What reminds you of home?
Is it a special place? A familiar smell? Or maybe a delicious meal you just can’t find anywhere else?
I think we’ve all felt that deep longing for home at some point. I certainly did when I first moved to New Zealand. There are two things that always remind me of Scotland. The first is the sound of bagpipes. As soon as I hear them, it feels like I’m right back in the Highlands. The second was something very familiar to anyone from Scotland... rain. This week, as I drove into the city through misty mountains, grey skies and pouring rain, I felt this unexpected warmth and joy. It looked and felt just like home.
A few weeks ago, I took Kaye out to try a new Filipino café called Faithful Flavours Cafe & Bakery. As we looked over the menu, Kaye found it hard to decide, she wanted everything! It was all the food she grew up with. Then the moment she tasted Sinigang, a Filipino sour soup, her whole face lit up. I could see in her eyes the joy of tasting something familiar—something that tasted like home. And in that moment, it got me thinking. This is what the church is all about. A joyful taste of home, right here and now.
Every Sunday, across all three of our congregations, I see this beautiful picture: people from all over the world. We have Kiwis, Asians, North and South Americans, Africans, Europeans—even Australians! All of us gathering as God’s people to worship Jesus and praise Him for the salvation He has given to us.
This reminds me of John’s vision in Revelation 7:9-10:
9 After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. 10 And they cried out in a loud voice:
‘Salvation belongs to our God,
who sits on the throne,
and to the Lamb.’
What a wonderful day that will be!
And, every Sunday when we gather, we catch a small glimpse of that day. We might not be wearing white robes or holding palm branches, but when we gather to sing, pray and read God’s word, as we come together as the church, we experience a foretaste of our true home—the one that’s still to come.
Over the past few weeks, I haven’t been able to make it to church, and I’ve missed it deeply. But this week, God willing, I’m eager to gather again with His people. To be encouraged. To encourage others. And to lift our eyes together toward the home that’s waiting for us.
So, wherever you’re from, whatever reminds you of home—know that when we come together as the church, we get to experience something far greater. A foretaste of the eternal home that God has prepared for us.
Grace and peace,
David