Simeon and Anna’s Secret Guide to the Good Life

I want to be where God is.

I’d read the story of Mary and Joseph took baby Jesus to the temple to dedicate him (Luke 2:22-40) a gazillion times. I knew about SImeon, who recognized Jesus as the Messiah he’d waited for, and could die happy. And I knew his female counterpart, Anna, the widow who hadn’t left the temple for almost a lifetime. But this time as I read, one thing really hit me: Simeon and Anna wanted to be where God was.

I want to be where God is.

I’d read the story of Mary and Joseph took baby Jesus to the temple to dedicate him (Luke 2:22-40) a gazillion times. I knew about SImeon, who recognized Jesus as the Messiah he’d waited for, and could die happy. And I knew his female counterpart, Anna, the widow who hadn’t left the temple for almost a lifetime. But this time as I read, one thing really hit me: Simeon and Anna wanted to be where God was.

In those days, God took up residence in the temple.  Of course, He still filled the universe, but he chose to give His people a place to come and interact with Him. If you wanted to be where God was, you went to the temple. So that’s what Anna and Simeon did.

Simeon wanted to be where God was. He’d spent his life praying and worshipping, knowing God and living out His priorities. Because he was faithful and righteous, constantly seeking God’s restoration of His people, God would give him a special honor.  The Spirit had told him he’d see the Messiah before he died, and he’d waited a long time.

Anna wanted to be where God was so much that she didn’t even bother leaving the temple. When her husband died, she moved in and never left. She spent her life worshipping, praying, fasting, prophesying in God’s house. Wherever God was, she wanted to be. Her whole world was within those temple walls, yet she experienced more than a thousand adventurers.

As a blessing to these faithful two, God brought the show to them. Like all righteous Jews of the day, Joseph and Mary went to the temple when it was time to present their new baby to God.  Simeon and Anna were there to meet Him.

Simeon waited in the presence of the Lord. Anna never left her post. They stayed with God, and He unveiled His world to them. They stuck to His side, and He brought them what He wanted to show them: His Son.

Nowadays, every person who has accepted Christ has the Holy Spirit in them. We no longer need to go to a temple. Now, as Paul writes to the church in Corinth, "you are God’s temple…God’s Spirit lives in you," (I Cor 3:16b).

Still, even though we are the temple, we can avoid God and do our own thing. It’s a lot easier to live in God’s presence than it use to be, but we still have to choose to do so. That was Simeon and Anna’s Secret to the Good Life: they realized they weren’t missing anything. They didn’t sacrifice happy, significant, adventuresome lives to hole up in God’s presence. They chose to live in God’s presence, and the joy, significance, adventure began. They weren’t missing anything–everybody else was. Psalm 27:4 sums up the secret well: [bible]Psalm 27:4[/bible].
When we feel like we have to give up the "good stuff" because we’re obligated to follow God, we’re not going to want to be where He is. But when we remember God’s beauty and His worthiness, the desire to be in His presence more outweighs the attraction of doing our own thing. 

I want to be like Simeon, who was about God’s priorities and work, who prayed the prayers God wanted to answer. I want to be like Anna, abiding with my God, choosing to see and experience what He brings into my life, rather than wandering out on an adventure of my own making. I want remember who God is, and I want to want to be where He is. That’s a good life.