Heaven

I got to witness a couple pieces of heaven this past week.

One was at a birthday. A good friend of mine turned eighteen, and her family (a second family to me, really) surprised her with a new (used) car. I saw heaven in their faces. The parents were so excited to surprise their daughter with the gift and the daughter danced with tears in her eyes like she’d won the lotto.

The moment of surprise was awesome. When the car pulled up, we were all finishing lunch on the front deck of the house. Her regular face turned into confusion, then changed to disbelief, then transformed into complete joy and happiness. All of us friends and family were thrilled to be witnesses of this moment. There were hugs, pictures, laughter, and a general sense of happiness felt by everyone. It was a lot of fun.

I also saw heaven in a surprise thank you party that some of my friends gave me. I was completely stunned and almost had a heart attack when everyone yelled, “Surprise!” It was so out of left field that I still can’t believe I didn’t even have a clue. We spent the time eating, talking, and laughing together. There were even a few tears shed as we talked about life. I just felt total gratitude for my friends because their thoughtfulness and love. It was awesome.

Both of these moments made me think of heaven. Both were parties. Both had surprises. Both had careful planning and secrecy. There were lots friends and family. There was a feeling of happiness and gratefulness that permeated through everyone. And there was a lot of love.

I can’t help thinking, “I wonder what God is planning for His kids at His ultimate party.” Heaven is often described as a party by Jesus – with feasting, dancing, wine, and lots of people. What if, at that moment we die, we wake up on the other side of death and hear God, friends, and family yell, “Surprise!”

It might not be totally like that, but maybe it’s more like that than we think. He really does compare heaven, in many of His parables, to a party. And God says He’s been planning something since the creation of the world. Can you imagine that? The universe that God created is pretty dang awesome as it is – but He’s been planning something for His kids since the beginning of creating it??? Seriously?

I guess someday we’ll all get to know, won’t we? Every last one of us. I wonder how surprised we'll be? I wonder if we'll dance with joy with tears in our eyes? I'm positive there'll be lots of love.

Maybe we shouldn’t be so fearful of death because God is good and He loves us. Maybe that's why He's always saying in the scriptures, "Fear not!" He’s the creator of our life – Jesus Christ is life! - and He knows what's behind the curtain of death. He is good and He’s in control.

And He’s the King of surprises! In some ways, I can't wait.

"For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain." Phil. 1:21

Have a great day!

Jer