https://odb.org/MY/2023/04/04/at-home-in-jesus
We keep our pet cat in a room with an ensuite bathroom. Over here in Malaysia, bedrooms with ensuite bathrooms are common, unlike in more advanced countries, where plumbing is premium and very costly. For our cat, the bathroom is a less messy place for her potty as it makes cleaning easier. Although she will want to come out of her room at every opportunity, to be with us and roam around the house – at any sign of danger, she will run back to her room, for example, if there are strangers in the house. Her room thus becomes her place of refuge, her hiding place. Not only her feeding place and where she manages her bodily functions, but really her permanent ‘home’, her safe haven.
As believers, we have given our lives to Jesus the day we accepted Him into our lives as our Lord and Saviour. As much as we already have a permanent home in heaven which we will get to go to one day, we also have a ‘permanent’ home while we are pilgrims in our temporary home here in our present earth. This earth in its current state (as opposed to the new heaven and new earth in Revelation 21) is only our temporary home, and yet we have a permanent home in Jesus. A home where, like my cat, we find refuge, a hiding place from evil, a place of comfort and joy, of peace and compassion. It is a place where we can truly be ourselves, with no pretence but only our genuine self – where all our ugly hurts, weaknesses, and vulnerabilities are exposed for our Lord to see. Instead of condemning us, Jesus comforts us and helps us to be perfected in our weaknesses. That we will be victorious in our struggles against the desires of our flesh, where we will be overcomers for Christ. The place where we will be transformed as Christ moulds us into the person He had called us to be before the foundations of the world.
Do not wander about in search of another home in our pursuit of the things of the world as we, like everyone else, are attracted by its flashy lights. The world is seductive as it is deceiving. We know it is temporal, and yet sometimes we are too engrossed in the temporary. I agree there must be a balance as we still need to live this life. A lifetime here on earth as much as it is a pilgrimage is still a lifetime in human terms. As much as we are only passing through, it is many years. But no one in heaven is accusing us of being selfish for wanting to pass through this life as comfortably as possible. It’s just that we must not neglect what is eternal and must always remember what really counts in the end so that when push comes to shove, we prioritise God and His causes, and not our own fleshy desires. If we have an excess RM500 this month, do we indulge in a new bag, shoes, or clothes, or do we help a brother in need?
Today’s message is a reminder to keep our permanent home in Jesus as we pass through this temporal home on a pilgrimage. The Lord is, after all, our Shepherd whom we will not want as He will lead us to still waters and green pastures, and give us rest, and even if He leads us through valleys of shadows of death, we will fear no evil, for His staff and rod comfort us. Ultimately, surely goodness and mercy shall follow us throughout our days as we dwell in the house of the Lord forever!
Ronnie's Thoughts 