From time to time I get really homesick. This past few weeks has been one of those times. I’m so homesick I can barely function. You see I grew up in small town Southern Oregon, where men are men, women are women, and no one has had surgery to change that. Kids play in the street, keys are left in the ignition, and life moves at a slower pace. It’s my preferred mode of doing life.
A couple of times a year I get so homesick I have to make a trip home. I need the air in my lungs and the sound of the river in my ears. This weekend my wife and I are going home and I’m truly excited! It’s like my aunt said to me last night when I called to make arrangements to stay with her, she said, “Joshua, you can take the boy out of the country, but you can’t take the country out of the boy.” She’s absolutely right. But, as I’ve been thinking about home I’m reminded of how temporary this life is.
Over the years, as I’ve watched several of my friends die, I’ve begun to realize that in reality I have no home on this planet. If I had my choice, I’d pack up my family and move back to my hometown (and trust me, I’m seriously considering it), but even then I wouldn’t truly be home. Home is where Christ is and I won’t ever be able to find true peace until I arrive in heaven. I wish I could long of heaven like I long for my hometown. I don’t because I’ve never been there. I have no roots in heaven; I have no memories of moon pies, sweet tea, or shooting out streetlights. There are no familiar sights or sounds.
They say home is where the heart is, and that worries me a bit. Why? Because my heart has yet to long for heaven.
2 comments:
Hmm... Have you ever thought about the elements of Eschatology that would imply that we're not really "going somewhere" but rather, bringing God's redemption here. And that when Jesus returns, he'll setup a "new heaven" and a "new earth"?
Perhaps the questions is: What does that mean? Does that mean he'll do what Aslan did at the end of the Chronicles of Narnia, or something different?
Bro,
Heaven is coming to earth! Adam & Eve were made for the earth. A restored earth under the full leadership of Jesus is what we long for. Its a cultural misnomer to say I "long for heaven." We long for Jesus. The Apostles and early church longed for his return, not necessarily to go to heaven and float on a cloud.
Having said all of that, I know exactly what you mean...it often feels like I love what I see more than what I do not see! Oh, the tension of sanctification! But keep pressing in to Jesus.
Remember a Lover will always outlast a worker. Love Him Greatly!
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