Do You Ever Feel Like an Alien?
Photograph by: Frank Baron
This is a guest post by my wife Betsi; she is a writer, teacher, encourager and my best friend.
“Welcome Home! – We’re glad you’re here!” said the smiling greeter at the Sheraton Resort we recently visited on vacation. It was especially strange to hear him greet us with “Welcome home” when the Christian radio station in our rented vehicle was blaring, “All I know is I’m not home yet: This is not where I belong!” It was such a collision of thoughts, that several scriptures started rumbling through my brain, reminding me that – sure enough – we do not belong on this earth – not even at a beautiful resort (as relaxing as it was)!
Hebrews 11:13-16 calls us “aliens and strangers on earth” who are longing for a better country – a heavenly one.” 1 Peter 2:11 refers to us “as aliens and strangers in the world.” And just this morning in our Quiet Time passage, we read from Psalm 119:19, “I am a stranger on the earth.”
Each night our little granddaughter quotes the “Sweet Dreams Psalm” (Psalm 23), as we have titled it, to help her drift off to sleep. As she groggily nears the end, she recites: “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the home of the LORD forever!” Honestly now, could you end your long day with any sweeter thought?
Maybe we need to quit focusing on what we often call Home down here, and let some things go in light of eternity! We already have one beautiful daughter Home – and three parents. We can’t help but echo the words of that popular worship song: “All I know is I’m not home yet; this is not where I belong!” It’s totally okay to feel like an alien on this earth. In fact, I sort of like being an alien! What about you? Maybe we all need to do as the Apostle Paul commanded: “Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.” (Colossians 3:2)
