Longing for home...

When I was in college I spent 18 days on a backpacking trip called "Discovery". We spent the time hiking, white-water canoeing, rock climbing and rappelling, had a four day fast and “solo” experience (a “solo” is where you are by yourself for four days – it’s meant to be a time of fasting and prayer), and capped it off with a 14 mile marathon on the last day. We also carried all our food with us, which meant that we did not each very much – I lost 21 lbs in 18 days! I know, some of you who know me today doubt that I ever did that. You’ll just have to trust me…

Now while you may not believe that I actually did this, you can believe that I am a big fan of food. One of the thoughts that preoccupied my mind throughout this trip, being the good southern boy that I was, was my mom’s homemade biscuits. Everyone in my group had their “food” and sometimes in the evenings while we watched the fire and listened to our stomachs growl we would talk about them. I can remember seeing a plate of hot, homemade biscuits in my mind. Mentally I covered them with butter, jam, applesauce…it didn’t really matter. My mouth would actually water as I longed to eat them. As I thought about them I could almost taste them. The first morning I was home after the trip I awoke to the smell of those biscuits, hot out of the oven. That breakfast has to go down in history as one of my favorite meals of all time. I don’t remember how many I ate, but I had a quick start to returning to my previous weight!

So what does that have to do with anything? It reminds me of one of my favorite sections of the Bible, Revelation 21:1-5,

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away." He who was seated on the throne said, "I am making everything new!"

This passage reminds me of what it is that we are longing for, the renewal of all things – the new heaven and the new earth. The world is a terrible place, just ask CNN. But one day we will hear the voice from heaven telling us that,

“…the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

I can’t wait for that day.

This Sunday we celebrate communion at our church. Jesus said that when we eat from His table we proclaim His death (the solution to our broken world) until He comes (the promise that He will not leave things as they are). The idea is that we are longing for the renewal of all things so deeply that we can almost taste it. The table reminds us of what we long for. Keep that in mind when you taste the bread and wine. It's a longing for home.