grace given me

It’s that time of year when everyone starts asking, “Where are you going this summer?” We’re planning a week on Smith Lake in Alabama. We’ve rented a big house in hopes that family and friends will join us. We envision days spent on a pontoon boat, in the water, playing games, grilling out, and listening to country music. Since we’ve never taken this kind of trip as a family, we’re trying to prepare well so we can make the most of the time we have together. As us San Diegans wrestle through our “Gray May” days, it’s hard to imagine the heat and humidity of a southern summer. When it comes time to pack, we’ll try to picture what we’ll need and want – but since this is new for us, we’ll be relying on advice from lake veterans and Pinterest. And with checked bag fees these days, we’ll only be able to bring so many games. While we have a vision of our trip, because we live here, it is incomplete. We can’t fully grasp what we’ll experience until we’re actually there.

This week, I was reading the gospel of John and came across two verses that struck me. In John 3:11, Jesus says, “I assure you, we tell you what we know and have seen…” Later in John 3:32, John the Baptist says of Jesus, “He testifies about what he has seen and heard…” It hit me: Jesus, who was with God in heaven, came to earth to tell us what it is like there in heaven with God. Like a friend who’s already made the very trip you’re about to take tries to tell you what to expect and best how to prepare. 

It is no one’s favorite topic to talk about death, but not a single person can escape it. We won’t be here forever. Yet one of the enemy’s best tricks is to make us afraid of thinking or talking about it. He tries to keep us in the present, causing us to live as if we’re entitled to life here forever. It’s tricky, because in many ways, it is good to live in the present. But the enemy wants us to block out the fact that we will all one day die an earthly death. As we deny the future, we grip this life too tightly, forgetting that it’s not all there is. He tempts us to idolize this life and distracts us from beholding the glory of what lies ahead for us in heaven.

When we realize the finiteness of something, we become more intentional. More thoughtful about what’s next. More deliberate with the time we’ve been given. I remember when our kids were still home, and my husband once said to me, “We have 18 summers with them.” That realization changed how we approached summer. We became intentional.

Together lets healthily accept our finiteness on this earth and not be afraid. It will take intentionality, practice, and immersing in God’s Word to anchor ourselves in the truth about our future. Just this morning I heard Hebrews 11:16: “But they were looking for a better place, a heavenly homeland. That is why God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.” Jesus came to tell us about this “city.” It has no suffering, pain, disease, sin, or death. It is a place of fellowship with God and reunion with loved ones. It is a place of unimaginable beauty. We will be given new, perfect bodies. And God has reserved the perfect vacation suite for each of us. 

The beautiful irony is, that the more we surrender to Jesus and fix our hearts on heaven, the more we enjoy life here. Knowing we had only a limited number of summers with our children helped us cherish and treasure each one more deeply. Likewise, as we get grafted into ‘the vine’ of God, we experience greater fruit on this earth. The fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Let us live out our days tethered to Christ and all the goodness he offers from now into eternity.

Lord, thank you for sending your son to give us hope and a vision for our ultimate future. As Colossians 3:2 says, help us to “Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth.” You promise that we will share in your glory. I pray that sinks into our souls – we will share your glory. You, who created the heavens and the earth, who invented love and every good and glorious emotion, who reigns forever in righteousness and justice. We will share in that glory. Help us take hold of that, so we can get excited and walk in the fullness of you today. Amen.