Happy Presidents Day! Shoo, get those clouds out of the way; it's time for some sunshine! I don't know about you, but I haven't been outside much this winter. This year seems especially cold for some reason, must be that global warming we keep expecting. We did just have a couple of days with record high temps last week, but somehow enjoying the warm temps while desperately clinging to a pole on the side of my house just doesn't seem to be a lot of fun. When your 3/4 ton truck feels like a boat on the ocean, you know the wind is blowing hard. Well, the snow missed us for the most part. We did have some ice and a few flurries, but nothing to write home about as far as snow accumulation. The ice is probably still out there, I may wait a bit before venturing out this morning. Yesterday I could have slid down my driveway, across the street, and up into my neighbor's garage on a thin coating of ice. I'm getting old enough to make that seem just too dangerous, but yet it still sounds like fun. I worry about me sometimes...
Can you imagine Heaven? A place without the fear of danger, but with the thrill of speed. A place without the sorrow of death, but with the fierce joy of living. A place to glorify God without the self-interest that taints our worship now. A place to be overjoyed in the company of those we know, without a single stranger to be found. A place where we revel in God's perfection, and see not the slightest imperfection in our fellow creations. A place to see the Son in all his glory, while we remember that He is the one who got us there! I have trouble imagining that place, but I can start to see the wonderful awesomeness of God's eternal home.
It is hard to imagine a place of work without toil or of healing without suffering. Here on earth, work is a burden, we get fatigued, and the toil of our labor wears us down. Scabs itch, needles stick, and casts are a load to carry, and those only work for the relatively minor injuries. When we get to Heaven, the trees beside the river of life will bear fruit for healing. Can you imagine literally eating an apple and healing perfectly? And not just you and me, but entire nations will be healed by this fruit. That's some wonderful fruit; I wonder if Heaven is in the export business?
Right now, we only have one way between Heaven and us, Jesus. Goods don't seem to cross over that bridge, although from some of our advertising you might think that the products of heaven do make the trip at times. Without our Good Shepherd, we couldn't even find the bridge, much less cross over. The bridge to Heaven is long and narrow, and the entrance to this bridge is so narrow as to be almost hidden. Jesus said that only a few will find the way. Heaven seems like such a great place to be when compared with the world we live in. Yet, so few seem to want to go there in the only way possible. Don't get me wrong, everyone it seems wants to go there, but only after living a full life of wealth, fame, happiness, and selfish excess. Not many want to surrender their lives to Jesus and live in His way.
If a person does not want to admit to the Good Shepherd that he or she is a sheep in need of salvation, then there is no finding of the narrow way. A whole fleet of comfortable buses are waiting to drive folks down the freeway to destruction. Look for that narrow pathway with the Good Shepherd standing beside it.
Bucky
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