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Stand in your place.
Hello friends,
It's another Friday on this journey we call life. I have been battling a pesky cold this week (hence my stuffy voice).
The song ‘Stand’ by the famous 90’s group REM has been playing in the background of my mind since my plane landed on US soil.
And it goes like this:
“Stand in the place where you liveNow face northThink about direction, wonder why you haven't beforeNow, stand in the place where you workNow face west, think about the place where you liveWonder why you haven't beforeIf you are confused, check with the sunCarry a compass to help you alongYour feet are going to be on the groundYour head is there to move you aroundSo, stand in the place where you live…”
The Cambridge Dictionary defines home as “a place where you feel like you belong because you have a lot in common with the people, the culture, and the way of life.”
The need for belonging lives deep within our human heart. Whether that sense in us is healthy and grounded or not, we are all searching for a place that welcomes us just as we are.
As of the very second I write to you, 8.1 billion people live in this world—lots of people… in a vast world.
God, in His infinite wisdom, appointed the time and place where you and I would be born. However, our journeys may take us to different geographical points.
We have a time and place to become whoever God created us to be, and our intention helps us make sense of time and place. Through contemplation, I stop long enough to see where I am, who is with me, and how amazing this place we call planet Earth is.
I can set an altar for God in the places of the world where my feet stand as my heart burns a fire of love for God and the people around me. I can set a flag of the Kingdom of Heaven in every bit of Earth my feet touch because the world is God’s, and I am on borrowed time.
Pictures cannot do justice to the scenery I saw during my European trip. But here’s one that drew these words from my heart.
God of the Austrian Alps, I praise you for your acts of power.
It is within those moments that take my breath away when I know I am always at home with Him. Anywhere and everywhere, we are one. I am always at home in the world because I am with God, and God is with me.
Home is a complex concept to explain, yet the most valuable to grasp. Home is a heavenly and earthly connection with my soul. I am here as I am there. I am always home in the Father’s love. Home is my mind at peace, the sound calmness within my emotions. Home is within the walls of my house and my city. Home is also every far-off place in the world I visit. Every place that nestles my head as I fall asleep. Every place that took my breath away and drew out Hallelujahs from my heart.
God whispers, “As you stand where I lead you daily, geography will be different, but wherever you stand in the world, it will be your home. Because home in the world is where I am with you.”
And I reckon that Christ’s Spirit is in the world I live in. He isn’t gone; he remains. Traveling the world has changed me; it expands my imagination, and the good news becomes exactly this—Christ is everywhere I go.
You and I won’t find home looking for it in a geographical place but by looking at a person and that person is Jesus. His welcoming presence, His delicate rest, the nurturing meal of the bread of life, a warm shower cleaning my soul, fresh towels embracing my skin, a comfortable bed to restore my body —He is home for my wandering soul.
And I think the message is clear: God calls us to stand and be present in His presence wherever our feet touch. No matter where life takes us, standing with Him brings us home.
Perhaps you find yourself in the liminal space where you are desperately searching for home, and it seems that you have lost your sense of direction during the process. This prayer is for you. Set your hand on your heart and breathe in, “Father God dwell in me as I dwell in you.”1
No matter where we go, if we intentionally stop, close our eyes, and see with our hearts where we are and who is with us, we will return home to God’s love. But it takes a deeper look past what you see on the surface.
Are you, dear friends, willing to look for a home right here and now?
And if you feel called and are willing to explore a life outside the borders you inherited, don’t let fear or insecurity stand in your way.
Let’s pray.
Father,
May the comfort of your love lead us home to you.
May every false precept of home be shattered in us so that we can stop our aimless wander.
Help us to stop long enough to sense You along the way of our lives.
May your Spirit lead us home to be with you.
In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Until next time,
Love God, love you, love others.
1
John 15:4 AMP
Get full access to Chronicles Under the Fig Tree Newsletter at georginafourzan.substack.com/subscribe
View all episodes
Hello friends,
It's another Friday on this journey we call life. I have been battling a pesky cold this week (hence my stuffy voice).
The song ‘Stand’ by the famous 90’s group REM has been playing in the background of my mind since my plane landed on US soil.
And it goes like this:
“Stand in the place where you liveNow face northThink about direction, wonder why you haven't beforeNow, stand in the place where you workNow face west, think about the place where you liveWonder why you haven't beforeIf you are confused, check with the sunCarry a compass to help you alongYour feet are going to be on the groundYour head is there to move you aroundSo, stand in the place where you live…”
The Cambridge Dictionary defines home as “a place where you feel like you belong because you have a lot in common with the people, the culture, and the way of life.”
The need for belonging lives deep within our human heart. Whether that sense in us is healthy and grounded or not, we are all searching for a place that welcomes us just as we are.
As of the very second I write to you, 8.1 billion people live in this world—lots of people… in a vast world.
God, in His infinite wisdom, appointed the time and place where you and I would be born. However, our journeys may take us to different geographical points.
We have a time and place to become whoever God created us to be, and our intention helps us make sense of time and place. Through contemplation, I stop long enough to see where I am, who is with me, and how amazing this place we call planet Earth is.
I can set an altar for God in the places of the world where my feet stand as my heart burns a fire of love for God and the people around me. I can set a flag of the Kingdom of Heaven in every bit of Earth my feet touch because the world is God’s, and I am on borrowed time.
Pictures cannot do justice to the scenery I saw during my European trip. But here’s one that drew these words from my heart.
God of the Austrian Alps, I praise you for your acts of power.
It is within those moments that take my breath away when I know I am always at home with Him. Anywhere and everywhere, we are one. I am always at home in the world because I am with God, and God is with me.
Home is a complex concept to explain, yet the most valuable to grasp. Home is a heavenly and earthly connection with my soul. I am here as I am there. I am always home in the Father’s love. Home is my mind at peace, the sound calmness within my emotions. Home is within the walls of my house and my city. Home is also every far-off place in the world I visit. Every place that nestles my head as I fall asleep. Every place that took my breath away and drew out Hallelujahs from my heart.
God whispers, “As you stand where I lead you daily, geography will be different, but wherever you stand in the world, it will be your home. Because home in the world is where I am with you.”
And I reckon that Christ’s Spirit is in the world I live in. He isn’t gone; he remains. Traveling the world has changed me; it expands my imagination, and the good news becomes exactly this—Christ is everywhere I go.
You and I won’t find home looking for it in a geographical place but by looking at a person and that person is Jesus. His welcoming presence, His delicate rest, the nurturing meal of the bread of life, a warm shower cleaning my soul, fresh towels embracing my skin, a comfortable bed to restore my body —He is home for my wandering soul.
And I think the message is clear: God calls us to stand and be present in His presence wherever our feet touch. No matter where life takes us, standing with Him brings us home.
Perhaps you find yourself in the liminal space where you are desperately searching for home, and it seems that you have lost your sense of direction during the process. This prayer is for you. Set your hand on your heart and breathe in, “Father God dwell in me as I dwell in you.”1
No matter where we go, if we intentionally stop, close our eyes, and see with our hearts where we are and who is with us, we will return home to God’s love. But it takes a deeper look past what you see on the surface.
Are you, dear friends, willing to look for a home right here and now?
And if you feel called and are willing to explore a life outside the borders you inherited, don’t let fear or insecurity stand in your way.
Let’s pray.
Father,
May the comfort of your love lead us home to you.
May every false precept of home be shattered in us so that we can stop our aimless wander.
Help us to stop long enough to sense You along the way of our lives.
May your Spirit lead us home to be with you.
In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Until next time,
Love God, love you, love others.
1
John 15:4 AMP
Get full access to Chronicles Under the Fig Tree Newsletter at georginafourzan.substack.com/subscribe