For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling, because when we are clothed, we will not be found naked. For while we are in this tent, we groan and are burdened, because we do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. Now the one who has fashioned us for this very purpose is God, who has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come. 2 Corinthians 5:1-5 In the Time of Grace YouVersion study on The Lord’s Prayer, the pastor likens our life on earth to camping. My husband and I both camp from camping families (see the pics above), so this analogy really resonated with me.
I happen to love camping—even tent camping. I love to be in the middle of a woods and sleep with the breeze blowing through the tent flaps. I love making smores by a campfire. I love slowing down to more fully appreciate God’s creation. Once, while camping at the Grand Canyon with our sons, my husband got up in the middle of the night to use the facilities and woke the rest of us up when he returned to the tent to share the amazing stars in the night sky with us. However, any of you who have been camping know that it’s not all bucolic bliss. Something always goes wrong. You might forget to put the chocolate bars for the smores in a cooler and they completely melt. You might end up having to pack three people into a one-person pup tent on the night you had chili for dinner. You might set up your tent on an anthill or find yourself huddled in the middle of the tent as an overnight rainstorm begins to flood the edges. You might not factor in how cold it will be sleeping in a tent in the Rocky Mountains even in the middle of summer. I could list more of our camping “groans and burdens” (in Paul’s words), but you get the idea. One of the best things about camping is that after a few days (or perhaps a day for some of you), we get to go home. Home to hot showers, reliable Wi-Fi, microwaves, and real beds. We might love camping, but eventually we all want to go home. When we pray for God’s kingdom to come in the Lord’s Prayer, we are reminded that we are not at home here on earth. Like Paul’s analogy in 2 Corinthians 5 that our human bodies are just temporary tents, let’s remember that while we live here on earth, we are just “camping” and will someday get to go live in our permanent home. I pray we would enjoy life on earth but know there will also be “groans and burdens”—and that we will only truly have peace and freedom when we are at home with God.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Pastor CathyPastor Cathy has been appointed to Tyner UMC since July 2019; she also is a part-time writing instructor at Bethel University in Mishawaka. Archives
July 2022
Categories |