SCRIPTURE:
14 For this world is not our permanent home; we are looking forward to a home yet to come.
Hebrews 13:14
OBSERVATION:
When you go on a trip––whether for work or for fun––chances are you’ve stayed in a hotel. To that hotel, you bring a suitcase filled with just enough clothes, supplies, and essentials you need for your stay. And if that stay is short, you probably don’t unpack your suitcase, opting to live out of your bag during your stay. This is how we are to treat our time on Earth: not as our home, but as a hotel stay.
As the author writes, “for this world is not our permanent home; we are looking forward to a home yet to come.” Yes, we are here for a moment, but our permanent home is heaven. As Paul writes in Philippians 3:20-21 NIV, “20 But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21 who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.” On Earth, we are not settlers planning to remain; we are sojourners just passing through. And as it is written in 1 Chronicles 29:15 NLT, “15 We are here for only a moment, visitors and strangers in the land as our ancestors were before us. Our days on earth are like a passing shadow, gone so soon without a trace.” Your 80 years on Earth may seem long, but it is just a miniscule fragment when compared to the length of eternity.
APPLICATION:
Wherever you’re reading this from, imagine with me a string that originates from your screen. From this screen, imagine that string stretching out from your screen through the nearest door you can see, then out across the horizon, wrapping completely around the earth, shooting out to the moon, past Pluto, farther than the outskirts of our Milky Way galaxy out into the dark abyss we call the universe, never terminating on the other end. This is the timeline of your life. And the length of your time here on earth? Not even a fraction of the width of your screen. Yet, despite how infinitesimally microscopic our time here on Earth is, so many of us fall into the trap of living for our 80 years on earth, rather than living for eternity. And if we fail to live for eternity, we are wasting our time on Earth.
Carrie Underwood had it right when she said “This is my temporary home. It's not where I belong. Windows in rooms that I'm passing' through. This is just a stop, on the way to where I'm going. I'm not afraid because I know this is my temporary home.” Earth is not a home; it’s a hotel. So treat it as one. Live with your bags packed, ready to go. Travel lightly. Don’t carry extra baggage, don’t hoard extra supplies, and don’t invest in your stay because you’ll be moving on soon. And most importantly, make sure your boarding pass has the right destination on it. For when your hotel stay is over, there’s only two places you can fly to: heaven or hell. And your ticket is a one-way ticket.
Be absolutely certain that you––and those around you––are heaven bound. It’s not worth jeopardizing heaven for a few short decades of debauchery, pleasure, and “fun” at the hotel. Invest in your permanent home, live with the end in mind, and make sure you’re going there alone. For the greatest thing we could do with our 80 short years on Earth is invest in our never-ending eternity in Heaven.
PRAYER:
God,
Thank You for the gifts of life on earth and eternity in Heaven. I realize today that my time here on Earth is but a short hotel stay. This is my temporary home. My permanent home is in heaven with You forever. So help me to make the most of my hotel stay. During my time on Earth, I will invest fully in eternity––worshipping You, sharing Your word, and bringing others with me. So help me Lord. Use me for Your glory so that thousands, if not millions more, may come to know You as Lord and Savior, forever expanding eternity, our permanent home. I love You, Lord. Thank You for loving me.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen
