A Most Wonderful Imagining…

Yesterday I noticed this verse: “The wolf and the lamb shall graze together; the lion shall eat straw like the ox, and dust shall be the serpent’s food. They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain,” says the Lord. (Isaiah 65:25) and commented to hubby that it looks like there will be animals in the hereafter.

Children want their pets to be there. I hope for color and creativity. We all look forward to seeing those who have gone before us. This morning I read Phil Callaway’s devotional and he wondered if there would be golf courses there. Maybe every shot a hole-in-one?

The apostle Paul said, “I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better.” (Philippians 1:23) He knew that God “has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, he has put eternity into man’s heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end.” (Ecclesiastes 3:11) and that, “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him” (1 Corinthians 2:9).

Yet there are clues, like the verses about lions and lambs and the promise of being with Jesus forever. And at times the longing for such perfections is great. Callaway rightly says that only Jesus Christ can truly satisfy our thirst. He quotes C.S. Lewis: “If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world.”

Along with these writers, I also wonder how God feels when He sees us hanging on so tightly to this life with its short-lived pleasures. Callaway calls them “a gopher-infested golf course with sand greens like the ones I played on as a kid” and how some seem to dread the home Jesus  has been creating and how it is “a little like trying to explain the pleasures of driving a Ferrari to a two-year-old who would rather play with a cardboard box.”

I don’t care much if there is golf in heaven. I know there is food and likely that includes chocolate? Maybe pizza? Maybe colors I’ve never seen yet? Will I quilt or draw there? I don’t know. 

But I do know this: all that I’ve enjoyed here will not be on my mind when I see Jesus with His arms outstretched to welcome me home. Life with Him will satisfy every desire — forever.

PRAY: Thoughts of heaven are like mental trips to the mountains, or the seashore, or watching a stupendous sunset, or riding an Arab stallion, or painting a masterpiece, or winning a Pulitzer, or watching children at play, or seeing my entire family worshiping You — and You tell me that my heart has not imagined what You have prepared for me. Life here is often an incredible lovely surprise. Heaven will be better? You said it and the joy of knowing that holds me until that day. . . .  Amen.

Amazing Hope. . . .

So far, this has been a challenging week with concern for friends, odd health issues, spiritual lessons that seem impossible to learn and apply, interruptions to almost every task, and a long to-do list, meetings and appointments, and new information flying at me like angry wasps. I felt abandoned at times, like Jesus had other more important things to deal with and the battles were mine alone.

Today’s reading is like warm oil. It begins with: “They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads.” (Revelation 22:4)

When John wrote of his experiences in exile, he saw a sealed scroll and was concerned that no one could open it and he began to weep. However. . . .  

One of the elders said to me, “Weep no more; behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals.”

Then Jesus appeared between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders, standing as a Lamb as though it had been slain. He took the scroll and the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before Him, each holding a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. And they sang a new song, saying, “Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation, and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth.”

Then John heard the voice of many angels around the throne and the living creatures and the elders. These angels numbered myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands. They said with a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!”

Not only that, every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, were saying, “To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!” And the four living creatures said, “Amen!” and the elders fell down and worshiped. (Revelation 5:1–14)

The Bible does not tell us much about heaven, but this is awesome. I will have a clear vision of Christ. Everything which now hinders my sight of Him will be removed. My many sins, earthly cares and sorrows will be gone, and like the song that blesses me, there will be nothing between me and my Savior, nothing to rival Christ or distract me from all that is in Him.

See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure. (1 John 3:1–3)

This is full redemption — seeing the face of Jesus with all evil and every fleshy impulse totally eradicated. I long for that complete transformation when my will and heart are totally one with His will and heart. No more battles with sin. Total bliss.

PRAY: Jesus, thank You for such a wonderful hope, particularly when the days are long and filled with so much of the struggles that will not be in heaven. What a great blessing to know that when I at last see Your face, I will be perfectly satisfied. In the meantime, thank You also for the challenge to purify myself as You are pure, doing this by obedience to another truth from John: “If I confess my sins, You are faithful and just to forgive my sins and to cleanse me from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9) Truly, You are a worthy and awesome God.

Patient in trials — for God’s glory!

 
A quote from yesterday sticks with me today. When Jesus told His disciples to pray “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven,” He revealed a most remarkable thing: His will done here gives us heaven on earth. It gave me a deeper longing to experience the will of God!

I delight to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart.” (Psalm 40:8)

When Jesus told His disciples that He had food to eat that they did not know about, they were thinking physical food, but Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work." (John 4:34)

Physical food is not only necessary for life but also enjoyable to eat and makes me feel satisfied. Oh, I can overdo it, eat too much, or eat the wrong things, or consume something that makes me feel ill, but generally food is a delightful part of life. (I’m thinking the chicken wings at the Mossleigh restaurant and the Lobster Bisque we had last Thursday, and countless recipes discovered and created in my own kitchen.)

And Jesus said that His food was to do God’s will! How incredible a description for something that a lot of people think of as sacrifice and a duty, even a giving up of enjoyment. This is the difference between “I must” and “I’d love to” — a delight in doing whatever my beloved Lord asks of me, not because of the perks of it, but because it is the heart of God expressed through me, the Hand in this glove, the reason I’m here.

Yesterday was stressful and lovely both. Stressed because my devotions were interrupted at least six times. The phone rang often. Someone dropped in. I needed a file from a government website and it locked me out several times. After three hours of trying, making calls, and waiting, the person online could not help, transferred me to another person, and I went through the process of proving my identity at least three times after their site kept shutting me out — three times in the same three ways for the same person on the other line! It was no fun at all.

But in the middle of the day, there was a lovely prayer time with two friends. Also, God gave me answers to moving issues that seemed to have no answers. An appointment that would add more stress was postponed, and my hubby did the supper dishes. This made the frustrations feel less stressful, but I still wondered what is the will of God in them? One thing comes to mind:

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. (James 1:2–4)

I didn’t meet the stressful stuff with joy and steadfastness. I could excuse this with “I didn’t get enough sleep” or some other reasoning, but that isn’t the honest answer. My failure was more about wanting the day to be easy and my will to be done. God essentially let me know that His will includes interruptions (Jesus had lots of them) and other negatives — such as being misunderstood, no one listening,  the frustration of betrayal, and the weight of bearing the sins of the world, including mine. Yet it was His “food” to do the will of God, and He did it so the “world may know that He loves the Father.” (John 14:31)

PRAY: Jesus, You show me that putting up with the trials of life is not just about me learning steadfast patience. Doing Your will could have a far-reaching effect on those around me, so they can see Your love in action, even have a taste of heaven. Forgive me for my impatience of yesterday and grant me the ability to at least be patient with the stresses of life, or better yet, downright joyful — knowing that You can use this for Your glory.

What is heaven like?

 

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places . . .  (Ephesians 1:3)

Heaven is hard to imagine. Once I realized eternity is without time and is all ‘now’ rather than past, present, and future, imagining it became even more difficult. The OT says it is unknown, and the NT says we cannot imagine it, and yet God does reveal many things to us by His Spirit:

But, as it is written, “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him”— these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit . . . (1 Corinthians 2:9–10)

Jesus said it is a “kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.” Paul wrote about it in connection to our bodies. The physical will perish, but we are only living in that body like a person would live in a tent. He said:

For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling, if indeed by putting it on we may not be found naked. For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdened—not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee. (2 Corinthians 5:2–5)

That and other passages tell me that I will have a new body. One compares it to a seed that dies but a plant grows from it, and that plant is not like the seed. This new body is imperishable, meaning no more sickness or aging. It does not say if that means new like an infant though, nor tell what the bodies of babies who died will be like, nor say anything about pets or animals in heaven, only that we will be changed and be like Jesus.

The NT also describes heaven as a city with jewels in the walls and gates and streets of gold, even calling this city “the Bride” as the “wife of the Lamb” further mystifying heaven.

Jesus told His disciples that it was a definite place and that He would be there:

In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. (John 14:2–3)

For me, that is enough. I can speculate what I might be doing, but know that worship and praise will be a huge part of it. Will I paint sunsets and have long visits with loved ones? Will I dance with Jesus? Lots of ideas but the only certainty is that life after death will be incredible and awesome.

Today’s devotional says that most Christians are more occupied with this life than the next, forgetting or ignoring that this is not our home; we are just passing through. MacArthur says “Christians hold a dual citizenship. We are citizens of earth, but, more importantly, we are also citizens of Heaven.” He quotes passages that tell me to think that way:

But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself. (Philippians 3:20–21)

If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. (Colossians 3:1–4)

While age tends to bring on thoughts of heaven, God wants all His children to have an eternal perspective. If I put my life on a continuum line representing eternity, it is a mere dot, or perhaps like a tiny molecule in a sea of forever. Living His way is about seeking first His kingdom and righteousness, about not letting the cares of this world overtake His promises about the next, and about putting to death all that is sinful and worldly. It is also about telling others of Jesus, who is my everything — both in this life and the next. I know enough about heaven to want everyone to be there!

RESOURCES: Matthew 25:34, 1 Corinthians 15:35-56, 1 John 2:17; 3:1-3, Hebrews 11:16, Revelation 21:2-27,