Traveling

Home Sweet Home!

/ pastorpete51 / 5 Comments

I sincerely thank God for the privilege and ability of being able to complete such a long road trip as the one we returned from last night. Over the last 3 weeks, Nancy and I travelled through 17 states (not counting our home state of Florida). These are just a few random photos from our 5,500-mile jaunt. While away, we visited all 7 of our grandchildren, both our sons and their wives as well as many close friends. We were also able to stay in the beautiful small town of West Plains, Missouri, which is close to the village where we were married 50 years ago. It was really neat going to the old church, which is now Immanuel Southern Baptist of Pomona Missouri, and worship with those lovely people. While we sang the old hymns, I noticed that they are still using the piano on which Nancy played on the worship team before we were married! Now that we are home, we have to mow the lawn, go shopping, pick up the mail, wash the car and reconnect with our local friends and neighbors. But as I was resting and rejoicing in being, “Home Seet Home” I remembered that while He was here on this planet, that Jesus rarely had any such privilege. In fact, while responding to an eager listener who said he wanted to follow Him, Jesus said, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.” Matthew 8:20 NKJV

Then it hit me that after I had unpacked all my thing and settled in, that I would still not really be home, because as a Christian our only true home is with Jesus. As the Apostle Paul once said, “So we are always confident, knowing that while we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord.” 2 Corinthians 5:6 NKJV. But God does have a home prepared for each of us who by faith have followed Jesus and given our lives to Him. No matter where you call home today, whether things are going well or terrible, whether we are loved and accepted or rejected and unloved, Jesus has a home for us in Himself and we can have great and unmeasurable peace as we unpack our spiritual bags, come home to Him and find rest in Him alone! Some on Home! Jesus has left the lights on for us!

Are We There Yet Dad?

/ pastorpete51 / 6 Comments

Be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” So we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?” Hebrews 13:5b-6 ESV

When our two boys were about four and six years old, my wife and I decided to travel cross country to stay with some friends, while enjoying a bit of camping along the way. “Okay guys we are going to Missouri.” I explained to the boys. “We will be traveling for three days and will be sleeping in our tents for two nights along the way. Don’t worry about when we get there, just enjoy the ride, play games and don’t fight! “I told them enthusiastically.

The next morning with our little car packed to the max, we headed down the highway. I felt confident we were well prepared for our first big family road trip until about twenty minutes down the highway when our older son tapped me on the shoulder and asked.  Hey Dad. Are we there yet?” I can’t remember if I laughed or cried, but either way I saw that, despite my best efforts, I had not communicated very well with our boys about the road ahead. I am sure many of you have experienced this same scenario and have discovered that whether we laugh, pull our hair out or try repeating our explanations, our kids aren’t satisfied with details. What they really want is a regular assurance that everything is okay – every mile along the way. It is the same with us as we travel the Christian life with God. But the wonderful difference between God and me is that He didn’t just give us an explanation of the road map; He promised to stay with us and guide us every mile along the way!