Thought for the week: God meets with us in many ways, and locations

"It was in the year King Uzziah died that I saw the Lord. He was sitting on a lofty throne, and the train of his robe filled the Temple" - Isaiah 6:1.

Uzziah had become king when he was 16 and reigned for 52 years. For much of that time the kingdom of Judah had thrived.

Uzziah had listened to the prophet Zechariah and walked in the ways of the Lord.

But later on in his reign he had become arrogant and, on one occasion, he went into the temple to burn incense, a task which only priests could perform.

Uzziah was struck down with leprosy and lived in isolation for the last years of his reign.

The death of King Uzziah after such a long reign was clearly a turning point for Isaiah. His world had suddenly changed.

One wonders what his mood was when he entered the temple. It is quite likely that he was feeling confused and insecure as the nation faced a major time of change.

But in that moment God met with him in an amazing way. Suddenly he was overwhelmed by the majesty and holiness of God, and forced to take a completely new look at his life.

God meets with us in many different ways.

He can do so when we are in a church building or a garden. He can speak to us as we read the Bible or a newspaper. He can reveal himself through a friend or a stranger.

The main question is whether we are ready to meet with him.

Celtic Christianity speaks of thin places. Places where heaven and earth seem to meet and where it can be particularly easy to experience God.

The British islands of Iona and Lindisfarne are two places that have been identified as thin places for hundreds of years.

The ways in which God might meet with us are many and various.

What matters is that we should, like Isaiah, be ready for that moment.