During the past two months, I wonder if we have learned to be content at home. Consider this: “Go Home” was the first message from the risen Jesus to his disciples. It was given to the women, who were the first to hear the earth-shattering news of the resurrection:
The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.”
Matthew 28:5-7
Why Galilee? This was home for most if not all of the disciples. “Go home. And stay home. And wait.” It strikes me today that this might have seemed rather like a step backward for the disciples, or at least mundane. They had been on the go for three years–could they be content at home?
“Wait a second. Jesus rises from the dead, and we just have to go hang out at home?”
Perhaps there’s more to it that this, but maybe it’s rather simple: What if home is where Jesus most often wants to meet us? Not out the wide, exciting world, but in the familiar and the mundane. The outside world is a place of activity; home is a place of intimacy.
What if stay-at-home orders and self-quarantine are a gift? What if going home and being content at home are steps towards growing deeper in Jesus?
Rather than feeling restless today, let your heart be content at home. Watch for Jesus to show up.
This article originally appeared here, and is used by permission.
