When Jesus came into Jerusalem, He got straight to work. He did not bask in the fanfare of the cheers of Hosanna from the great multitude. Instead, He went to the temple. It was time for a cleansing!

Jesus went into the temple and "cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the money changers, and the seats of them that sold doves, and said unto them, 'It is written, MY HOUSE SHALL BE CALLED THE HOUSE OF PRAYER; but ye have made it a den of thieves.'" (Matthew 21:12-13)

Reading over this passage reminded me of just how HOLY our places of worship really are. I know that we like to gather there and catch up with one another - we love to fellowship with each other. But, Jesus says here that the temple is the house of PRAYER.

When we ENTER our local places of worship, do we pray? What's the first thing that we do when we walk in? Are we looking around for our favorite seat or looking for someone that we need to do business with? It seems to me the suggestion here is that prayer should be what we are about when we enter our places of worship. And, while it may seem ridiculous to ask this next question, I'm going to do it anyway. While we are there, do we pray? Is prayer a part of your worship experience. I know that prayer happens, but the question is - do you pray? Do you pray for the preacher? Do you pray for yourself? Do you pray for your loved ones while you are in your place of worship.

Does it not make you stop and think about your actions just two days ago (presuming you attend church on Sunday)? I think we could all stand to have a bit more reverence for the things of God. So, let us all work towards that end. It's something to PRAY about!