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My first memory of being homesick occurred when I was in the Boy Scouts back in the early 70s. Our troop spent a week on a campout in the middle of nowhere. It was my first time away from home.
One evening, my mother came to visit for a special parents night. After supper, I asked her if I could go home. She said no. I’ll never forget the song playing in the background on someone’s radio, while I sulked.
The song “I’m Not In Love,” by 10cc was on and in the chorus the back-up singer sang, “Big boys don’t cry” over and over. So I sucked it up that night and made it through the rest of the week.
Homesickness doesn’t end when we enter adulthood or our senior years. With all that is going on in our world like looting, murder, hatred, racism, the Coronavirus, and economic collapse, we long for the day when Christ comes back to right the wrongs that man keeps creating.
We want folks to have the hope we have. Eternal life. However, manipulating a person to come to Christ so they can experience what we have is not the answer.
What Oswald Chambers said 85 years ago speaks from the grave,
“You can never give another person that which you have found, but you can make him homesick for what you have.”
Singer/songwriter Amy Grant spoke exclusively with sister Dominic Rasmussen. Amy made some striking comments. During that two-part interview she said, “It’s funny that being married to Vince has given me the gift of having to own my own spiritual journey and to share it openly with him without manipulation. So many times you can want something for somebody. I want you to like the music I like. I want you to want the things I want, but every one of us is unique.”
Since each of us are unique and different, I believe God speaks differently to everyone. Some Christians believe God only speaks during a 30-minute sermon at church. I never tire of reading how author Philip Yancey came to God. Classical music, nature, and the romance with the woman who became his wife.
How can we manipulate a person to believe what we believe when it’s the Holy Spirit’s job to speak, to lead, and to convict. That could never be my job, or yours. Our job is to pray, to ask, and to seek.
The beauty of the ugly part of human nature we are witnessing today on the news or in our hometown is we know in our soul there’s something more.
Paul said, “Yes, we are fully confident, and we would rather be away from these earthly bodies, for then we will be at home with the Lord.” (2 Corinthians 5:8, NLT)
Why not come home to God like the prodigal son came home to his father. He’s homesick for you.
music video: “I Can Only Imagine” Mercy Me
Amy Grant and sister Dominic Rasmussen’s conversation can be viewed at:
This devotional is loaded with TRUTH ! Amazing devotional and an excellent song with video at the end. And yes, I get very Homesick at times.