There's No Place Like Home

Perched along the shores of Sarasota Bay, Florida, sits an ornate home, covered in all the architectural splendor its owner could afford. He could afford a lot. The estate features meticulously patterned brickwork, exterior patio floors of fine marble, towers with staircases spiraling into the sky, delicately turned ironwork, inlaid mosaic and glasswork; and that’s just the outside of the home! Commanding a view of the Bay and encompassing sprawling grounds and gardens, of course this home has a name: Ca d’Zan. A lovely Venetian name for an impressive Mediterranean abode. 

Translated: “House of John.” 

Seriously? Just “John’s House?” After all of that expense? All of that beauty on display? The presentation of wealth and culture and craftsmanship christened merely “John’s house?”

Yes. That’s what it was. It was John Ringling’s house. The grounds: a place to host friendly gatherings. The view: a spot of restful peace in a grueling travel schedule for his work. The gardens: a place of beauty that his wife enjoyed nurturing. The skilled craftsmanship: a reflection of an appreciative eye for artistry. Running in and through it all, it was the place where the owner was comfortable, relaxed, and was simply himself. Simply John in John’s house with John’s family and friends.
 
I quite love that. What others may have judged as materialistic trappings or ostentatious bragging, John Ringling saw as just his home. 

Ephesians 2:19-22 says that we, believers in Jesus, are being joined together as a structure. Together, we are being skillfully crafted into a holy temple; a dwelling place for God, with Jesus Christ as the Cornerstone and the Holy Spirit the craftsman at work to unite us into a dwelling fit for God to inhabit. 

Does it awe you as it does me that we fit together in intricate design? Have you stopped to ponder the expense that God laid out to make sure His creative vision for His home was brought to life? Have you stepped back to admire the beauty that occurs when believers come together in love for one another? Do you see the hand of the master craftsman laying course after course of stonework, interspersing the rough-hewn stones with delicately reflective tilework, leaving onlookers to marvel at the uniquely complementary nature of it all? 

Yet, with all that cost, all of that labor, all of that grandeur… it’s simply God’s House. 

We are God’s House. The place where He rests. The place He most loves to be. The place where His nature and interests and love are on display. Stunningly beautiful. Minutely detailed. Built of the best there is by the best there is. And simply His. 
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I quite love that.