The journey home

[Abraham] waited for the city . . . whose builder and maker is God.    — Hebrews 11:10

Bill Bright, the founder of Campus Crusade for Christ, was diagnosed years ago with the terminal disease pulmonary fibrosis. Eventually he required prolonged bed rest. Bright used this time of quiet reflection to write a book called The Journey Home.

In his book, Bright quotes Charles Haddon Spurgeon, who said: “May we live here like strangers and make the world not a house, but an inn, in which we sup and lodge, expecting to be on our journey tomorrow.”

Struck by Spurgeon’s perspective concerning his own terminal prognosis, Bright commented: “Knowing that heaven is our real home makes it easier to pass through the tough times here on earth. I have taken comfort often in the knowledge that the perils of a journey on earth will be nothing compared to the glories of heaven.”

Abraham, the friend of God, illustrates this same other-worldly orientation: “By faith he dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country . . . for he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God” (Heb. 11:9-10). His sojourn was that of a traveling foreigner, who by faith sought an eternal city constructed by God.

Whether death is near or far away, let’s exhibit a faith that focuses on our eternal home.                — Dennis Fisher

Home from the earthly journey

Safe for eternity;

All that the Savior promised —

That is what heaven will be. — Anon.

READ: Hebrews 11:1-10

We may walk a desert pathway, but the end of the journey is the Garden of God.

The Bible in one year:

• 1 Samuel 17-18

• Luke 11:1-28