You Can Always Come Home

As Daffy Duck famously insisted to Elmer Fudd and Bugs Bunny, it’s rabbit season.

I’ve noticed a lot of the furry little creatures running around the yard the last couple months. But I’m not the only one who has taken notice… our dog Kalmar—an energetic 4-year-old black lab—has too.

Three times this Spring, Kal got loose and ran away from home in pursuit of rabbits in the yard. All three times, the bunnies—and Kal—darted behind the house, down into the creek bed that parallel’s the city bike trail. The creek bed is a densely wooded area with downed trees, tall grass, and LOTS of mud. The first time Kal got loose, he was hot on the trail of 6 rabbits. If one rabbit zigged and Kal zagged, then Kal just continued his pursuit of one of the other rabbits. He was running full speed through the bramble with nothing but “rabbit season” on the brain. Once we finally got Kal called off the rabbits and caught him, we were looking him over and saw that he was bleeding in a couple places from having sprinted face-first through piles of sticks. After a trip to the emergency vet (because of course these sorts of things only happen after-hours), Kalmar was back in the comfort of his home.

Sometimes we run away from good things. Sometimes we run away from God. We might even think we’re running toward something that will bring us happiness: money and all the things it can buy, notoriety, luxury, power and influence. The thrill of the chase might keep us going for a bit, but will we come out unharmed? Will our relationships with others be scraped and bruised along the way? As with our dog Kalmar, there may be unseen consequences of running headlong toward what seems pleasurable. It turns out, we don’t always have eyes to see how what looks appealing to us might do us harm.

Home Again, Home Again, Jiggety Jig

Many many years ago, one of our best friends from childhood ran away from home. Maybe he was hungry for independence, maybe a friend or girlfriend led him away, but whatever the case, he spent many months away from home. I don’t know all the details, but he ended up coming home, and when he did, his parents threw him a Prodigal Son party. I love that. It’s always stuck with me that my friend’s parents welcomed him home not with a lecture or a scolding, but with relief and celebration. With love.

There are plenty of stories in the Bible about home-coming: the Prodigal Son, the Parable of the Lost Sheep, the Israelites’ return from exile in Babylon, the holy family’s return from asylum in Egypt… the fact that Jesus offered Peter a role in the formation of the Church after Peter denied Jesus 3 times feels like an invitation to come home.

And Jesus offers you and me that same invitation: to come home after we’ve lost our way. One of my favorite singer-songwriters puts it, “No matter how gone you might be, I’ll bring you back with me.” This is the Way of Jesus. Jesus is the way home.