Over the 2 years that I’ve been blogging I’ve met a lot of interesting people, many of whom I would consider close friends. One of the most interesting people that I have met in that time is one of the talented staff writers on this blog, Jason Mitchener. Jason is a talented writer, contributing tens of devotionals to this site over the past year, many of which were extremely moving, and poignant.

As Christians, we sometimes forget that this earth is not our home. Our home is heaven. If we listen with our hearts, we can hear heaven calling us. A great homesickness stirs within us as we draw closer to God. Thoughts of home cheer the weary traveler. – Jason Mitchener

It is with a heavy heart that today I have to relay the news that Jason Mitchener has passed away at the young age of 39.   I heard the news on Twitter yesterday that Jason had passed over to his eternal reward around 10pm on Wednesday night. Jason had been struggling with some health issues lately, and had been hospitalized, but I didn’t realize that his current hospitalization was this serious. It was truly a shock to hear that he was gone.

He Was “Just Passing Through”

Jason Mitchener was born with a rare neuromuscular disease that confined him to an electric wheelchair and required him to use a ventilator to breathe. His body was confined, but his spirit soared free, he touched the lives of so many people.  He was an artist, a songwriter, a writer, a motivational speaker and a powerful witness for Christ.   He will be sorely missed.

After I heard the news that Jason had passed away, I again started reading through the devotionals that he had written for this site. One of them truly struck me as being even more meaningful after hearing news of his death. I thought I’d share it here.  It was called “Just Passing Through” and was originally published in March of this year.

All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth. – Hebrews 11:13

As Christians, we sometimes forget that this earth is not our home. Our home is heaven.

If we listen with our hearts, we can hear heaven calling us. A great homesickness stirs within us as we draw closer to God. Thoughts of home cheer the weary traveler.

Oh, the joy of knowing deep in our hearts that we are just passing through!

So often we treat this earth like our home. We focus on our life here like it’s our eternal residence. We foolishly act like a traveler spending a week in a hotel room and using his time to put up new curtains, lay down carpeting, and paint the walls.

We can get caught up in laying down roots where God never meant us to be planted. We store up treasures on earth instead of treasures in heaven. We check out changes in the stock market more often than we take stock of our relationship with God. We invest in the temporary when eternity awaits us.

Like any traveler, we need a map to help us find our way. God has graciously given us a map in his Word. The Bible clearly points the way home; we just need to take the time to look. But many believe they can travel without a map. They think they know the way, until they find themselves hopelessly lost.

Even when travelers have a map, they often need advice from those who have journeyed that way before. Experienced travelers can help the newer ones avoid making wrong turns. They can point out sights to see along the way. They even warn of dangers to avoid. And when the journey seems long, they gently remind us that home lies just ahead.

- Jason Mitchener

Oh weary traveler, you’re finally home. Well done good and faithful servant. We’ll miss you Jason.

Read More Of Jason’s Writing

If you want to read some more of Jason’s touching devotionals, you can read them by going to any of the links below:

• Jason’s Devotionals on Bible Money Matters
• http://www.JasonMitchener.com
• http://www.forwardhabit.com
• Jason’s Testimony
• More of Jason’s Devotionals
• Jason’s Memorial Page
• More About Jason

This article was written by Peter Anderson. Peter Anderson is a Christian, husband to his beautiful wife Maria, and loves reading and writing about personal finance. You can find out more about him on the about page or check out his other sites at http://www.quicktofit.com and http://www.logosforwebsites.com. You can also follow him on Twitter at @moneymatters.

Copyright © Bible Money Matters – please visit biblemoneymatters.com for more great content.

Fan BMM on Facebook | Follow BMM on Twitter

Related Posts

• No Related Posts

• Dog Day Care or Not Dog Day Care... That is the question... Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer The slings and arrows of financial ruin, Or take arms against a sea of barks and bites... (Thanks for sticking around while I get a little pseudo-Shakespeare out of my system. I should be good now for the......
• Recession Psychology: What Is The Greatest Loss? Recession psychology has to be a fascinating field.  There are few greater times in history to study humans than when we are all worried about the economy.  I can't pass a single person on the elavator, parking lot, break room, or water cooler that isn't talking about the recession......