Nancy Hughes: Trading one room for another

“In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so,
I would have told you. I am going there
to prepare a place for you.”
John 14:2 (NIV)

The hotel room sounded too good to be true . . . and unfortunately it was. “Only $65.00 per night,” my son-in-law told us as he bragged about the “great deal” that he had negotiated for both my daughters and me as the three of us took a weekend vacation together. That should have been our first clue.

As we pulled up to the hotel, late at night, our first impression was one of relief at simply finding the place. My youngest daughter hopped out of the car and said “Let me check it out and see what we need to do.” Within seconds she returned, pushing a baggage cart and voiced her concern: “I’m not so sure about this place, Mom.”

I sighed. “It’s late and we are tired! What’s the problem?” She quickly looked over her shoulder, lowered her voice and replied “There’s a bungee cord holding the security door shut.” That was our second clue. But when you combine the lateness of the hour, hundreds of miles of driving and three very tired women, unwise decisions are made. We decided to stay.

“Here’s our plan,” my oldest daughter stated. “We will load everything on the baggage cart and head to the lobby as fast as we can. Mom, you park the car and meet us in the lobby. Then we will stay together to go to our room.” Not a bad plan.

I thought my part was easy. Park the car. Go to the lobby. I was even marveling at how friendly the people in the other cars were in the parking lot. Two cars pulled up beside each other and I waved at each driver as I walked between them toward the lobby.

Yes, I noticed my daughter motioning for me to hurry but only when I reached her did I realize why: “Mom! You walked between those two cars!” “Well, yes, I did,” I replied, “and the drivers both waved at me.” “They weren’t waving at you! They were getting ready to fight! You walked right through the middle of a rumble!” Clue three.

The other clues happened in quick succession: six different odors that we could not identify from the lobby to our room; a barefoot man with two cups of coffee walking back and forth, talking to himself and drinking out of both cups; a sink that would not drain and a rusted shower nozzle that trickled out 6 drops of water; 2000 moths stuck to the heating unit; a chain lock on our door without the chain.

Do you have days, my friends, when your life seems a lot like that hotel room experience? Nothing is working right, fights are breaking out, and you don’t know if you are going to make it through another minute? Me, too. This home-away-from-Home can really get us down. But perhaps that’s just the point: we are not home yet. Our “hotel room” is only temporary.

Jesus tells us about our home in heaven in John 14:2. He says that His Father’s house has many rooms and one is being prepared for each of us. They are referred to as “mansions” in the King James Version.

Can I get a collective amen? Our very own mansions! No rumbles, no broken chains, but instead designed specifically for us by the Lord Himself!

Hold on, friends! Thank Him for the temporary; praise Him for the permanent. We can make it through the hotel room as we prepare for the mansion!

Father, thank you for the beautiful room you are preparing just for me. Give me courage and strength to make it through each day in my “hotel room.” In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

R.A.P. it up . . .

Reflect

Have you ever had a day when you felt like you just couldn’t make it one more minute?

Did you focus on what God is preparing for you as His child or were your eyes on the temporary?

Application

Journal your thoughts on the temporary “hotel room” that the Lord has blessed you with here on earth.

Beside each entry, journal Scripture that describes the permanent mansion that God has waiting for you in heaven.

Power

John 14:2 (NIV) “In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you.”

Matthew 6:20 (NIV) “But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.”

Psalm 84:10 (NIV) “Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked.”
(For more of Nancy Hughes' writing and information about her books, check out her blog, Encouragement from the War Room.)