Emergency Room, Dishwasher, and Youth Group - What These Three Have in Common

This morning I sit, coffee in hand, praying before I begin to type:

"Lord, let these jumbled thoughts turn into something usable...and, well, useful, to You, because You've allowed them to be useful to someone else."

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Wednesday was an interesting day.

There were THREE BIG THINGS about Wednesday. Somehow, I'll tie these events together (at least, that's the desire)...

1) Husband went to the emergency room for several hours. He has this heart-thing going on. It's been a norm for us for years. Without rhyme or reason, he starts going into A-fib, and his heart rate begins to soar, even when he's resting (or trying to). So, think of his problem in this way: his poor heart works as hard as if he is running two, or three, marathons back-to-back (but, contrary to the "run-Forrest-run" mantra, in this house, Forrest's-don't-do-run); so, to say this is exhausting seems redundant. Nothing works, not even the meds they give to slow it all down. It seems like his heart just has to work itself back into a regular beat. However, we have a heart doc, and we are in process of figuring this out...

The whole incident reminded me how quickly life can change, and that eternity is just a heart-beat away.

2) I found a dishwasher on sale, bit-the-bullet, and bought it. I've been without for some time, and, while I love doing dishes, I am grateful for appliances when life is full and busy, which ours often is. It's my Mother's Day, birthday, Christmas present for a lot of years to come... I'm wanting it to be the last dishwasher we ever have to purchase.

3) I had the privilege of sharing my most-important-life-story with around 65 youth. All combined, they have a lot of life left to live on this earth. They should have A LOT OF HOPE, but truth-be-told, when I walked down the stairs, and into the room, I sensed this prevailing emotion of HOPELESSNESS... To me, it felt like a heavy presence hovering about. Processing it as I stood there, I realized the only answer to this void is THE-HOPE-of-HEAVEN...Jesus. GOOD NEWS - this is the gist of my story. So, prayerfully, I brought a little of that Heavenly Hope down to earth... It seems cliche, but there is so much truth in these five words (emphasis on the word ALL):

I know you are already getting the connection.

The all-day, consuming theme of Wednesday revolved around eternity.

Heaven, mostly.

Not surprising.

This is where my study on hope has ultimately led.

So much of hope is intertwined with passages of Scripture on Heaven. Scriptures that remind us of the glimpses that the Apostle John received during his exile on Patmos Island:

Hope and Heaven can not be separated.

When we find ourselves stuck in the middle of life, and wondering if tomorrow is worth it, thinking about heaven reminds me, there is just so much purpose in living fully today. Why? Because tomorrow-in-Jesus really does promise me the "happily-ever-after" of Fairy Tales. Let's face it, the cry of our hearts is to know our lives all work out for good.

 

Heaven tells me that one day, I will dwell in the Palace with the King forever.
It is my happily-ever-after-ending.
It is yours, too, if Jesus has laid claim to your heart.
And, it is definitely beyond imagination...even though, Scripture makes me think we should try.

If you are at all like me, thoughts of heaven are rare...

...and, when I do have them, they aren't necessarily biblically based.

Randy Alcorn, in his book titled, Heaven, says this:

"Tragically, most people do not find their joy in Christ and Heaven. In fact, many people find no joy at all when they think about heaven." 

John Eldridge (Journey of Desire):

"Nearly every Christian I have spoken with has some idea that eternity is an un-ending church service... We have settled on an image of the never-ending sing-along in the sky, one great Hymn after another, forever and ever and ever...Amen. And, our hearts sink - Forever and ever? That's it? That's the good news? Then we sigh and feel guilty that we are not more spiritual. We lose heart, and we turn once more to the present to find what life we can."

I realize I am often guilty of not making heaven seem more desirable than earth; a place-beyond that offers so-much-more!

Heaven is a place of HOPE, beyond expectation, that we can constantly turn to for filling our ever-emptying-hope-banks.

This earth is not the end of my story.

Here is where I start to take a road-in-the-bend journey in my study of hope, to capture a little glimpse of heaven from the view-point of the Creator of it all.

I'd love for you to join in...

...And, as we start down this road, rest easy, I won't have to take much time away to do my dishes. They will be getting clean as I dig deeper.