Where I call home

“Foxes have dens and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of man has no place to lay His head.” - Matthew 8:20

Our first in-house Bible study!

I live in a great house. Though primitive by American standards, in my neighborhood I am quite rich. I have a shower head in the bathroom, a gas range in the kitchen, and a floor mat to sleep on.

Every morning I step onto the porch and am greeted by the most beautiful island view. The cracks between the floor boards mean there is no need for a dustpan when I sweep. Having a dining room and living area without walls make it easy to toss banana peels and mango pits over the porch railing.

Sometimes, when the termite dust and ant trails through our bedroom seem never-ending, when stray dogs and cats manage to make their way into our house following the scent of last night’s dinner, when the neighborhood water line is turned off in the middle of your cold shower, you might long for the comforts of an American home. But only for a moment, because secretly, you love being inconvenienced and having to learn new ways to live. You love being in solidarity with those whom you previously labeled as “less privileged” than yourself. You love understanding a little more clearly through lived experience what Jesus meant when He said He had no place to lay His head. 

The earth is passing away, and so we live not for this world but for the next. Let us not make our houses abound with such pleasure and comfort that we will be loathe to leave them when Jesus finally calls us home.