When We Get To Heaven

 My entire family is still processing the death of my 36-year-old niece. Her surviving twin brother is, of course, dealing with more than the rest of us can imagine. It has been more than a month since she passed away but for him, it feels like yesterday.

Whenever someone I love dies, the first thing I think about is whether or not they had accepted Christ. Thankfully, I have not lost anyone who, to my knowledge, rejected the Lord. So I can be sad for my loss but happy for their gain. And it always makes me think about Heaven.

That simple and beautiful song, "Dancing in the Sky" by Dani and Lizzy captures some of my thoughts. I do wonder what my loved ones are doing in Heaven. 

When I was thinking about my niece recently, I had to smile because I was thinking that she was seeing everything beautiful. She could be talking with the Lord about what he named the stars. She could be feeling the warmth of God's love shining on her. She really could be dancing in the sky.

In my mind, I imagine that it would take an eternity for us to explore Heaven and never see it all. How wonderful to think that my niece will never again know fear or sadness or tears on her face. When looking for some description of Heaven, Got Questions shares this in part:

The city is filled with the brilliance of costly stones and crystal clear jasper. Heaven has twelve gates (Revelation 21:12) and twelve foundations (Revelation 21:14). The paradise of the Garden of Eden is restored: the river of the water of life flows freely and the tree of life is available once again, yielding fruit monthly with leaves that “heal the nations” (Revelation 22:1-2). However eloquent John was in his description of heaven, the reality of heaven is beyond the ability of finite man to describe (1 Corinthians 2:9).

I emphasized that last part because it is so definitely true. Whenever I find myself dazzled by anything beautiful in this world, I know that everything in Heaven will be infinitely more beautiful. That just overwhelms my mind and makes me so happy.

So, I'm thinking about my niece and my mother and all the other loved ones I have lost. And I am trying to imagine their joy at being with the Lord. Old people use to have a saying that we should mourn coming into this world and rejoice at leaving it. That was meant, of course, for those who put their faith in Jesus. Those people described someone's death as their "homegoing". Not everyone is choosing that destination though. We all need to pray for everyone to spend their eternity with the Lord.

Peace

--Free

Rest In Peace?

 When I was reading Flipboard obituaries the other day (the older I get, the more I pay attention to death notices), one article about a famous person made one of those statements that always makes me pause. 

"He(or she) is now free of their pain". Or: "They are at peace now." Or: "They are with the angels now".

These all are touching and probably a comfort to those left in mourning. 

But...

As a Christian, I always wonder why we just assume that everyone who dies goes on to "rest in peace" or "dance with the angels" or that they are "out of their pain". What if they rejected the love of God? What if they denied His being? What if they just never even gave Him more than a passing thought?

Are those people resting in peace? I don't think so. I actually know that they are not because the Bible tells us so.

I recently lost someone I was once very close to. When I knew them, this person was ambivalent about God and, sometimes, even irritated by the thought of there being a God. When I heard that this person had died, I hoped that they had perhaps cried out to God for mercy. I pray that for everyone who disbelieves. I even hope that for the worse persons I can think of. After all, I could have died in my ignorance and complacency.

So, while I never say to anyone in mourning that their loved one is not "resting peacefully" or ballroom dancing with angels, I do have to almost gnaw off my tongue. What would be the point? The dead are past finding the salvation they ignored while living. What I try sometimes to do is remind the grief-stricken that this might be a chance to consider their own mortality.

In my shame, I have to admit that I don't always point this out when I have the chance. 

Pay attention to death, people. Our death will have more impact on us than any part of our life ever could. 

I wish I could say about every person I know that when they die, they are at peace. I wish I could say that we will all be in Heaven. But we can't wish for someone what they don't want for themselves.

Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him. John 3:36

Notice that the verse mentions belief and obedience. So, those professing belief need to learn about obedience.

That's it for this post but in my next one, I want to talk about why I don't understand Atheism or Agnosticism. I've heard some of them claim that if God is so loving, He would not send people to Hell. I wonder if they ever realize that God doesn't send them to Hell but they go with their unbelief?

Peace

--Free

Thinking About My Auntie

My "aunt" passed away this past Sunday. She was really my cousin but, since she was about 15 years older than me, I've always called her "Auntie". She was my mother's niece and when I was going through one of the worst times in my life, Mama was already gone so Auntie was the one I ran to. She held me when I cried, built me up when I felt stupid and unlovable. We communicated a lot without having to talk much.

She was the master of the random segue and I realize now that she knew just when to say or do something to keep me from sliding into one of those black holes of too much thought, too much doubt, too much wanting to just wither away and be out of my pain. We'd be sitting together, maybe watching TV or just looking out into the back yard at the weather and out of nowhere, she'd laugh and then remind me of something funny that had happened years ago. Sometimes, she would just get up to go into another room and, passing by me, put a calming hand on my shoulder or pat me softly.

When I was younger, I was a little bit afraid of Auntie. She was a gruff woman, very direct in the way she dealt with people. She never hesitated to let anyone know whether she thought they were being silly, stupid, or just plain dumb. She could do this with a brief glance. I was a shy teenager and I remember being at her house one holiday. We had the food set up on one large table in the dining room and everyone lined up to fill their own plates. When I hung back, she barked that I better get my little narrow behind over there and get some food. I just about died when my mother and siblings laughed at the look on my face. I got in line with a quickness though. Auntie went on muttering under her breath about how I looked like I blow over if someone opened a door too fast. When I wasn't putting enough food on my plate, she added more. I cringed until she leaned over and touched her face to my head and said, "Such a pretty little thang. Get some more of that gravy on those potatoes there."

Eventually, I learned to relax around Auntie. She loved the fact that I was a bookworm and she'd brag to people that I had probably read my way through a public library. In her own very gruff and unique way she made me feel pretty and smart and loved. She was like that with anyone she cared about. One minute she'd be telling someone off and the next, she'd be laughing with them or giving them one of her bear hugs.

Here's something I will never forget about Auntie: I never saw her sleep in a bed. She always slept in a chair. She would pull a light blanket over herself and cover her face. I don't know if she even slept any other way when she was younger. What's hilarious about this is that she spent her entire career of over 30 years working for a mattress company. She could and did get huge discounts on mattresses for family members. My mother got a top-of-the-line mattress one year, courtesy of Auntie.

Auntie had a life-long partner who died just weeks before she did. When she called to tell me that my "uncle" had passed, I could hear in her voice that she felt done for. She sounded more tired and defeated than I had ever heard her. Years ago, she lost one of her only 2 children - her son - and she'd been grieving but not beaten. When her mother, my real aunt had died not long after my own mother, she had reminded me that both women were now rejoicing together in Heaven. She had been grieving her lost but not beaten by it. When my uncle died though, she sounded resigned. It was as if she had fought all the battles she could handle.

And I know that she is now at rest and in peace.

The last time I spoke to Auntie, it was just days after my uncle's passing. I wanted to know how she was "holding up" as we say. I don't remember what she told me but I remember that I knew she was really drained and given out. My uncle had been suffering for the past couple of years with dementia and my aunt had been in the hospital herself with heart problems just a few months before he died.

But now she is at rest and in peace.

My auntie never had an easy life. She worked so hard for so many years and looked forward to a nice retirement. Because of problems beyond her control, she had to use up her retirement money so she ended up struggling along on her social security. She spent several years struggling as a parent. She spent at least 5 years taking care of her sick mother. Her knees were bad from her years on her feet in a factory. Her heart was probably under a lot of strain from all her worries about everything. She never had it easy but she was always trying to be an encouragement to everyone else.

And she is now being rewarded with rest and peace.

I am thinking about and being thankful for my auntie. I am thinking about and looking forward to when I will see her again. Heaven is on my mind. I am thinking so much about Heaven. I will talk about that next time because it's possible for all of us to one day be at rest and in peace. Please know that.

Peace
--Free

This is one of my favorite songs. I especially like to hear it when I have lost another loved one.

God Is In the Details

When I am doing Bible study, I often forget that everything in that collection of books - prophecies, parables, incidents - is all tied together in a way that would be impossible without divine intention. As Chuck Missler points out, "every detail in the Scripture is there by design".

In my recent Bible study, I was listening to the audiobook of "Heaven and Hell" by Missler. I am never disappointed by one of his sessions and it's because he always points out details other teachers miss. One of those intentional details.

In one part of the session, he spoke about how when God promised to give back double what Job has lost. I have studied the book of Job so many times (because I tend to turn to that book when I am going through trials myself), but I missed an important detail.

Everything Job lost was replenished two-fold - except for his children. He started with 7 sons and 3 daughters and after his testing, he had 7 sons and 3 daughters.

This has always stumped me and it's been used by scoffers to explain their disbelief. Missler teaches in other studies that we should take notes of anything like this - things that we cannot understand - so that we can look back on it later. (I'm paraphrasing badly, but...)

The children Job lost are alive in Heaven so when he gained another 7 sons and 3 daughters, he had his two-fold share of them.

Once Missler pointed this out, I realized that, as usual, I had been isolating my study of Job from the rest of the Bible. The situation of Job's children having been replaced is tied together with other promises in the Bible.

I just wanted to share that little tidbit with you. I'm sure that we all run into things that stump us when we are studying the Bible. For sure, things like this are thrown at us by people contesting the truth of the Bible. I hope that we Christians remember to use these incidents to strengthen ourselves and our witnessing to others.

When it comes to the Bible, to salvation, and to faith, it's God the Father in the details. He owns the details.

Peace
--Free

 I am listening to the study on an audiobook available from my library. 

You might find it in yours via the Libby, Hoopla, or Overdrive apps.

I thought I would include this for anyone who has not seen it before now: