Going Home
Summer is in full swing, with changes in routines as students are out of school or on a new schedule with summer school. Weekends may include short getaways or trips to reunions, weddings, or other events that take place this time of year. With travel, out-of-town guests, and special events in our own community, the “lazy days of summer” are moving along at a pretty brisk pace. For those of us who moved to this area from another location, a trip back home is often part of our summer travel plans, as we visit relatives and get together with old friends.
As Jesus began his ministry he went out into the countryside, to small fishing villages and little farm towns. People had lived there for generations, and many worked at the same occupations as their fathers before them. This was the way of life they had always known, and here they had a sense of community and belonging. It was home. Why would anyone want to leave?
But this itinerant preacher, a young man from Nazareth and the son of a carpenter, came along and stirred up these quiet, peaceful places. He invited young men to leave their homes, their families and their work to join him traveling throughout the countryside, teaching, preaching, and healing. He taught them the new concept of a God who offered forgiveness and a loving relationship, and gave them the confidence to preach and teach this good news to others.
These disciples, and many early Christians, left the safety and security of what they knew, and the only homes they probably ever had, because the power of this message was far greater than the comfortable and safe environments in which they lived. They gave themselves wholeheartedly to spreading the gospel as far and wide as they were able, with the faith that their listeners would be inspired to carry it even farther.
A scribe approached and said, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” (Matthew 8:19-20)
This short account from the Gospel of Matthew occurs fairly early in our Lord’s ministry. It sounds as though this man seeking to follow Jesus is being given a warning, letting him know there would be sacrifice and hardship ahead. It also sounds a little sad to most of us — God’s own son was homeless! But let’s remember how Jesus reminds us not to worry, that God will provide for our needs, and we are to turn our energies to serving him and others. So Christ made his home in the company of his disciples and the hearts of his followers, and we are all blessed to be invited to share our hearts and homes with him.
Your friend in Christ,
Mary Rogers