You’ll never guess what the number one
bar song in Germany is. Hum the first
few notes, and any German can pick out the next line. I’m sure John Denver, when he penned the
immortal words, “Almost heaven, West Virginia”, never guessed the legacy he
would leave in the Fatherland, strains of “Blue Ridge Mountains, Shenandoah
River” in heavily accented German spilling onto the late Friday night streets
as patrons come and go out of karaoke bars.
“Take me home, country roads, to the
place I belong.”
Perhaps the secret of
the song’s popularity is its ability to strike a universal chord in every one
of us. As technology has grown and the
world has not, people move, families are separated, and a rapidly growing
number of us long to know where exactly ‘home' is. If finding it is as simple as following a
country road, we would be grateful.
We
like to weave sentiment around the idea of home. We dress it in
nostalgia and speak of it in hallowed tones.
It’s where we belong. Where
everybody knows our name. Where we
imagine people will love us no matter how we behave; where we are treasured for
ourselves and not for what we have or do.
It’s the origin of home cooking and homesickness. Home is sweeter than anywhere else in the
world.
Or so people say. The problem is that many haven’t ever actually experienced a sweet home. Perhaps it was a place you were taunted. Or ignored.
Or abused. Maybe it was as far
from a safe place as you can get. Maybe
home is somewhere you’d rather just forget altogether.
Whether the home you know is a sweet or
bitter place (or a little bit of both), the fact remains that all of us long
for the legend of 'home'. We want to
live somewhere we are accepted. Where
people treat us kindly, forgive our mistakes, and bake our favorite
treats. We yearn to be greeted at the
door with smiles, an enthusiastic, “Hey!
Look who’s here!” and heartfelt hugs.
We wish for security and for unconditional love. We want to be Family.
If you had the power to create 'home'
how would you do it?
Who would you
invite into the family? How could you
guarantee that those who lived there would continue to uphold your vision of a 'home sweet home'?
It’s a tricky venture. You would certainly invite the ones you
love to be there. But, what if some of
them didn’t come? Or didn't want to come? What if they
preferred someone else’s home over yours?
Could you force them to live with you?
Would you want to?
In order to ensure your
home would remain a place of refuge, safe, full of warmth and healing, a place where each member was treasured and celebrated by the others, you would have to set some guidelines. In a perfect scenario, you would include those who:
- Legitimately loved you and all the other members of the family
- Wanted to live there
- Valued you and the other family members
- Willingly agreed to abide by some sort of system which enabled the family to not merely get along, but to thrive
Anyone refusing to love a member of the
family or unwilling to agree to these basic principles would put the very
notion of 'home' at risk. Its safety would be dependent on the commitment of every member to make such a home a reality.
Could such a perfect home exist?
If so, it would certainly feel like heaven...
Just imagine-what if someone came before you and thought of everything you truly wanted? What if He built this home and what if it was your home? A home where you never felt awkward or out of place or forgotten... where no one questioned your worth or your position. A place you were safe and loved and known. A place where you belonged.
If so, it would certainly feel like heaven...
Just imagine-what if someone came before you and thought of everything you truly wanted? What if He built this home and what if it was your home? A home where you never felt awkward or out of place or forgotten... where no one questioned your worth or your position. A place you were safe and loved and known. A place where you belonged.
What would you do to
get there?
Notice that toleration, mutual
respect, or equality don’t make the list above. If those qualities were all one needed to
create a perfect society, communism would have enjoyed more success than it
did. The difference is love.
Love cannot be forced. If it is not offered willingly, it is not
love. If it is not authentic, it is
worthless.
This is why mere religion is not worth
the effort. For years, people have tried
to create heaven on earth by imposing their interpretation of holy living on
others. When faith becomes focused on a
code of conduct for the sake of that code and not for the beautiful impact it
has on the lives of others, it ceases to be faith; it has become a habit (and
probably an annoying one at that).
This home and how to get there is the basis of Ahavi’s story. In fact, it's almost heaven and though country roads may not lead you
there, it's the place you belong. You'll see...
"If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world." -C.S. Lewis
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