Home part 4
There's no place like home. And that's because home is where your heart is. Home is where your family is. I often find myself thinking of the cross, and my biggest takeaway is always the truth that Jesus' arms were spread wide. He wasn't on the cross condemning people. He was on the cross forgiving people. "Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do..." (Luke 23:34). He wasn't sending us away--to "hell" or anywhere else--He was bringing us close. "And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me" (John 12:32). Let me say it another way: "To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation" (2 Corinthians 5:19). My point is... His arms were spread wide in a loving embrace. He drew us all into Himself, and He planted Himself in us all. He got rid of any separation between God and man. And He did it by God taking up abode IN man. We live in Him because He lives in us. Home is not a building. Just as the church is not a building. WE are the church. Home is where your heart is. And YOUR heart is really GOD'S heart beating with love in YOUR chest. Before the cross, before the circumcision made without hands cut away the flesh of human effort, we did the best we could with what we had in order to get what we wanted. But the problem was... just when we thought we could reach the carrot, the stick moved. There was always "one thing we lacked." And that thing was the Holy Spirit. The Spirit of truth that leads and guides us into all truth. The ultimate truth of the universe that goes like this, "The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand" (John 3:35). I'll say it one more time today. Home is where your heart is. As long as you're looking for love in all the wrong places... trying to earn something that can't be earned... you'll never feel settled. You'll never feel accepted. Family is forever. They HAVE to accept you. So I guess what I'm trying to say is, like the prodigal son, it's never too late to go home. And like the Love Slave, when you find that place where you belong, stand firm. Just because you CAN leave doesn't mean you SHOULD. And it doesn't mean you HAVE TO. Freedom works two ways: You can be free FROM things, and you can be free TO things. Free FROM the bondage of sin and death. Free TO live a life of love. One of my favorite songs (about heartbreak) has a line that says, "If it's true home is where the heart is, I guess now I'm homeless." And I think that's how a lot of people feel. Either running around like chickens with our heads cut off trying to find something, or wandering around despondently after having given up on what we want most--love and acceptance. We don't seem to understand that love is found at the source. Love is found within. We love, because He FIRST loved us. You can't get it from anywhere else. And I'm not saying it doesn't come in all shapes and sizes, sometimes from the most unexpected people. It does. I'm simply saying, you can't earn a free gift. All you can do is receive it and release it. Know it and believe it. Give it away. Share it. And in that way, experience it. Jesus embraced us. We ought to embrace each other. Instead of trying to FIND a home... BE a home!