Day 12: The Way of Jesus and the Provision of God

You did not have a home
There were places You visited frequently
You took off Your shoes and scratched Your feet
‘Cause you knew that the whole world belonged to the meek
But You did not have a home
No You did not have a home

Birds have nests, foxes have dens
But the hope of the whole world rests
On the shoulders of a homeless man
You had the shoulders of a homeless man
No You did not have a home

Rich Mullins, You Did Not Have a Home

Our Hope

Matthew 8:18-20

18 Now when Jesus saw a crowd around him, he gave orders to go over to the other side. 19 And a scribe came up and said to him, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” 20 And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.”

Our Insight

Jesus could have used His divine power to obtain all the comfort and security He wanted. Instead, He chose to live on-the-go with few possessions to His name. By entrusting His care to His Father’s provision, He embodied His belief that the Good Father would generously provide for His needs.

What’s more, He invited His disciples to join Him in this counter-cultural way of life. In this way He taught them (and by extension, us) what it means to live dependently on God in a world marred by brokenness and scarcity.

Following Jesus requires that we trust the Generous Provider to meet our needs.

“But,” I can hear you wondering, “Didn’t Jesus suffer?”

     (Yes… incredible suffering.)

“And didn’t His disciples suffer?”

     (Yes… every one of them.)

“And didn’t they all die in the end?”

     (No… not in the end. They died in the middle. In the end, they all live.)

And that is what lies ahead for all friends of Jesus… Life. Never-ending, overflowing, eternally-secure, abundant life.

The reality is, we are all homeless—for now. We are sojourners, entrusting ourselves to the care of a Good Father, longing for the day of our true homecoming. Let us not forget that.

Our Prayer

Let’s pray this prayer together today:

God my Provider, You are high above my circumstance, and also in the very middle of it.

You know my anxious thoughts about today and my worries about tomorrow.

You know my questions before I ask them, my needs before I know them.

Teach me to live like Jesus—fully dependent on Your boundless care.

Satisfy me with gifts You choose: Your Word, Your voice, Your Spirit.

Grant my restless heart a moment’s rest today as I journey through a land that is not home.

Our Gratitude

Before closing this devotion, take a moment and bring to mind one thing—at this moment—that you are thankful for. And thank God for it.