Here…is the New There

“If you are a Christian, you are not a citizen of this world trying to get to heaven; you are a citizen of heaven making your way through this world.”

Congratulations! You’ve earned a free trip on American Airlines. The email looked official…so I opened it. That was the best news I had all week. Well, not really, there was a catch. I discovered that the trip I had earned was only one-way. Ok. So now the question is, “Where would I wanna go and not come back?” Of course there were limitations, but it made me think.

Nairobi, Bora-Bora, and Tibet would top my list. Kansas, North Dakota and Belgium…at the bottom. A few years ago, I had the opportunity to help engineer music projects in Burma, Azerbaijan, and one in Tunis, the capitol of the North African nation of Tunisia. At that time, it was nowhere near the hotbed of violence you see in the news. Yet still, after a couple of weeks, I was ready to come home. Being there was nice, but it sure wasn’t home.

In fact, this world is not my home. Heaven is. And yet some days, it’s the furthest thing from my mind. That seems to be considered fine in today’s society, where eternity, heaven, and hell seem to have disappeared with The Walkman, The California Raisins, and The Dancing Baby. Eternity is out, and Now is in. Just as “Fifty is the new forty,” Here…is the new there. The faith that the disciples once died for has become simply good ideas for us to become better people who make the world a better place. Author Max Lucado writes:

On a recent plane trip, I looked around at fellow passengers. I saw content people. Thanks to books, pillows, and crossword puzzles, they passed the time quite nicely. But suppose this announcement were heard: “Ladies and gentlemen, this flight is your final destination. We will never land. Your home is this plane, so enjoy the journey.” Passengers would become mutineers. We’d take over the cockpit and seek a landing strip. We wouldn’t settle for such an idea. The journey is not the destination. The vessel is not the goal. Those who are content with nothing more than Joy in the journey are settling for too little satisfaction. 

Many of us have known the pain of death, divorce, and job loss. The hurt of broken relationships, failed endeavors, and shameful choices. But what you see, is not the end of the story. Lucado continues, “In God’s narrative, life on earth is but the beginning: the 1st letter of the 1st sentence in the 1st chapter of the great story God is writing with your life” Jesus said, “In my Father’s house there are many mansions. If it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.” John 14:2 So, today my friend, “Seek those things which are above , where Christ is, at the right hand of God.” Col. 3:1 “In this world you’ll have trouble. But take courage! He has overcome the world.” John 16:33

So, if you get a blog from me in Kansas, please send a bus ticket. If the address says 777 Gold Street Rd, don’t worry…the One Way was enough.

BTW, the heavenly minded can in fact, be of more earthly good.