Sojourning

 

Sojourning

Sojourn: a temporary stay

^{Hebrews 11:8 “}By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went.⁹ By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise:¹⁰ For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.”

     This indeed is a strange place.  I call my house T.L.A. or Temporary Living Accommodations.  In the Air Force, TLA housed those who were just passing through.  Like airman using the base as a skipping stone to get to their next assignment.  Hotels of sorts, they offered the comforts of home on a smaller scale.

     We are a people set in Babylon.  Even in Sodom as we shut the doors as night.  This world so interferes with our being that we look for a better place.  I remember a recent song saying this is not our home, but on the contrary, it is.

^{John 17:15 “}I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil.¹⁶ They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.”

     We don’t belong in hell. Neither do we belong in Heaven yet. We find our existence in confinement like pigs on a hill.  The smell wafts about the countryside.  We are in the mix and that’s how Jesus wants it.  Squealing and rooting for food, we are indelibly marked as members of Mankind’s herd.  Only He knows who are His.

     But pigs don’t stay there continually.  In these complexes, they are finished off.  Coming in as juveniles, feed is given until they hit a certain weight then it’s off to the processing center.  The only proof of their stay is the refuse they leave behind.

     I look about my comfortable house and know all will burn with fervent heat.  All will be consumed in a final fire after I am gone.  He says a new heavens and a new earth.  Everything that has been stained by sin will see the searing of violent flame to stop the continual weep which time could not.

     In our sojourning, what will we leave behind?  Some say a legacy.  It’s a big word for memories.  Pictures only retell some.  Influential impact is the buzz word.  As bees to flowers, have we visited others in grace?  Have we given away something we could not keep?  Certainly, His love He has freely given that we kiss, telling the affection of the Father.  As ambassadors, do we put more emphasis in self-righteous dress or are we about the Lord’s business of reconciliation?  

     I thank God I am here only for a stay.  He has bigger plans to suck me to the sky someday introducing me to all who have gone before.  He gives permanence to finally still my soul with His continual presence.  I will never be afraid, nor will I have to seek a better place.  My sojourning will stop.  Thanks Lord.