Home of Record - The Warrior's Journey®
Faithfulness

Home of Record

Author: Brendon O'Dowd, USAF (Ret.)

Marines unload supplies. Photo by The U.S. Marines is licensed under CC By 2.0

Warriors move. That’s what we do.

During my career, our family moved into 12 different homes. PCSing comes with the job, but it can leave us feeling unsettled. Deployments, PCS orders, job transfers, and promotions all interrupt the rhythm that home is supposed to establish. Our home of record is supposed to provide us with a sense of stability. It reminds us of where our military story all began.

 Jesus Left His Home

Jesus had a home of record—heaven. He had a perfect relationship with God the Father and the Holy Spirit. Yet He signed up for a tour on earth. Why leave a perfect home? Was He looking for more adventure, a way to pay for college education, or did He want to try something new?

Paul gives us the right understanding about Jesus. “Who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross” (Phil. 2:6–8).

Jesus made a choice to come to earth without a rank, official position, or membership in any of the key political groups. He didn’t have government quarters (“nowhere to lay His head,” Matt. 8:20). He was even forsaken by God on the cross (Matt. 27:46).

Why would Jesus willingly make this move? He did it because it’s the only way to lead us to our true home. In Jesus, we find forgiveness (1 John 1:9) and the promise: “if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also” (John 14:3). Heaven is where we ultimately belong.

Our Current Home

What does this mean for us in our current “PCS” on earth?

We will feel unsettled, so we need to be aware of looking for “home of record” in ways other than what God has in store for us.

  • We may try to find a “home” through sexuality. Marriage, multiple partners, or even different identities won’t satisfy us because sexual relations were never meant to bear the full weight of our expectations and longings.
  • We may try to find a “home” through experiences. Drinking, parties, and vacations leave us wanting more and better the next time. And the credit card bill only serves as a reminder experiences are always short lived.
  • We may try to find a “home” through control or rules. Attempts to organize, plan, and structure our lives look good on paper, but people and circumstances don’t cooperate. Our rules don’t give us the stability we crave.

Instead, we need to follow the advice of Peter. “Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us” (1 Pet. 2:11–12). This is a commitment to do daily battle with our enemy “sin” and live for God until He comes to take us home.

This is also a commitment to follow the example of Jesus in serving God and others. Jesus didn’t complain, quit, avoid others because He wasn’t in His true home. Instead He gave Himself as a servant to others.

God has prepared a place for us. As we wait for our “final PCS orders,” let us live like Jesus did and serve honorably in our “current” assignment.


In article photos in order of appearance:
Just Chillin' by the U.S. Marines licensed under U.S. Govt. Work
100202-M-4593D-035 by the U.S. DoD licensed under U.S. Govt. Work

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