wind, we can understand the movement of the Holy Spirit. To create wind, you need heat. In the spiritual realm, our passion, our prayer, our worship, and our unwavering faith in God’s promises are the heat. When we intentionally generate this spiritual heat, it creates an updraft, causing the wind of the Holy Spirit to blow in and through our lives.
Another powerful analogy is a wildfire. A massive forest fire becomes so hot that it literally creates its own weather patterns. The intense heat causes a powerful updraft that sucks in oxygen from all around, feeding the flames and making the fire even more powerful. In the same way, when our hearts are set on fire for God, when our prayer life is hot, and our worship is intimate, we create a spiritual updraft that changes the very atmosphere around us. We stop being victims of our environment and start becoming agents of transformation who carry the weather of heaven wherever we go.
When praise shakes the foundations
This isn’t just a clever theory; it’s a principle demonstrated time and again in Scripture. These are stories of ordinary people who created extraordinary spiritual updrafts. They faced impossible situations, but instead of succumbing to fear, they generated spiritual heat, and God responded with power. Look at Paul and Silas in Acts 16. They had been unjustly beaten and thrown into the deepest part of a prison, their feet fastened in stocks. Their circumstances were grim. Yet, at midnight, they weren’t complaining; they were praying and singing hymns to God so loudly that the other prisoners could hear them. They were creating an updraft.
What was the result? Suddenly, a violent earthquake shook the foundations of the prison. All the doors flew open, and everyone’s chains came loose. Notice that their breakthrough didn’t just set them free; it created an opportunity for everyone to be set free. The updraft you create in your life will impact the people around you. Later, in Acts 4, the early Church faced direct threats from the authorities, who commanded them to stop speaking in the name of Jesus. They gathered together, but they didn’t pray for safety or comfort. They prayed for boldness to keep speaking the Word. They declared who God was and stood on His purposes. The result? The place where they were meeting was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God with boldness. They chose to be thermostats, and the atmosphere shifted.
Perhaps one of the most dramatic examples is that of King Jehoshaphat in 2 Chronicles 20. He was facing the combined might of three armies, a force far too great for him to defeat. After fasting and praying, he received a word from the Lord that the battle was not his. His response was radical. He didn’t put his strongest soldiers on the front line. He appointed singers to go out ahead of the army, and they weren’t singing war chants. They were singing, “Praise the Lord, for his mercy endures forever.” They were praising the beauty of God’s holiness in the face of annihilation. As they began to sing and praise, they created such a powerful spiritual updraft that the Lord set ambushes against their enemies, who turned on each other and were completely defeated. Their praise became their weapon, and their worship secured their victory.
It’s your turn to make the wind blow
You are not a victim of your circumstances. You are a victor in Christ. You are a temple of the Holy Spirit, a living stone being built into a spiritual house. You have the honor and the privilege of hosting the God of the universe. The question is, how are you hosting Him? Is your prayer life generating heat? Is your worship causing an updraft? It’s time to stop being a thermometer, passively reflecting the coldness of the world. It’s time to become a thermostat, intentionally creating spiritual updrafts through prayer, praise, and a tenacious faith that takes God at His word. The kingdom of heaven allows itself to be pressed into, to be seized by those who are passionate (Matthew 11:12). So press in. Light your heart on fire with passion for God, and watch as He uses you to change the world around you. Host His presence well, and get ready for the wind to blow.
This article is derived from a broader message. Find the entire message here.
