The Hope of Heaven—September 6th, 2012

I sit here with a heavy heart….and a new hope for heaven. 

 A while ago, I asked God to show me the hope of heaven—growing up in the church heaven is one of the aspects of life that is grasped as a term but its hard to have as a tangible hope. These last few months, since praying for a new perspective on heaven have been tough.

I didn’t realize that part of appreciating the hope of heaven is realizing the brokenness of the world.  I have been confronted with pain and brokenness on mainly levels in the past few months--friends struggling through miscarriages, rough changes. Especially spending time in the slum here—the poverty and heart-breaking stories, walking past foot high piles of human waste, and the children telling me, their "cha" to pray for their parents who are sick, need work, and for their broken families.  Not to mention, the past 24 hours.

On Tuesday evening, my Wednesday, a dear friend passed away after a long battle with cancer. It is difficult to grasp that the fight is over. He fought valiantly and with an unwavering faith that touched so many lives. It is also hard to know that I will be home in just under two weeks and may miss the funeral.  A week or so ago, after the facebook page related that treatment was stopping…I had a chat with God…akin to Jacob wresting….and was reminded that God HAS promised this friend life…eternal life. Selfishly, it’s not what anyone who knew Nolan wanted for his life. He was a young man of integrity who loved Jesus, his wife, his family, and his friends well. A glance at his facebook page from the last couple of days is testimony to the life he lived. Please keep his wife, Kacie, in your prayers(see their story here).

It in the midst of suffering, death, pain, and poverty that the hope of heaven is realized. There is hope because this world is not all there is. Heaven is heaven because Jesus is there. There are no more tears and death has lost its sting. While this has been a tremendously difficult lesson to learn, I am thankful that there is hope. The brokenness of this world is a result of sin, the hope is our Savior. That hope is tangible not in spite of suffering, but because of it.