I recently officiated a Celebration of Life service. Following the committal, white doves were released from a cage. I joined the participants as we took in the sight of these beautiful creatures taking flight into the sky.

     The white doves that often are released at funerals and weddings are actually white homing pigeons. Homing pigeons are strong flyers and can return to their place of residence as far as 1100 miles away. While the scientific community has a number of theories as to the accuracy of their navigational abilities, little is known as to how homing pigeons find their way home.

     These amazing creatures have played important roles in the history of communication. In 1850, Paul Reuter, who later founded the Reuters press agency, used forty-five pigeons to deliver news and stock prices between Brussels and Aachen. The outcome of the battle of Waterloo was sent by carrier pigeon to England.

     Human beings have similar spiritual instincts with respect to God. The writer of Psalm 55 expresses a desire to fly like a dove toward a place of rest. St. Augustine once wrote, “O Lord, you have made us for yourself, and our heart is restless until it finds its rest in you.”

     Heaven is God’s home, as well as ours. God has placed within each of us a homing device that beckons us to be reunited with our Creator. Unfortunately, we often make the mistake of substituting false idols that fail to meet what our hearts truly need. Jobs, relationships, and money cannot provide the satisfaction we are seeking. C. S. Lewis once claimed, “These are only like the scent of a flower we have not found, the echo of a tune we have never heard, news from a country we have not visited.”

     Yet God is calling each of us to discover our home is in Him. Even more, he has given to us His Holy Spirit, who bears the responsibility of guiding us towards a lasting and fulfilling life. Our job is to look to the Spirit with a simple request. Show me, Lord, the way to go home!