Christmas Devotion - Day 4

To kick off the Christmas Season, The Field's Edge is creating a storyboard about serving those that experience homelessness. We asked ten Midlanders to write a short devotional about their personal experiences which we will post each weekday through Christmas. Today's devotional is written by Barry Simpson, board member for The Field's Edge and former City Council member.

When Do You Feel At Home?

Ephesians 3:17 says, "And I pray that Christ will be more and more at home in your hearts."
 
I once asked my wife Cyndi, "When do you feel at home?"

She said familiar places and familiar people made her feel at home. She feels at home in our house, where she is surrounded by our own family things full of meaning and memories, and in her studio where she teaches yoga. Cyndi also said she feels at home when the expectations of people are predictable. She is very uncomfortable when she doesn't know her role and what she should be doing.

Me? I feel at home in a place where I can settle in. Places like my big brown chair, or my rocking chair on our porch.

I feel at home at the county library, and at several restaurants around town where I go to read and write.

I feel at home in a place if I can comfortably be by myself, or alone with Cyndi. That's why even crowded places can feel at home to me, since I can hole up in the corner and work on an upcoming lesson, or read a book, or write in my journal, and spend time thinking.

In general I am at home when I can be by myself. Cyndi is at home when she knows her role and what is expected of her. She says those are the same things, and that I like being by myself because I know my role. She is pretty smart.

Here’s the thing: Cyndi and I are fortunate. For our entire lives, both of us have had places to call home, and been surrounded by a family who loves us and a community who watches out for us.

The Field’s Edge has opened my eyes and heart to see how many people have no place where they feel at home and no community around them. For most of my adult life, I thought people were homeless because they simply made bad decisions, or were unable to live responsibly. Whenever I saw homeless people asking for money, I doubted their validity so I seldom gave.

When I learned that providing community was more important than handing out money, it changed my heart. Giving people a place and a family so that they can be at home made sense to me.

When the Apostle Paul wrote "I pray that Christ will be more and more at home in your hearts," he was praying that people like you and me open wide and give God free reign to change anything He wants.