Hi Brian!
I came across a devotional by Andrew Womack the other day that I thought you might like! It's all about our view of Heaven!
Heaven
Mark 12:25 'For when they shall rise from the dead, they neither marry, nor are given in marriage; but are as the angels which are in heaven.'
The word heaven comes from the Greek word meaning 'the sky; heaven as the abode of God'; by implication, 'happiness; power; an eternity.'
Paul mentioned being caught up into 'the third heaven' in 2 Corinthians 12:2. Since 'the third heaven' exists, there must also be a first and second heaven. The first is probably the atmospheric heaven, the second, the abode of supernatural angelic beings, and the third, the place where God dwells.
God now dwells in the hearts of His people, but He also sits on His throne in heaven. The Lord's commitment to dwell in us and never leave us or forsake us, must be taken as an indication of His great love for us. Heaven has a real temple which is patterned after the Old Testament tabernacle. Saints who die go immediately into heaven and into the presence of God.
Paul had a vision of heaven that made him long to go there. Most people cling to this physical life for selfish reasons. Only when we lose our life (die to self and live for Christ and others) do we truly find out what life is all about. If we seriously thought about what the scriptures teach us about our life with Christ after this physical life, we would all think like Paul. The things prepared for us are so wonderful that we can't totally comprehend them with our finite mind. We need to value our eternal life more and our temporal life less. This would solve many problems and remove a lot of grief.
I LOVE this attitude! There is no question that we will be in Heaven when we finish our race here in this life, but keeping mindful of Heaven, and all that is promised to us of that next life, makes our time here on earth even more valuable! Heaven is for all of eternity and it is beyond description that can be understood by our natural, human thinking! That being said, just the thought of all that awaits makes everything expected of us here and now so much more meaningful and important! You are and your beautiful, smart, loving, funny, friendly and determmined family are such an insrpiration and make people rise up and take notice! One of the things that they notice is that you all have "been with Jesus"! You won't even know until we all are together in Heaven just how many people and families that you all have touched, blessed, challenged and inspired towards JESUS! The Word of God tells us that our faithfulness here and now will provide for us an "abundant entrance into Heaven" at that time! 2 Peter 1:10-11:
10 Because of this, brethren, be all the more solicitous and eager to make sure (to ratify, to strengthen, to make steadfast) your calling and election; for if you do this, you will never stumble or fall.11 Thus there will be richly and abundantly provided for you entry into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.But until then, this life is so much fun as we continue to trust in God and His Word! And the next will be SO MUCH BETTER! Here is Hillsong Young and Free with "Even When The Fight Calls":
When The Fight Calls
Love and Shalom from the Swoveys!
