Seventh Advent Reading…the Son of Man has no where to lay his head.
Matthew 8:20b
Having a place to live should be one of those inalienable “rights” for everyone and yet the homeless rate continues to rise. Growing up I took “home” for granted, the front door always opened to the familiar and I felt safe. Now in the past five years I’ve lived in six homes. Barely did I become familiar with my surroundings but the boxes were packed and a new home was becoming “familiar.”
There are many who have lived for years in the same home. They have found safety in a shared community of church friends, local schools and volunteer organizations. Feelings of unfamiliarity aren’t familiar. For those individuals this verse will be unsettling.
But our waiting for Jesus this Advent season means that if we are committed to following him we’ll also become aware that his arrival will mean living with uncertainty and unfamiliarity. Setting up house wasn’t on Jesus’ ministry agenda. His focus was bringing the kingdom of heaven to a world that had lost its place.
I am reminded of this when I moan about not living in a home for any longer than seven years. Alas, answering the call of Jesus on my life has meant that I had to put aside all that I considered familiar, certain, secure. The flip side is that my safest “home” is now with Jesus and together we’re on the move!
Jesus, thank you for being “home” for me.
When uncertainty and fear
grip me I feel the pull
of your hand and I’m
on the road again with you.
When uncertainty and fear
grip me I feel the pull
of your hand and I’m
on the road again with you.
Amen.
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