PARADISE

Scripture for the day: John 17:24 "Father, I desire that they also, whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world."

Thought for the day: Is it all right to ask for something you want when you're praying? I mean, can we go beyond our needs to ask our heavenly Father for something we would like to have and would really enjoy? I think it is; you see, as strange as it sounds, Jesus didn't need to have the disciples end up with Him in heaven. God hasn't really needed any of us to receive the promise of heaven with Him. He has provided the promise of heaven only because of His great love and the grace that love provides. His love compels Him to act, not His need. So, in His High Priestly prayer, Jesus asked the Father if He could bring them home with Him; if they could, when their task on earth was done, come to live with Him in the Father's house, not out of necessity, but out of His love for these men who had followed Him faithfully.

And what a promise He was able to give them! "My father says that, if you'll be good (good being defined as obedient and faithful, not perfect), if you’ll keep the relationship we now have, when you've finished the task I have for you, you'll be able to come and live with us forever." “What love the Father has for us, that we should be called children of God!” (1 John 3:1). Apparently this promise extended even beyond the disciples for the very next day He made the same promise to a thief who just happened to be hanging on the cross right next to His. He said something similar a few months later to a humble man named Stephen as he was being stoned to death for preaching about this Jesus and His love. And He gave His friends His permission to invite anyone they wanted to come with them for Peter told a crowd of over 3,000 people, "the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off."

Paradise; that's what He promised the thief, His disciples, Stephen, the Jews in the streets on Pentecost and each of us who've responded to His invitation down through the ages. And as soon as we have finished our journey on this globe, that's where we're going. Think of this life as a dress rehearsal for glory if you will. We're getting all the "bugs" worked out now so when we get there everything will go smoothly. Paul said, "The sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that shall be revealed in us."

I don't want to seem cold or insensitive but when we understand just a little of what God has in mind for us and the kind of place Jesus is preparing for His own, the worst the world can throw at us becomes little more than a minor inconvenience. I may be in the minority here but in paradise I'll be among those who have stayed the course and won the crown. I may not know where my next meal is coming from here but there I'll be seated at the Wedding Supper of the Lamb! I may be in bad health here and my body may be racked with pain but when I "shake off these mortal coils" I'll be whole again, leaping and jumping and praising God with the man Peter healed at the gate called Beautiful. In this world I may never have any of the wealth that would make life easier but in the next I'll walk on streets of gold. I want to get so used to walking with Jesus in the here and now that in the hereafter it won't seem the least bit strange to be seen walking by His side.

Peter told us we ought not to think it strange when we suffer trials and tribulations; God is preparing us for our heavenly home, for paradise with Him. I can't help but think it's going to be magnificent beyond anything I can imagine. Well, I better stop rambling on about heaven; I'm getting homesick. But just the thought of it and the assurance we have of the promise, "I will come again so that where I am you may be also", is enough to keep me going until then. In the meantime, go take on your world. - Bill