As God’s children, we occupy this world only as pilgrims.  Peter referred to saints as such in his first epistle.

1 Peter 2:11 (NKJV)
¹¹ Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul,

The Hebrews writer referred to God’s people of old, especially the Patriarchs, in the same way (Hebrews 11:13), and we even find Abraham referring to himself with such language.

Genesis 23:4 (ESV)
⁴ “I am a sojourner and foreigner among you; give me property among you for a burying place, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.”

Abraham never abandoned this pilgrim mentality.  Instead, he always looked for something better than what this world had to offer.

Hebrews 11:9–10 (ESV)
⁹ By faith he went to live in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. ¹⁰ For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God.

One of the keys to our success as Christians is realizing that this world is not our home and, then, living like it.  When we get too attached to the things of this world, we start living worldly lives; thus, it is imperative that we develop the mentality of pilgrims and not treat this world, and the things in it, as our final destination.  Why was Paul willing to count all things loss for the sake of Christ (Philippians 3:7)?  In part, because he knew that this world, nor the things in it, were permanent.  Like the rest of us, this world is just a place we are passing through.  As Christians, our real home is heaven.

Philippians 3:20 (ESV)
²⁰ But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ,

Knowing that this world is not our home should help us focus on the really important things in our lives…things that are spiritual rather than earthly and carnal.  This does not mean we should never get involved in earthly things.  Much good can be done by being a participant in social affairs, but when we remember that we are sojourners in this world, we will avoid allowing those things to take too high of a priority in our lives.  It is easy to get caught up in things like sports, politics, or even our earthly occupation, to the point that they become more important than our service to God.  Since Paul knew where his true citizenship was, he never got too entangled in those things, and he warned us not to either.

2 Timothy 2:4 (ESV)
⁴No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him.

Do you have the pilgrim’s mentality?  If you do, it will be reflected in your lifestyle.

“An American tourist paid a visit to a renowned Polish rabbi. He was astonished to see that the rabbi’s home was only a simple room filled with books, plus a table and a cot.  The tourist asked, “Rabbi, where is your furniture?” The rabbi replied, “Where is yours? “The puzzled American asked, “Mine? But I’m only a visitor here. I’m only passing through.” The rabbi said, “So am I.”

As you wind down for the night, think about these things.