Wednesday, June 23, 2010
The Tug of Heaven
We are here for only a moment, visitors and strangers in the land as our ancestors were before us. Our days on earth are like a passing shadow, gone so soon without a trace.
—1 Chronicles 29:15
When we are young, we tend to think more about how God will bless us, guide us, and provide for us in this life. But as we get older, if we are smart, we also will start thinking about our future destination. If you are preparing for a trip, you probably will check the forecast for where you will be going, because you want to know how to prepare. As Christians, we are preparing for a journey, and the destination is heaven.
Deep inside us, there is a longing for a place we have never been. We are not dazzled by the world's enticements like we once were. We see these things for what they are, and they no longer have the magnetic pull they once had. But the things of God pull us even more toward Him.
This unique quality that we have inside us, this longing for heaven, is put there by God. C. S. Lewis described it as "the secret signature of each soul." It is like the little boy who, when asked how he knew his kite was still on the end of the string, replied, "I know it is there, because I can feel its pull." I know heaven is there, because I can feel its pull. And I know that one day I will be there.
The apostle Paul wrote, "Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God's right hand" (Colossians 3:1). The phrase, "set your sights," speaks of a diligent act of single-minded investigation. Another way to translate this verse is simply, "Think heaven." As Warren Wiersbe has said, "For the Christian, heaven isn't simply a destination; it's a motivation."
Is heaven your motivation today?
Copyright © 2010 by Harvest Ministries. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
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