You know that feeling when you’ve just finished an enjoyable but exhausting trip and – finally – you’ve made it back home. It feels oh so sweet stepping in, dropping your bags and closing the door behind you. Yes, bags need unpacking, clothes need washing, your people need feeding, but you’re home! There is an ease – a sigh of relief – in pottering around your own home, returning to your own routine and sleeping in your own bed. 

Where we live

At the start of this year, Ros Boydell said something in her Members Module that transformed my theology of home.

‘The invitation Jesus extends to us in John 15 is to live, or abide, in him. It is the invitation to see the entirety of our lives as they truly are – surrounded, embedded, protected and empowered by Jesus and his love. You don’t have to do anything to get to that place of abiding in Christ. If you are a follower of Jesus, that is where you live: in Christ.’

That blew my mind! I always thought of abiding as a ‘to do’ item – something that was always one spiritual discipline out of my reach – but what if abiding is just becoming aware of what is already ours? We are in Christ, rooted in him all the time. This is a reality! This is where we live.

Experiencing the delight of ‘home time’ is not tied to what we do at home – unpacking, cooking and doing the laundry doesn’t make it our home. In fact, it is our home even when we are not there. Yet, it’s when we step through our front door that we become aware of that truth – all of a sudden we’re able to rest in that reality.

Having none of it

Isaiah 30:15 (in the New Living Translation) invites us to return home to God:

‘This is what the Sovereign Lord,
    the Holy One of Israel, says:
“Only in returning to me
    and resting in me will you be saved.
In quietness and confidence is your strength.
    But you would have none of it.”’

The words in this verse are well worth meditating on. To me, they paint a beautiful picture of abiding in Jesus, but also a vivid portrayal of my wonderings elsewhere.

I tie myself up in knots sometimes trying to be ‘better at abiding in Christ’, to be more wholehearted in this. But, maybe it’s actually as simple as stepping in through our front door, or letting our heavy bags drop to the floor, or falling into our own bed. Perhaps the invitation is to bring our whole selves to God – in all the mess – and realise that we are wholly his.

Like Isaiah says, we simply return home, repenting and resting in Jesus’ rescue, rather than our own efforts. And we find strength in being still with him, and ultimately in trusting him.

Receiving all of it

Imagine that you’re with someone with whom you feel completely at ease. You don’t need to second-guess yourself. There’s no need to impress. You love talking with, listening to, even sitting in silence with this person. You are confident that they know you really well and that they love you completely.

Jesus invites us to keep finding that kind of presence in him – to keep company with him as we go about our life at home, at the office, in our neighbourhood and on trips away too. It’s an invitation we can take up, moment by moment, wherever we are and whatever is happening around us at the time.

But how? It is always true that I am in Christ, but my awareness of this is not always there, so how can I keep ‘returning home’ and reminding myself that I always live in Jesus now? Here are two practical ideas…

1. Dropping your bags – a 60-second surrender. Set a timer for 1 minute and return to Jesus. This could be whilst the kettle is boiling, it could be a short walk (or a portion of your journey), or when you feel yourself spinning out. Just take some deep breaths and return to Jesus inwardly. Picture him looking at you in love, surrender what you’re clinging onto and just be with him. If you find it helpful, you could have a line that helps you draw your thoughts back to Jesus when they mentally start scrolling through your worries or your ‘to do’ list – something like: ‘Jesus, you are mine and I am yours’ or ‘God sees me and loves me’ or simply ‘I surrender’.

    

2. RESTing regularly. You may have heard me talk about the examen before (if not, check out Today). I do this as a daily debrief during my afternoon school-run (that is, when I remember and don’t bump into a friend on the way). You could find a time that works for you most days, or you could have a journalling session weekly or monthly.

I like the REST acronym for this:  

• Relax
• Enjoy
• Surrender
• Trust

Pete Grieg (from 24/7 Prayer) has another good acronym: PRAY.  

• Pause
• Repent
• Ask
• Yield / Yes

Notice that both of these include all the elements from Isaiah 30:15: returning/repentance, rest, quietness/stillness and trust/confidence.

Welcoming another in

Today I messaged a friend and asked if she’d like to do a weekly ‘school run REST’ with me. We’re often both speed walking down the hill at the same time and chatting about how our day has gone, so perhaps it will only take my slightly forward invite to encourage us to consciously bring God into these conversations.

The transformation that we experience as we keep ‘returning home’ to Jesus is something we can invite others into in many ways. Think what a difference it could make to your everyday interactions with your child or husband, colleagues and friends, even strangers, if you carried with you that sense of being seen and loved by God. As we find peace in his presence, it frees us up to be present for others. 

This content was first shared at NavMums. If you or a mum friend you know might be interested in joining this online community, email info@navigators.co.uk or find us on Instagram or Facebook. Our next meet-up is Friday 14th November 10-11am on Zoom.