By Hunter Greene
As I watched my uncle try out his new speaker, I noticed his demeanor had changed. He was no longer smiling or talking as much as usual. He had a serious and contemplative look on his face. I stopped moving chairs and tables for a moment and listened to the song he was playing. Jason Crabb, an anointed Gospel singer, came blaring out of the speaker, and as the song entered the chorus, I realized why my uncle stopped.
Here is the chorus to his song “Home:” “Absent from the body with Jesus at last, Destination heaven cares all past, Carried by angels to the land of life, Where dreams will last forever and no one dies, Unending rest for the weary soul, It makes me wanna go home.” You see, Jason Crabb wrote this song for his grandmother’s journey to heaven, and I could see that every word of the song was taking my uncle on a spiritual journey into heaven with his mother who passed away a couple of years ago. I felt my eyes begin to get a bit foggy as I thought about how we have the greatest hope and future in Jesus Christ. We have a home in heaven that is far greater than anything we could ever imagine.
As I listened to the song, I was also taken back to a church service I recently attended. It was a wonderful, Spirit-filled service. The choir sang three songs about Heaven and a few people raised their hands and some shouted “Amen.” No one really seemed all that moved though, myself included. The final song the choir sang was “I’m Proud to be an American” and about 20 seconds into the song, the entire church was up on their feet, shouting, and raising their hands. I stood there in amazement. Not because I don’t love my country and not because I’m not proud to be an American, but because a group of Christians were more excited about our country than they were God’s kingdom.
Please don’t misinterpret what I’m saying. I love my country. I am so thankful for our military and our freedoms. I realize how privileged I am to live here. However, I may have been born in the USA, but my citizenship is in Heaven. My hope is in Jesus Christ, not Donald Trump or Barack Obama. I have watched all the death and drugs and decay in our part of the country lately and as Jason Crabb sings, “It makes me want to go home.” I am afraid too many Christians are more excited about politics, guns, sports, technology, money, fishing, and themselves that they have forgotten who has saved them and what He saved us from.
Matthew 6:19-21, “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” We must realize that one day America will fall just like the Roman Empire did. We must realize that one day we will leave this world the same way we were born into it, with nothing. We must realize that nothing on this earth compares to the treasure of Heaven.
There is nothing wrong with being excited about being an American or cheering for the football team when they score, but if we get excited over something moth and rust will destroy, we should be bouncing off the walls when it comes to Jesus Christ. Understand that we are a few bad political and military decisions away from losing our homeland. Understand our football team is only a Hail Mary to the end zone from losing (shout out to my Vols beating Georgia last year as time expired). But I want you to know that nothing and nobody can take your Jesus away.
He is your Savior. He is your strength. He is your joy. He is your peace. He is your future. He is your redemption. He is your righteousness. He should be your breath. He should be your life. Jesus is our everything. If you find yourself getting more excited over earthly things and not our true home with Jesus, maybe you should evaluate your priorities. “For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” Where is your heart?
(The Solution Column is provided by Pastor Brandon Young of Harmony Free Will Baptist Church, Hampton, and his associate, Hunter Greene.)