This last week my family and I were on vacation with some friends. While we had a great time and enjoyed spending time with our friends, we were very thankful to finally get back home. The fellowship was great, the food was good, and the memories will last a lifetime, but as the old saying goes, “There’s no place like home.”

Many of you have probably had the same thought as you came home after being away for several days. While you enjoyed your trip, you were thankful to get back home to the place you belong. The apostle Paul felt the same, but his feelings were not about a physical location here on earth. His feelings were about being at home with the Lord (2 Cor. 5:8). When writing to the Christians at Philippi, he said, “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better” (Phil. 2:21-23).  The way many of us feel about returning home after a long trip is the way Paul felt about being away from the Lord. He wanted to be with Jesus more than anything.

Friends, it’s nice that we have a strong desire to return home after being away. Just don’t forget, “This world is not our home, we are just a passing through. Our treasures are laid up, somewhere beyond the blue.” My prayer is that we are a people who long to be back home with the Lord where we truly belong.