Unbelievable Renewal

We've had a hard, long, cold, icy winter here in the midwest.  Most conversation usually turns to "no more snow, or the weather man is outa here."   We're sick and tired of it.  The yards are brown, the driveways are muddy, the cars are dirty, and our spirits are down. 

But the promise of spring is just around the corner.  I saw green poking up in our church garden on Sunday.  I even waded  into the mud in  my good shoes to pull back dead leaves to find daylilies inviting themselves into the sun.  That gave me a little sweet surprise, something to pull out and remember throughout a busy week.

I also watched a gardening show this week on television.  It's a good thing we don't have cable, or I'd be on Home and Garden station all the time.   The demonstrators  were walking through a magnificent, green, abundant, lush, full tropical garden, I could almost smell it.  The weird thing was that I had almost forgotten what that was like.  It was as if  I was Alice, looking through a glass into another existence.  People in t-shirts and shorts,  a soft breeze, sunshine,  green everywhere, it gave me quite a yearning to be there.    It seemed like spring and summer were just a far off dream, somewhere we will never get to this year.  I felt I had peeked into paradise.

Then I wondered about what Heaven will be like.  In Orthodoxy, when we join together in liturgy, the communion service, we believe we are living in the Kingdom of Heaven, that we are surrounded by clouds of witnesses  (Hebrews 12:1). We say-- "Blessed is the Kingdom, of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto ages of ages, Amen."   

 But there is more to the Kingdom than this earthly existence we share.   Infinitely more. What of the Heaven that we are told of in the last chapters of Revelation?    All this, all that surrounds us, our earth, our homes, our stuff, will all pass away, and we will be living with a new heaven and a new earth.   There will be no sea,  nothing to separate us, or make us different.  We will be in union with God.  We will be the bride, he will be the Groom.  And it won't be an earthly marriage, one that can be tossed away, but one that keeps us eternally joined to God.  It was revealed to St. John in Revelation 21 that EVERY tear will be wiped away,  there will be no more death, no more sorrow, nor crying.  There shall be no more pain.   All former things will pass. 

When we were children, didn't we want our parents to wipe away our tears, take away the pain, the sorrow, and the little deaths we suffered through every day?   Most people reading this blog are adults,  and for many, there is no one who fills this roll on earth any more.   I know many who are suffering terrible pain, loss, and hurt, I can't take it away,  I can't wipe away all the silent, unshed tears.  I can help,  but really, at the end of the day, it is still there, haunting dreams, and stealing sleep.

Imagine this perfect world that is waiting for us.  Imagine our heavenly Father,  taking away all the past.  We won't even have a memory of our pains, sorrows, and tears.   All will be new and fresh, just like in that gardening show, only much better--an unbelievable place, full of love and our eternal  union with God. 

Enter Lent with the image of this perfect Heaven in your heart and mind.  This is our ultimate goal,  this is where our souls yearn to be.   Wake up in the mornings, sure of the knowledge that God will lead us there.  He wants to take away all that troubles you, all the pain, sorrow, and hurt.  He wants us to live forever with Him in Heaven, in a beautiful, perfect place.


From Revelation 22:17  And the Spirit and the bride say, "Come!"  And let him who hears say, "Come!" And let him who thirsts come.  Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely.  

Dianne
yearning for union with God