Life is a journey that leads back home. We may go to distant shores and follow fortunes in faraway places, but most often, “acres of diamonds” are found in our own backyard, in the company of loved ones, family, and friends. We search the world over only to find that what we’re looking for is usually close to home.
Of course, we grow up and move. We make new friends and pass through many homes. And it may be that some of those homes and memories are not altogether pleasant. But the heart’s longing for all that home represents—for love and concern and counsel, for all that is warm and wonderful—is a part of us always. And it’s almost never too late to find it.
In the classic story The Wizard of Oz, Dorothy and her friends already had what they were searching for. They just didn’t know it. The tin man had a heart for love, the scarecrow had a brain for wisdom, and the lion had all the courage he would ever need. But they had to journey through some difficult experiences to discover the best within them. Oftentimes, when life’s circumstances are not ideal, we come to appreciate, even recognize, our true home.
We know that life’s pathways are rarely paved with yellow bricks. They are, nonetheless, marked—with lessons of the past, with courage for today, and with faith in the future. All roads worth traveling eventually lead home—to love and family, to real friends and abiding truth, to God and His heavenly home. Whether it’s a reality now or a yearning in the heart, the grass that is always greener is most often found in our own backyard. Truly, there’s no place like home.
Program #3918