A Descended GodSample

He Gave Up Comfort

“Thou Didst Leave Thy Throne” by Emily Elliot

Verse 3:

The foxes found rest, and the birds their nest
In the shade of the forest tree;
But Thy couch was the sod, O Thou Son of God,
In the deserts of Galilee.

“No fixed address.”

Those three words are death to almost any job application or banking request. It is a recipe for failure.

One of Maslov’s basic human needs is shelter. And one of our society’s intrinsic drives is to own our own house. Jennifer and I rented for the first eight years of our marriage. We had shelter, but it was nothing like when we bought our first house. We have had four houses since then as we’ve moved around the country. Each time we began our search, it dominated our thoughts. What was the best neighborhood? What was the best house? What was the best price? We looked at dozens of homes before we found the one we settled on.

There are many nicer houses than ours, but we love it just the same.

The largest house in the world is Istana Nurul Imam Palace in Brunei. It has over two million square feet of living space, with eighteen hundred rooms and two hundred and fifty bathrooms!

Despite its wonder and grandeur, despite being the biggest and grandest house in the world, it would be insufficient for the Lord Jesus Christ to reside there if He came down right now and lived on earth again.

He is too spectacular, wonderful, and magnificent to be limited to such an insignificant residence.

And yet, when He began His ministry at age thirty, He had no house. He couch-surfed with friends or slept in the open.

He set aside all comfort to be with us. What an incredible example of sacrifice for men to follow!

Prayer: Oh Lord, I am a man who craves comfort. I want nicer and nicer things. I love new. Yet You lived without. That seems so contrary to my natural inclinations. But I want to be more like You and less like me. Help me to go without. Help me to fast and to give. Help me to serve in lowly ways that no one else will notice. Amen.

Reflection: How important are your comforts to you? How much is enough for you to be content? Are you willing to fast for God’s glory? Are you willing to give up your money and possessions for God’s glory? What are you willing to live without?