Vacation Home

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We returned home from our spring break vacation today, and I got to thinking about the joy that comes from different types of vacations, as well as the joy that comes from coming home again.

We've taken vacations in the past to places like Disney World or the beach or Hawaii; places you go to be "entertained". While those vacations are relaxing and refreshing, they are also often very busy. Our days are spent going here and seeing that and doing this. There are also quite often schedules to be kept to make sure that we "get it all in". Don't get me wrong... we have a great time on those vacations, and we are not one of those families that "have" to do everything - we typically will go for a few hours in the morning, return to our hotel for lunch and a nap and maybe a dip in the pool, and then we may venture out again in the late afternoon or evening, but still taking things at our own pace. But no matter how relaxed we are with our time, there is still a "vacation agenda" that travels with us.

Other vacations are like the ones we just returned from where we take some time out to go visit family. These vacations are still very relaxing and refreshing, but they are not nearly as busy, and they don't come with a schedule that we have to keep. We may still have places to go and people to see, but more often than not, we spend most of our days just hanging out and enjoying each other's company. I didn't even wear makeup once during this whole vacation! There is a different "comfort level" that seems to accompany our "vacation with no agenda".

Of course, no matter which type of vacation we take, it is always great to come home again! It's true, I seldom feel like unpacking and getting back into our daily "to-do" lists, but at the same time, I can't wait to get to sleep in my own bed and get back to our "routine". It's great to get away, but it's always great to come home!

So what does any of this have to do with anything?! Well, it seems to me that having a relationship with Jesus Christ is kind of like having the best of all three - the "busy" vacation, the "family" vacation, and the "coming home" vacation.

In our walk with the Lord, we do have an "agenda" that we want to keep - we are striving to surrender our will to His, and be obedient to what He asks us to do; to love Him with all of our heart, all of our soul, all of our mind, and all of our strength; and to love our neighbors as ourselves - to name just a few!

We also have the pleasure of just enjoying being in the presence of the Lord with no "agenda" - He wants us to just "hang out" with Him; to talk about the events of our day, and our joys, and our struggles; to ask for His guidance and His help; and to just "be still and know that He is God" - again, to name just a few!

Of course, the ultimate "end" (or more appropriately, "beginning") to our vacation with God is when we finally get to go "home". Obviously, I haven't experienced this part of my journey yet, but I can only begin to imagine the joy that will come from getting to begin a whole new "vacation at home"! First of all, there will be no unpacking to do or "to-do" lists waiting for us! While I'm sure we will not need to be "entertained", I know that there will be more beautiful things to see than our minds can even dream up. We will be surrounded by all of the people we have loved, and all of us will be blessed to be able to "hang out" with the Lord for eternity!

Our "vacation home" kind of makes our other "vacations" pale by comparison, doesn't it? But guess what... There is no comparison! All of these vacations and comings home are all part of our ongoing journey to know the Lord more deeply - and He is "hanging out" with us at every step along the way. So while our days may be filled with routines and struggles and challenges, and our human bodies may yearn for a vacation from time to time, as long as our hearts are focused on Jesus, we can enjoy being on "vacation" every day!