Have you ever lived out of this country? We lived in a foreign country for over 25 years. We lived there. Paid bills there. Had friends there. Had our children there. But all that time, our citizenship was here in this country. We knew that though we went through heartaches, trials, troubles, and conflicts, we were going to leave and come back to this country. It was not our home. Not legally nor emotionally.

    We were bound by the laws of that country. But there were so many things that made us different. It was not hard to tell that we did not belong there. We were foreigners. We were in that country, but we were not of that country.  

    When it rained on that country, we got wet. When the sun shined, it shined on us. But we lived in a way that did not bring reproach on our home country. We lived there during the administrations of Presidents Johnson, Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan, and Bush, but we never talked against our president.

    We did what we could to keep a low profile. When we went to town, we tried to dress in such a way that we did not stand out. We did not mix in the politics of the country. We did not try to persuade people to our way of thinking. We did what we thought was right, and left the rest alone. We left Mexico to the Mexicans.

    So in this world believers are subject to the ups and downs of this world. We are sick just like the people of this world. We have tribulation just like all the rest. When there is no food we get hungry like the rest. In this world we submit to those in authority. We lead orderly and peaceable lives. We are simply passing through. Bless it in your travel, but do not yoke yourself with its affairs. You may wish all things were different, but remember you are in a foreign country. When possible we help those among whom we lived. We do what we can to point them to Christ – to point them to eternal life. You cannot make the world like Heaven, so do not make it a dwelling place for your soul.