Posts Tagged: home

“Thoughts Before Going Home”

On February 25, 2019 by Dteb With 0 Comments - down to earth believer


Monday, February 25, 2019

Our time is coming to an end soon here in Florida.  My goal is to enjoy the last few days we have here.  I’ve had a really wonderful time.  The warmth and sunshine have been delicious.  So has the food.  Long walks on the beach, miniature golf, the flowers, and seagulls—all wonderful!  And, of course, being with my sweetheart, my wife, has been a great treat.

However, it will be good to be home, too.  To attend my 12-step meetings, to teach Hebrew, to take care of my strawberries and our garden, to mow the grass, to simplify our house, to attend our church, to experience the beginning of spring again—all wonderful!

Our time on earth will also end soon.  We need to enjoy it, to cherish it, to take good care of the earth, of one another, of ourselves.  But soon, we’ll be going home.

Paul reminds the Philippians that their real citizenship is in Heaven. (Philippians 3:20)  Why did he need to remind them?  Because they, like all of us, were prone to forget.

C.S. Lewis says that God gives us some nice inns along the way, but he never lets us mistake them for home.

The Greco-Roman philosopher Epictetus says something similar.

“Consider when, on a voyage, your ship is anchored; if you go on shore to get water you may along the way amuse yourself with picking up a shellfish, or an onion. However, your thoughts and continual attention ought to be bent towards the ship, waiting for the captain to call on board; you must then immediately leave all these things, otherwise you will be thrown into the ship, bound neck and feet like a sheep.

So it is with life. If, instead of an onion or a shellfish, you are given a wife or child, that is fine. But if the captain calls, you must run to the ship, leaving them, and regarding none of them. But, if you are old, never go far from the ship: lest, when you are called, you should be unable to come in time.”

Enjoy life, wherever you are, but don’t miss the boat!

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“HOME”

On October 15, 2017 by Dteb With 0 Comments - down to earth believer

“We shall not cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.”  (T.S. Eliot, “Little Gidding”.)

“Our Father refreshes us on the journey with some pleasant inns, but will not encourage us to mistake them for home.”  (C.S. Lewis, The Problem of Pain.)

It will be time to go “home” in a few days.

Did you notice that the word “home” is in parentheses?  That’s because “home” isn’t . . . home, that is.  Perhaps, I should explain.

I believe that this planet, as nice as it is, is not my home.  Arizona is incredibly lovely, but it is not home.  Neither is any place I’ve ever lived before.  Neither is the place where I now live.  I do believe that where we are right now is important.  I just believe that it isn’t home.

I believe that God willed you and me to be here.  Were there natural processes involved?  Absolutely!  But I believe that within and beyond these natural processes there is a God who willed each of us into existence.

Even when I was very little, I felt that I was an accident.  Later, I would learn that my mom and dad were in their middle forties when I came to be.  It had been ten years since my sister had been born.  When I realized the implications of that, I knew why I had felt that I was an accident: I was!  This is part of my feeling of being homeless.

But the truth is this: I am indeed homeless!  So are you.  So is everyone on this planet.

I don’t enjoy a lot of “country gospel music.”  However, one song that I do appreciate has the lyrics, “This world is not my home; I’m just a passin’ through.”

Yes!

When we stand before God, I do not think he will say, “Welcome to Heaven!”  I think God will say, “Welcome home, my child!”

So, what is to be my response to wherever I am, whatever I’m doing, whatever I’m going through?  I need to remember that this is a wonderful vacation, a pilgrimage, and a quest all wrapped up into one not-so-neat package.  God has called me to travel with Him, to trust Him, and to be kind and helpful to others.  But all the while, I need to remember that this is not my home, no matter what “this” I am referring to.

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