Being at Home
Everyone needs a place where they can just be themselves – preferably that place is home. A place where you can talk, laugh, debate, unplug, unwind, even just sit back in quiet and read. To me home isn’t so much about location, it’s about whom you do “home” with…
Merriam-Webster’s dictionary defines home as: one’s place of residence or the social unit formed by a family living (being) together. It further defines the term at home as being: relaxed, comfortable, at ease, in harmony with surroundings, on familiar ground.
That defines exactly how I feel when all five of us, actually now six of us, are together. I’m at ease; nothing deep or profound is expected of me. I’m allowed to sit in comfortable clothes and surroundings, enjoy the conversation, and just be.
Christmas was wonderful yesterday, not because of any special traditions but because we were all together simply being ourselves. There’s something powerful about being given the permission to be you – to know that you are fully accepted and loved without any pretense or pressure.
When I’m with my family in these moments, I can almost hear my soul exhale a sigh of relief, because my soul knows I’m at home regardless of the address.
As I sat on the couch last night I wondered how many people actually felt at home yesterday? I wondered what the trick was, to get people to feel at ease? I’m not sure Kathy and I have any magic formula or any incredible insight, but people do feel very comfortable in whatever home we reside…
Then this morning I woke up thinking abut the church, wondering if it could create an environment where people could be at home, be comfortable, be at ease? Can we create a place where people don’t have to feel like guests, a place where they don’t have to pretend to be someone or something else?
Can you imagine a church where your soul exhales a sigh of relief because it knows it’s home?
