And all these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth…Instead, they were longing for a better country–a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them. Hebrews 11:13, 16
This is the time of the Race when everyone is thinking and talking about the future. Being back in America it is easy to have an attitude of want instead of one of contentment. We all have dreams for our future. I will be the first to tell you that I love settings goals and achieving those goals. I don’t think these are bad things. I believe that we have been called to excellence (see Col. 3:23). What happens when we don’t get what we want though? When hopes are shattered and dreams crushed? Is that the moment that we throw in the towel and lose our faith? I know it is tempting. It can be easy to be weighed down by the troubles of this world, to question what is good in this world, this life. I have seen so much hurt this year. But I have also seen so much life. As I read in Hebrews about the people of great faith, I am reminded to keep an eternal perspective. This is not my home. There is not one country where I belong.
In fact, the other day I was sitting with a group of my squadmates and I suddenly got a feeling that I didn’t belong. It wasn’t anything they were doing to make me feel this way, but rather a realization that this journey is coming to an end and even though this group will always be like family to me, we won’t always be together and our lives are about to go in 23 wildly different directions. At this same moment I also thought about going home and how I am unsure if I will belong there either. I have a year of experiences that few can fully understand. I have never been more excited to see my family and friends but there is uncertainty when coming home after almost a year. I began to wonder, where do I belong? If not with these people and not with the people at home, then where? Then as if almost interrupting my thoughts I heard God say ‘you will always belong with me.’ A calming reassurance that no matter where I go or who I am with, I will always belong.
He has prepared a place for me. It is better than any country I could visit here on earth and better than anything I could imagine. It is a heavenly country and an eternal home. Life eternal with Christ is better than all things, all relationships–everything we have here on earth. As I get ready to leave the Race, my prayer is that I would always keep this eternal perspective, even through the hard.
These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what they had been promised. God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect. Hebrews 11:39-40
