06/12/2025
Read a sad message about
a church I love,
had to say to myself again,
“This is not my final home.”
Family brokenness and division
tears at the heart,
had to reach out for this truth,
“This is not my final home.”
Temptation seems to be around
every corner,
need to pause and consider,
“This is not my final home.”
Another trusted leader crashes
and burns,
had to remind myself,
“This is not my final home.”
Watching culture’s decent
into insanity,
comfort myself with one thing,
“This is not my final home.”
See faithfulness give way
to compromise,
I say with those who’ve gone before me,
“This is not my final home.”
The presence and power of remaining sin
exposed again,
had to reflect on my destiny,
“This is not my final home.”
Weariness with the struggle gives way
to eternity’s longing,
rejoicing another time that,
“This is not my final home.”
Creation all around seems to groan
under the curse’s pain,
no hope without knowing,
“This is not my final home.”
When evil seems to prosper
and good suffers,
I cannot let myself forget,
“This is not my final home.”
When the war for the heart
seems unrelenting,
my strength is found in remembering,
“This is not my final home.”
When the world offers nothing
that gives life,
I look up and remember,
“This is not my final home.”
The bright promise at the heart of
the gospel of Jesus,
in him my future is secured,
“This is not my final home.”
Every human being will only ever find one place of rest, one location of final fulfillment. There and there alone will the journey end, the war be over, and our hearts be given the rest they always wanted but never fully had.
We will no longer be haunted by ghosts of “what ifs” and “if onlys.” We will not wish for what others have or lament what we have missed. We will no longer try to satisfy spiritual hunger with physical food.
We will be freed from trying to calm internal restlessness with things that cause us trouble and only deepen our longing. We will know what we have never known before, and we will celebrate that knowledge forever.
When that time comes, we will get it right. We will be completely full, never to hunger again. We will experience what we have longed for at times and in ways that we didn’t even know we were longing.
We will be happy—no, not with the temporary physical, emotional, relational, or situational happiness that fades like morning fog. We will be happy in a deeply contented happiness of heart, a kind of joyful contentment of soul unlike anything we have ever known before.
It is impossible to characterize how deep and expansive our delight in him will be. It is hard to find words that do justice to how completely satisfied we will be. Our hearts will finally have what they have always searched for, and our celebration will never end.
“The Spirit and the Bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price […] He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus! (Revelation 22:17, 20)
Would you like more from the Wednesday Word Series, as well as question prompts for family discussion? https://www.paultripp.com/wednesdays-word
Would you like to listen to today's Wednesday Word? https://tinyurl.com/mvzab7z4
