Casandra Martin

It was a beautiful room in a great hotel. The bed was soft, the pillows were fluffy, and the amenities made everything very comfortable. I settled in for the evening, waiting for the morning flight that would take me home.

Wrapping a warm blanket around my shoulders, I looked around the room and admired its features. Much thought and planning had gone into making this a comfortable space. There were clean linens, a wide work space, and a television with more channels than I could count. There was a little refrigerator in case I wanted a cold beverage, bedside reading lamps for finishing the novel I had started, and a luxurious bathroom designed for pampering.

There was only one problem. It wasn’t home.

Looking around the room, I appreciated its beauty and comfort, but didn’t even think about settling in for the rest of my life. This was a temporary home. A place to lay my head and dream about where I really belonged. It was a stop on my journey – a journey that was propelling me toward open arms, wide smiles, deep love, high fives, and inexpressible joy. I got up in the morning, glad for the good night’s rest, but ready to move on. I packed my bag, saying goodbye to maid service, stacks of pillows, and the perfectly coordinated, professionally pulled-together room in order to travel to the place where my heart can truly rest.

I am thankful for home. I am also thankful for the lessons of the hotel room. It reminded me not to get too comfortable here in this world. This is a temporary home. A place to enjoy and appreciate, but that is meant to open our eyes to our real home. Our souls were never meant to settle here. Our hearts were meant to stretch homeward – to a place where we are deeply loved, intimately known, and graciously received.

My Jesus Resolution today is to remember what is temporary and what is permanent. If I can’t take it home with me, then it deserves hotel room status. Useful, enjoyable, but temporary. I tend to invest way too much of myself in the things that will be left behind at the end of my stay. I am going to let home realign my priorities and redefine my possibilities. Today I am going to look around with the eyes of a traveler – thankful for the blessings that are mine today, but always with an eye on the journey that is taking me home.