I had the most wonderful dream while in Nepal last September. It was like a kiss from heaven.
In the dream, I was in Gainesville, Georgia and an older male mentor greeted me with a great big bear hug and said “Welcome Home”. It was a warm cozy feeling and I awoke with such peace. I began asking Jesus what this could mean?
Well, time has passed since, and this season, as I am deciding on where to plant, the Lord has been reminding me of this dream yet again.
I’ve been to so many different places and I long of going to so many more. And where I’m at doesn’t quite feel as permanent as I have dreams and aspirations of my own. The ground feels a little shaky and I have wrestled with the idea of home and where I want to be ‘planted’.
And I’m reminded of this dream time and time again.
This past week, while in Gainesville, I shared this dream with a friend and she asked if maybe the man represented the Father. I have thought about it before, but it did speak to me differently this time. Woah.
My next stop, Myrtle Beach, I’ve gotten to spend some time with former coaches and dear friends. I talked to them about my decisions and trying to decide on a place to make my home.
Their response was comforting as the emphasized its not so much about the place.
So many people in the Bible moved around. They moved to a new place because God led them to do so. Why not live my life with open hands? But with a humility to embrace the here and now as well?
I don’t want to idolize a location or think that a certain ‘place’ is the place that is my home.
Rather, what if the invitation is not so much for a place as it is for a choosing to be embraced by the Father and allow him to be my rest, my safety, and my home. When I think about it like that, all the pressure, angst, restlessness, and doom and gloom of being ‘stuck’ somewhere suddenly melts away as I realize I am within the will of my Father. I am in the middle of a big warm bear hug.
God is my home. The Lord is my place of shelter and He is the one welcoming me and us with open arms always saying, ‘Welcome Home’.
