Daily Devotional

Where is the best place in the world to live? According to an annual survey of the Economist Intelligence Unit, Vancouver, British Columbia, has hit the top for the fifth year in a row. Cities are rated in five areas: stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education, and infrastructure. Second place went to Melbourne, Australia, and third to Vienna, Austria. But wait a minute!

The United Nations listed Norway as the most desirable country in the world in which to live, followed by Australia and Iceland. At the bottom of its list are Niger, Afghanistan, and Sierra Leone, especially because of war and AIDs epidemics. Except that CNN reports that International Living magazine voted France, for a fifth year in a row, the best place in the world to live! You can get 12 months of paid maternity leave in France, guaranteed by law. Finally, Forbes shares the research of international human resource consulting company Mercer, which puts Vienna, Austria, at the top. In fact, not one place in the United States makes the list.

So where is paradise? Where is the perfect place to live? It depends. Most people are pretty happy right where they are at this moment. The environment is certainly nicer in some parts of the world than others, though toxins have touched our entire planet wherever you go. The biggest problem with finding the perfect place to live is that any place that has a human being will be imperfect, including your own home—that includes the person who looks back at you from the mirror every morning.

Paul writes about an acquaintance who apparently had a vision of paradise (2 Corinthians 12:4), also known as the garden of Eden. This special place was our first home, but our planet has undergone some changes since God first created the perfect place for us to live. Someday Eden will be restored (Revelation 2:7). When that day comes, we will have no doubts about the best place in the world to live.