“The foxes have dens and the birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.”  Jesus in Luke 9

“My Father loves (you), and we will come and make our home with you.” Jesus in John 14

“A house is to live in, not to look at.”  Ralph L. Patrick

This year I’ve watched a house being built in the neighborhood near where my daughter lives.  It has been a long process that has taken months.  The house is now finished and it looks beautiful, at least from the outside.  As I walked past it early in the morning this past week I admired the workmanship.  But I wondered what life was like for the people who were living inside of the house.  Were they happy?  Did that beautiful house fill something in their lives that was missing?  Did it help them to navigate more effectively the daily struggles that we all have to face?

Looking at that beautiful house was a reminder for me of how we place a great deal of emphasis on external things in the hopes of satisfying or satiating desires that dwell deep within us.  Perhaps we live in elegant houses in the hope of having the security that can never be gained with such garnishments.  Perhaps we drive expensive cars in the hopes of impressing others because we are so unimpressed with ourselves. Perhaps we spend money on expensive items, be it furniture or clothes or something else in the desperate desire that have something that is of great value will make us feel more valuable, more worthy.  Perhaps we make some thing an object of love in the hope that we will find love or be loved or feel loved.

Six years ago I sold my house that I had spent ten years pouring myself into.  It was a beautiful place in the countryside of Colorado, sitting on ten acres.  I had put so much work into it remodeling and updating that old farmhouse.  I loved that place.  And sometimes I miss it and regret selling it.  But I remember why I did so—I was empty inside.  That house couldn’t fill the spiritual and emotional hole that I had inside of me.  It was a house, and a very nice one at that, but I was looking for a home.

As I think about the time and money and effort we put into purchasing and maintaining houses it occurs to me that Jesus never had a house.  He was, in the earthly sense, homeless.  He had left His home with the Father and was on a journey to return.  And until He did He made His home with others.  We frequently see Him being the guest of others in their homes.  He is not concerned about having His own home, but in making His home with others . . . with us.

That gives me pause.  There’s a huge difference between having a house and a home.  A house is to look at; A home is to live in.  A house is temporal; A home is eternal.  A house is built with human hands; A home is built with God’s hands.  A house is visible and external; a home is internal and may not be visible at all.  A house can be lost, destroyed and eventually will be vacated; but a home can never be taken from us. 

This winter I’m living in a lovely house in Allenspark, Colorado.  It’s a beautiful cabin in the mountains.  I can see Mount Meeker from it.  It isn’t mine, it belongs to someone else.  I wish it were.  But even if I owned it I realize it would be temporary.  In the words of the old Gospel Song, “I’m but a stranger here, heaven is my home.” 

Where do you live?

What is your house like?

What about your home?  Who fills you inside?