“And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “See, the home of God is among mortals. He will dwell with them; they will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them and be their God…” Revelation 21:3

It has been exactly six years since Joan and I moved from Overland Park, Kansas to Fort Collins, Colorado. It was a move brought about by several factors, the most significant of which was Joan’s cancer diagnosis in late 2018. Choosing to live close to her daughter – the daughter who, by the way, who is an OB/GYN doctor practicing in Fort Collins – just made a lot of medical and emotional sense.

Before we first visited Fort Collins in 2015, I didn’t really know much about the place. I knew it was the home of Colorado State University. I knew it was close to Rocky Mountain National Park. I knew it was the place where both New Belgium and Odellbreweries – two of my faves – are located. I knew it was roughly the same size as the place I came from… Overland Park. 

But that’s about it.

Since moving here, though, we have grown much more familiar with Fort Collins and its quirks, its characters, its history and its unique features. Did you know, for example, that there is not one single street in the entire city of Fort Collins that is called by a number? Like 33^rd Street, or 175^th Street, or 82^nd Street? 

Nope. Every street goes by a NAME. 

So weird.

We have made new friends here, joined a church, and become involved in the life of the city. We still enjoy finding new nature areas in Fort Collins where we can go to walk our dogs. And we absolutely LOVE being able to take a late afternoon drive and soak up the splendor of Rocky Mountain National Park.

Fort Collins is a lot of things. It is a clean place. It is a beautiful place. It is a lively and active place. It is a fun place. But for a long time, I have struggled to call Fort Collins HOME. 

When I think of the word HOME, I think of a place where I have roots. I think of a place where I have lasting and deep connections. I think of a place I know as well as (or even better than) the back of my hand. I think of a place I love… even despite knowing all its flaws and foibles. That place – for more than 40 years – was the Kansas City area.

All of which brings us to the topic of Christmas.

Besides all the other things it is, Christmas is God’s way of helping me redefine the concept of HOME. In the original Biblical story, Christmas is God’s redemptive act of claiming US and our world as God’s home. Christmas is God saying to us, “Even though I exist above and beyond the confines of the universe, I choose to call this world my home. It is the place I love… even knowing all its faults and foibles. It is the place where I have roots and deep connections. All this world’s citizens are my children, no matter who they are.”

The Christmas story reminds us that home is a DYNAMIC concept. It does not have to be constrained by locations, or customs, or relationships. I don’t have to know the history or the secret handshakes to call a place “home.” I don’t have to know all the right people and have all the right connections to be able to say, “I belong here.”

Home is the place where we decide to invest ourselves… body, mind, and soul. 

Just like God did. In that lonely stable in backwoods Bethlehem over 2,000 years ago.

Abundant Christmas blessings;