By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a
place he would later receive as an inheritance, and he went out without
understanding where he was going. By faith he lived as a foreigner in the
promised land as though it were a foreign country…Abraham died in faith without
receiving the things promised, but he saw them in the distance and welcomed
them and acknowledged that he was a stranger and foreigner on this earth.
Hebrews 11:8, 13
I always enjoy ‘people watching,’ especially while travelling
for work or on vacation. This week I had some down time in the Tampa/St.
Pete airport and couldn’t help but feel a bit ‘different’ from the other travelers in the airport. Regardless, it was a great trip and when I
read the above passage from Hebrews, it reminded of how we are all
different from each others and 'foreigners' here on this earth.
One of my favorite stories from the Bible is Abraham leading
the exiles out of Egypt into the wilderness for years and years in the pursuit
of the promised land. (By the way, it’s also a great passage to read when
you are struggling with impatience.) Abraham never actually saw the end
destination-the promised land, but yet remained steadfast and continually
obeyed God’s command despite the years of searching and the endless complaining
and anger from the impatient exiles he was leading.
We are all here on this earth for a short time and this is
not our final destination-we are essentially strangers in a strange land living
with the promise of what’s to come in the next life-eternity with God in
heaven. It's easy to become frustrated and defeated when our needs are not met
immediately, but this world is simply not our home.
Let us not be so attached to this world's desires and
possessions that we can't move out at God's command.
No comments:
Post a Comment