On loving where you live

As a Christian and a pastor, I turn to the Bible to help make sense of life. The Bible tells us that whether you live in Australia, Argentina or anywhere in between, you can love where you live. While borders do not bind God and welcome people from every tribe, tongue and nation, loving the uniqueness of where you call home is both right and encouraged. Psalm 33:12 extends some principles for loving where you live in writing, "What joy for the nation whose God is the Lord, whose people he has chosen as his inheritance" (NLT.) Allow me to share a couple of principles from this verse.

First, Psalm 33:12 is an invitation in the form of a declaration. The psalmist declares that joy is experienced by the people who place God first. The declaration is an invitation. In the same way, you may declare this to be the best chocolate cake you have ever eaten you invite the one you are speaking with to share in your joy. The Christian faith is winsome and persuasive by asking all to try the promises for themselves.

Second, the psalmist declares that joy is the result of exclusive devotion. Such exclusivity seems brash and almost irrational in our day and age, but it is the claim of the Bible. Exclusive devotion to the Lord produces joy. Yes, there are troubles, yet the most trental storm can have no sway on joy.

Finally, but not least, the promise of Psalm 33:12 is for any person. The declaration is a broad invitation. The word "nation" implies all the people of the world. God's heart is to cause joy in the life of every man and every woman in every place.

C.S. Lewis once wrote of the love of home, "of the place we grew up in or the places, perhaps many, which have been our homes; and of all places fairly near these and fairly like them; love of old acquaintances, of familiar sights, sounds and smells." Loving where you live, rooting for your team, eating food unique to where you live, the sights, the sounds, the smells, this love for home strives to make life for all better.

I love where I live. Yes, there are troubles, small and great. Yet, we (perhaps better to speak just for me) can both love where we live and address the complicated layers of the issues. Together in harmony, not uniformity, strive for "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."