As you drive up and down streets in any city or town it’s hard to miss the number of For Sale and For Rent signs. It seems that people are always looking for that one house that will satisfy all their needs. Some are looking for starter homes; others for larger homes to accommodate growing families; and still others are looking to downsize in their retirement. Needs change as we change and hence the abode we need changes through the years as well.
In today’s Gospel Jesus reminds us that our need for an appropriate home does not end with this life. The greatest change of all of course is death, and with death comes a completely different need. Jesus is talking with His apostles at the Last Supper and He tells them that this has been the meaning of his life among them: that HE is going back to His father to create a home for each of us at the end of all of our days. He is also reassuring us that HE knows our need and will provide for us into eternity.
The home God will provide for us will not be too cramped or too spacious; it won’t have an exorbitant mortgage; it will not have a leaky rook or a flooding basement; it will not be on a busy street or have noisy neighbors; the home God provides will be exactly what we need for all eternity.
This really is just an extension of the way that God provides for us in the here and now. All we have to do is look around at the beauty of Nature as it has come alive during these weeks since Easter. Someone once said that Spring is a reminder that God never forgets us.
So for the time being let us enjoy the homes where we live; but let us always have an eye toward the eternal home God has ready for us and know that Jesus is the way that leads us home!