Mary Ann and I have decided to homeschool Bethany next year. This has been a long decision for us and we would value your sustained prayers for this. We are all looking at this with a mixture of excitement and apprehension. For Bethany (and for us) some of the hardest part has been the "goodbyes" that came today at the last day of school. While we hope to stay involved at some level with the school and go to some of its activities, we are all going to miss the people there a lot. Mary Ann and I alternated Wednesdays in the classroom and it was really hard to know we won't see those kids and the staff much at all. For Bethany, it was knowing she wouldn't see her friends nearly as much as she does now.
As I was driving away from the school this morning I thought about the pain of goodbyes and the hole they leave in our heart (I have long felt that "goodbye" was the worst word in the English language). As I was thinking about this, and driving toward the mountains in the distance on my way to meet with someone who has really seen their life fall apart and tasted much of the pain of life, I thought, "I look forward to heaven where God has promised us that there is no more pain, no more sorrow, no more death, no more tears." I wanted to share that with you, as a reminder, while it was fresh in my mind. I know that for those who have lost loved ones who didn't know Jesus, or who have loved ones who don't know Him, heaven holds another edge to the sword, but for right now, for just this moment, for you alone, stop and think about the place Jesus has gone ahead to prepare for you---your eternal home where He Himself will wipe every tear from your eye and where you will see Him face to face and experience His love without restriction or barrier, and just rest in that moment and let everything else around you fade away as you pause there. God bless you. Rest well. Erick
Thursday, June 11, 2009
4 comments:
Thanks for your comments, I look forward to and value your sharing. Due to a large number of SPAM comments, you will need to enter a word verification before your comment will be sent to me for moderation. Your comment will be visible after I publish it. Erick
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Thanks Erick, this is the anticipation that only God can provide.
ReplyDeleteI will keep you all in my prayers! Homeschooling is a hard decision to make, we are debating the same issue right now. Jody has been in private school since 2007, and today will be her last day there. With the economy the way it is, we cannot afford to keep her in. Our plan for now is to enroll her in public school for the fall, and after a quarter, we will re-evaluate how she is adjusting and if she is challenged enough, and if not, we are going to homeschool the rest of the year!
ReplyDeleteI wish you all luck!
Larissa
Thanks for the reminder, Erick. I see previews in the beauty of nature around me, in the smile of a treasured friend, in well-blended music, etc. Don't you?
ReplyDeleteSometimes I wonder if life is so hard here on earth partly so we will anticipate our home in heaven more. I have now watched several people grow old and die -- a very challenging and difficult process. Perhaps it is so to loosen our hold on things of this earth and cause us to reach for our eternal mansion?
Excuse me while I go meditate on mine. Aaahhhh!
Thanks for the comments, all. To address your question, Amy, "yes," I see previews all around me . . . kind of like watching a grainy black and white film of a vivid color reality (that's someone else's example, can't remember who). I find I more and more long for that which I can't fulfill and experience here, and I believe that longing is in me because I was created for intimate, unobstructed fellowship with God without the tainting of sin in and around me---and that will now only be found in heaven.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if life is so hard here SO we will anticipate---I believe it is simply because we live in a fallen world---but I do believe that BECAUSE it is so hard here, we start to long more for heaven. I also believe that the more the reality of heaven (and all that it is) takes hold in our heart two things happen: 1) we start to not hold on to this world so tightly, so we serve with less restraint, and 2) we start to see the Father's heart more clearly (Your will be done on earth AS it IS done in heaven) and that gives us a clearer picture of what around us is God's doing, and what is the devil's. We can then go after the devil's work with more confidence that we are in the Father's will. At least that is how it is working for me.