Home away from Earth
God has really been impressing on my heart the past few weeks a joy and desire for heaven. I love the earth, but knowing that heaven is even greater blows my mind. I used to really be afraid of the thought of eternity (it is still a bit scary). I mean, it seems odd that I will never just cease to exist, which in some ways would be kind of a relief. But, the thought of eternity in heaven. That’s a big thought.
Awhile ago I expressed to Josh my fear of eternity and said that I’d rather just cease to exist. He said, “Maybe you’re underestimating what God has prepared for us.” That got me thinking. What could God create that would be so cool that I would want to live for eternity…that eternity would be an awesome thing and not a scary thing? What will heaven be like?
When I saw the movie What Dreams May Come, I saw a hell that really frightened me. I mean, if hell was like that, I certainly did not want to be there. That would not be a pleasant place to be for a minute, let alone an eternity. But, the heaven…that was a place that I could be. I mean, I know the movie has some issues theologically and I also know that my human self cannot fathom the greatness of heaven or of the mind of God and what he has prepared for us. But, if heaven is anything like how it is in that movie… sweet. Sign me up.
Last year in my small group, one of our Bible study topics (from Lies Women Believe) was that God is not like our earthly fathers. Some of the girls in my group had absent or “bad” fathers, so this was a good topic to discuss. But, I found myself thinking that if God was, for some reason, exacltly like my earthly father, faults included, that I would be overjoyed. And it blew my mind to know that God was even better than my earthly dad. And it got me really wanting to know Him more and wondering what it will be like to spend eternity with Him.
I also know that heaven will be a great place of worship. And there are so many ways to worship God. And I was looking at all of the ways that I worship God on earth – through singing, through relationships, through prayer, through sports, through art…so much! And it delights me to know that in heaven I will have no fear of death and no tears and will live eternally in worship with my Lord.
Revelation 21:1-4
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”