Subj : Citizens...of what?
To   : ALL
From : TODD HENSON
Date : Mon Nov 27 2000 07:13 pm

I took a little mini-vacation this holiday season.

It was a nice battery-recharger. It reminded me that while man is a
creature
that desires meaning to his existence, politics is NOT the end-all be-all
of
life's meaning. Rather, it is but ONE manifestation OF our desire for
meaning. The physical world is transitory. It comes and goes, like the
tide.
But through history there are certain truths, certain principles which
survive the ebb and flow of our earthly lives here, and continue on. 

There's a part of human nature which seems unique to us alone. It tells us
on
a basic level that there's more to life than just the physical facts of our
life and world. This principle of meaning has always been with us, calling
us. And it seems more than just a little coincidental that man's history is
full of efforts to reach toward some "better" condition, to improve, to be
comforted, to learn. And I think it's more than coincidental that man has
always looked toward heaven, reaching for the answers.

It's almost as if life here on earth is but an imperfect representation of
something greater in the heavens. I tell you that as empires on earth rise
and fall, as nation battles nation for land, as govts struggle with corrupt
leaders, that there is a country where evil has no place in it, where the
govt is just and true, where war is no more. There is no battle for
borders,
because the borders of this country cannot be drawn on a map or occupied by
military forces. And no bureacracy can prevent you from entering because
citizenship in this mysterious nation are defined not by legal documents or
place of birth, but by the contents of the heart.

Where is this place? Am I on drugs? Not at all. This country I speak of is
where my primary and permanent citizenship resides. My citizenship in the
United States of America is but a temporary and secondary condition. Sound
unpatriotic? Not at all, because it is only through the power of the
"mystery" nation that the US could ever have existed in the first place.
This
mystery nation is not a democracy, not a republic. 

It is in fact a kingdom - the kingdom of God. It is defined by all the
faithful of the world who know there is a God and who search out this
deeper
truth. This is my home. All who seek after God are welcome in this kingdom.
For those who are citizens of God's kingdom, their death on Earth need not
be
the end of it all. God's kingdom and it's principles have been with us for
generation after generation after generation. And after all generations are
gone, then this kingdom will still stand. And that means that all those who
are citizens will continue on as well.

Before you dismiss these as empty hopeful words, remember the fact that
human
consciousness has always pointed towards something higher than this world,
something that gives us meaning, meaning which can't be discovered by
looking
at the mere scientific facts of our physical world. It is this element of
human nature which DEFINES us as humans. We are beings who live in a
physical
world but who are magnetically attracted by this concept of "meaning" which
is *beyond* the physical world. Love, inspiration, art - these can be
described by science, but never fully explained by science. Especially when
it comes to the spirit. 

So no, these are not mere empty words! They are reflected in the nature of
human behavior, even ironically in those who do not believe. THAT is the
ever
present living testament to God's existence. We have only to open our eyes
to
see it
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