Hungry for Home: Why We All Long for Something Real
- Mike Stone
- Aug 26
- 3 min read
When I first came across a letter written to the CEO of Cracker Barrel, I assumed it was just another protest against a logo change. You know the kind—companies update their branding, and the internet erupts with outrage.
But this letter was different. It wasn’t angry, and it wasn’t shallow. It was heartfelt. It wasn’t about pancakes or biscuits at all. It was about something much deeper: the longing for home.
The man wrote that when he saw Cracker Barrel’s old logo—a man in a chair next to a barrel—he saw his dad. A country boy. A man who would rather fix a neighbor’s tractor than wander the aisles of a fancy market. For him, food always was “farm to table.”
When he visited Cracker Barrel with his dad, it wasn’t about biscuits or gravy. It was about atmosphere. About warmth. About a place that felt like home.
But after the company rebranded, the man felt something was lost. He said the new look was sterile, modern, and forgettable. His words stuck with me:
“I can get pancakes anywhere. What I long for is home.”
And I think that line says something not just about restaurants—but about all of us.
Why Nostalgia Hits So Deep
We live in a world that changes constantly. Logos get “modernized.” Restaurants get “updated.” Even churches feel pressure to be more “relevant.” And yet, so many of us are left asking: why doesn’t it feel the same anymore?
That’s why nostalgia is so powerful. A smell, a song, a place—it can transport us back to something we’re afraid we’ve lost. But here’s the thing: it’s not really the past we want. It’s home.
The Bible Calls It Homesickness
The truth is, this longing is not just about rocking chairs and fireplaces. It’s about God.
Ecclesiastes 3:11 tells us that God has “set eternity in the human heart.” Deep down, we are all homesick for something more than this world can offer.
Hebrews 11 says the heroes of faith “admitted that they were strangers and exiles on the earth” because they were looking for a better country—a heavenly one.
Jesus Himself said in John 14: “In My Father’s house are many rooms… I go to prepare a place for you.” That’s the home our souls are craving.
So when we feel that ache, that longing, that homesickness? It’s not just nostalgia. It’s our soul remembering that this world isn’t our final home.
The Hope We Have
Here’s the good news: while restaurants rebrand, while cultures shift, while even our own families change—God does not.
Hebrews 13:8 reminds us: “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”
Our true home isn’t found in a building, a logo, or a memory. It’s found in Him. Psalm 90:1 says, “Lord, you have been our dwelling place throughout all generations.”
God Himself is our home.
A Personal Invitation
Maybe you’ve felt it lately—that ache, that emptiness, that sense that the world is moving too fast and nothing feels quite stable. Friend, that’s not just longing for simpler times. That’s your soul longing for God.
And the invitation is open. He calls you home—not to biscuits and pancakes, but to Himself. To the love, security, and belonging you were created for.
So yes, you can get pancakes anywhere. But what you long for—what we all long for—is home. And that home is found in Him.
Watch the full story:
Why Does Cracker Barrel Feel Like Home?
✍️ If this encouraged you, you might enjoy the full podcast episode where I unpack this story in detail. Listen here: BehindTheMike.net
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