“So we are always confident, even though we know that as long as we live in these bodies we are not at home with the Lord. For we live by believing and not by seeing. Yes, we are fully confident, and we would rather be away from these earthly bodies, for then we will be at home with the Lord.”
2 Corinthians 5:6-8 NLT
We human beings are mortal. This means that there will come a time when we will die. It is a thought that horrifies many people, but it is one of the few things about our lives that we cannot control. We don’t know when the final day will come, but even if we did, there is nothing we can do about it. There are scientists who claim that there are some things that we can do, though, to delay the inevitable, like being careful about how we live, avoiding smoking, drugs, and alcohol. By eating the right foods and avoiding the wrong ones. And some claim to be on the edge of creating chemicals that would significantly prolong our lives. The Victorian writer H Rider Haggard wrote a novel called “She”, and it was about a woman who was immortal because she had discovered a “Pillar of Fire” that granted immortality to anyone who was fortunate enough to be able to stand in its flame. It’s a great story but a long way from the truth. Interestingly, it explores some of the perils of immortality from a purely secular perspective, particularly when bestowed upon an evil person. Mankind has always been fascinated with the concept of life, death and immortality, and there are some who make a living by pandering to people’s desires. Job wrote the truth, however, as we read in Job 14:5. Speaking to God, he said, “You have decided the length of our lives. You know how many months we will live, and we are not given a minute longer”.
From the perspective of eternity, therefore, we are living in a temporary home. Our spirits will one day be set free from the physical entity that we call our bodies. Paul wrote that he would rather be away from his, because then he “will be at home with the Lord”. Our earthly existence is real, meaningful, and purposeful—but it is not ultimate. There is a quiet homesickness woven into the heart of every believer. We experience moments when we feel lost, or experience thoughts like “what am I doing here”? We pursue pleasurable activities but find them unfulfilling. We suffer through illness or pain, and wonder what is going on. But in it all, we sometimes sense that we were made for something more. An unbeliever will not be immune to the feeling that they don’t belong here, and they try their best to fill the gap by material means, or try to suppress the feelings with alcohol or drugs. A visit to a psychiatrist might provide temporary relief, but in the morning, the mind-numbing processes of the previous day will have all worn off, and the sense of loss will still be there. Unbelievers learn to suppress such feelings, although they sometimes emerge when not expected. But a believer like us doesn’t have such feelings because they have been replaced with the knowledge that we are indeed just living in a temporary home.
Paul didn’t despair about his physical challenges and feelings of homesickness because he had confidence in his future and the God who would one day make it all possible. How could he say that while acknowledging suffering, persecution, and uncertainty? Paul wasn’t playing some kind of mind game, convincing himself about his future, a self-assurance that had no basis in truth. Paul had a God-assurance, the settled conviction that whether he remained in his body or left it, he belonged to the Lord. That kind of confidence cannot be shaken by changing circumstances. With Paul, we pilgrims understand that our true home is with God, and earthly instability loses its power to terrify us.
Paul wrote, “For we live by believing and not by seeing”. We call that “faith”. Faith is not blind optimism. It is a steady trust in what God has promised. It is choosing confidence when circumstances are unclear. It is walking forward even when the road ahead disappears into fog. Hebrews 11:1, “Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see”. The problem is that in this life, we are trained and conditioned to trust what we can see with our eyes. But faith doesn’t work like that, and instead, we put our trust in the One who has promised us life in our new home, one that He is preparing for us right now. The Christian hope is not merely about survival after death—it is about reunion. It is about fullness. It is about finally being where our hearts have always belonged. To be “at home with the Lord” suggests intimacy, rest, and completion. Home is where we are fully known and fully loved. Paul’s longing reveals a heart that has tasted God’s presence so deeply that eternity feels like the most natural destination.
Do we pilgrims feel the same as Paul? I’m sure many of us are weary of the limitations of our current bodies, but one day, perhaps soon for some, we will be at home with the Lord. There will be no better place possible. At last, we will lose that sense of not belonging. At last, we will be home.
Dear Father God. There is a song, “What a day that will be / When my Jesus I shall see / And I look upon his face / The one who saved me by his grace.” We worship You today, Lord. Amen.
Being a Pilgrim 