Thankful in the Storms

I got up this morning with the intention to mow the back yard (at my grandparents' house... we've been housesitting for them for a week but they're coming home today!).  Then, when we were finishing breakfast, I heard thunder.  It's stormed nearly every morning for the last week!

I have Pandora on (it's kind of become an obsession... I love all the fun/inspiring music playing while I'm writing at home or working at the library), and a little while ago the song "Praise You in the Storm" came on. My life isn't really a "storm" right now, but it just made me smile because of the thunderstorm that was going on at the time.  (It's since quit... now I have no excuse to not go mow the lawn!)

The point is, it was little reminder that I can always be thankful, even when it might not make sense (thank you, God, for [insert really difficult thing here]).  It's been easy to be thankful for a lot of things-- the fact that my grandparents basically let us eat whatever we wanted out of the fridge and freezer, so I didn't have to buy groceries this week.  The wonderful friends and fantastic coworkers I have.  Time to rest and relax with my husband in the evenings.  The opportunity to witness and enjoy an incredibly beautiful wedding last weekend.

But I know that life isn't always made up of things for which it's easy to say "thank you."  We experience loss.  Grief.  Depression.  Financial difficulty.  The day-to-day stress which, when it piles up, seems too much to bear.  The sick child.  The loss of a job.  The death of a parent.  The move of a dear friend.

In those times, it's hard to be thankful.  I've had experiences of my own when I wondered, what good can possibly come from this?

Sometimes I've seen the good that has come from those times.  A lot of the time I don't... but I know that God always brings good even out of the worst things.  He promises that he will, so I can trust that.

It's not easy to trust in that, but that's why faith is a gift from God, not something I can produce on my own.

If you're in a valley right now, I just want you to know that God is there, too.  He has a plan--even if you don't know what it is--and he will bring about blessing through those trials, whether for you or someone else.

Evil has already lost in this world: Satan has been vanquished and Jesus has conquered.  Even the most horrible things are temporary.  Christ has died and risen, and is in heaven waiting to bring us to be with him in paradise for eternity.

When I can't see the good that could come from a situation, that's why I take comfort in: knowing that it's temporary, and ultimately, I have victory in Jesus.

I pray that you are encouraged by that knowledge today!

(P.S. The song that's playing now?  "Grace Like Rain.")

Linking today with: The Fontenot Four, black tag diaries, Uplifting Love, There's Just One Mommy, Graced Simplicity

Preparing for Eternity

I've been thinking about heaven lately.

It's not something I ponder all that often, although my mom tells me that when I was little I would talk a lot about wanting to be in heaven and with Jesus.  That has always been something I have looked forward to with great excitement and anticipation.

However, the last few days--especially with all the "hype" about the Mayan calendar's supposed prediction of the end of the world--I've been thinking a little more about heaven than usual.

On the way home from my in-laws' tonight (we had a wonderful Christmas with Joshua's family), I was looking out at the stars, and the snow glowing in the reflected moonlight, and thinking about the world and how long it will last.  Then I realized that it doesn't matter how long the world will last--one day, a week, a year, or a thousand years.  No matter when I die, or when Jesus comes back, I will go to heaven to be with him for eternity.

Eternity.  That's a really long time.

Eternity, to be with the God who created us, the Son who died for us, the Spirit who lives in our hearts.

Eternity, to talk with those people from the Bible who sometimes seem like characters in a wonderful story, but who were real people who walked and breathed and lived on earth, and who are living now in heaven.  Real people, part of the body of Christ in heaven and on earth, the body of which we, his children, are also a part.

People like Mary--who I've been thinking about a lot lately--and Paul (just imagine having a theological conversation with that guy!), and Adam and Eve, Moses, and King David.  People who lived lives that were not perfect, but who trusted in God and his promises.  People like us.

We'll get to meet them someday.  Because we know, we can trust and believe, that Jesus will come back for us to take us to live with him.

It changes my view of life, and my priorities.  Because if Jesus could come back any minute, what matters is not what my house looks like, but what my heart looks like.  "Let every heart prepare Him room," we sang today.  Are we preparing our hearts for the next coming of that newborn King?

I wish to live my life--each and every day--preparing my heart for eternity...

Born to die...and live

I find myself smiling every time I'm able to say "Merry Christmas" to someone in a store, or at work.  It's a reminder of what this holy day we're soon to celebrate is all about.  Signs and decorations proclaiming "Jesus is the reason for the season!" are great--and I agree with them--but do we ever stop to think about why Jesus came to earth?

God became flesh, taking the form of a human baby, so he could live as one of us...and die.

Jesus was born to die.

That was the goal of his life: to give it up in order to save ours.  To draw all people to himself.  To conquer sin, death, and the devil once and for all.

That baby lying in a manger, born in a humble stable, coming into the world naked and bawling?  Just about thirty-three years later, he would be humbled in another way--nailed, naked, to a rough wooden cross, hung high for all those around to see.  He would give up himself willingly--and Satan would think he had won.

But then, three days later, he would rise again.  His body would be whole and perfect.  And those who loved him proclaimed the news joyfully--He is risen!  Just as the angels had proclaimed to the shepherds--He is born!

Humbled, in order to be glorified.

Born, to die...and then live.

God made man, so that man could live eternally with God.

Emmanuel...God with us. 

That, my friends, is the reason for this holy season.  That is what Christmas is all about.

living in Advent

Some days I forget it's Advent.

Not just the days leading up till Christmas...but we're living in Advent all the time, people!  We're waiting, preparing (that's what "Advent" means), for the second coming of Jesus Christ, whose first coming to earth we'll celebrate in just twelve days.

We're waiting for the Son of God to come back--God, who became human, one of us--in order to live, die, and rise again--for us.

This Son of God, who loves us so very much, is coming back for us.

Even as we anticipate the joy of Christmas, we see so much sadness in the world.  War, hunger, poverty, homelessness, disease, crime, anger, hate... all the signs that sin saturates this planet.  It might be easy to forget about some of those things for a while, when we're in our warm homes, brightened by colored Christmas lights, eating lots of special food and treats, spending our over-abundance of money on gifts (many of which aren't really necessary), and wishing each other the peace and joy of the season.

Don't get me wrong, those are all good things and I enjoy them so much!  But we like to forget all those bad things that are happening, that don't affect our lives.  But those things are part of our world, too.  They're caused by our own sinfulness.  But Christ came to this sinful world anyway...isn't that amazing?

It's important to remember that these things won't last.  All those horrible, sad, depressing things?  They're temporary.  Our houses, our possessions, our jobs, our wealth (or lack thereof) aren't permanent.

The peace and joy that our Savior brings, though--that will last.

Soon the reign of sin in the world will end.  It may not be in our lifetime, but it will not last forever.

I'm fairly certain it won't end on December 21st.  God is returning, but not when we expect Him to.  We can't foretell when that Day will come--not even the Son knows that, but only the Father.

But it is coming!  The Savior who has come into the world, will come back--to take me, and all believers, to live in paradise with him, for eternity.

It'll be like a never-ending Christmas celebration: surrounded by our loved ones, in the light of His presence, praising God and basking in His love.  Forever.

Are you ready?

looking at life with an eternal perspective

I was going to write a list of all the ways I use vinegar in my house.
It's pretty nifty, versatile stuff, so I might do that later.

But what's on my heart right now is something that my husband and I were talking about last night.
We were talking about perspective.

I came down yesterday with an annoying summer flu (stuffy nose, sore throat, aches, a little fever).  Also yesterday I found out about a friend with a sinus infection that has spread so far it's within less than an inch of her spinal cord and cerebellum.  She's a single mommy of twins and is having surgery in a few weeks.  A little flu is nothing to complain about.

My husband was telling me about his boss...his encouraging, funny, no-nonsense, and very kind boss.  He's been such a blessing, this man I don't even know.  My husband loves his job.  No, it doesn't make tons of money, but it's enough...and for the happiness that I see in Joshua's face when he comes home from work with more stories to share, I wouldn't trade this for anything.

We have a little apartment, yes...with a leaky window and hardly any counterspace.  But Joshua told me, "You make this place a beautiful home."  And it really is.  It's ours, we love it, we love living here.

And emailing with a new blogging friend this morning, reading other blog posts....  How do we look at our lives?  Do we measure them by the world's standards?  Do we compare ourselves to those who seem to have it all?  Or...

do we look at our life through God's eyes?  Do we see ourselves the way He sees us?  Do we place upon ourselves the worth He has given us?

Because as children of God, we are precious.  Priceless.  Treasured.

What happens when we look at life with an eternal perspective?


It should change everything.

This life is not all there is.  We're not doing things for the here and now.

At-home mothers, wives, homemakers: you are making an impact on your family for eternity.  You are raising your children to love and obey Jesus, and they will be among the believers in heaven someday.  And in their own lifetimes they will be given opportunities to share the Gospel as well.  As you bless your husband, encourage him and support him, you are enabling him to do his ministry for the Lord, wherever and whatever that may be.  As you make your home a place of beauty and rest, you are creating a place where the Holy Spirit dwells, which will bless every person who enters it.

Women and men who have jobs in the workplace (and everyone else, for that matter): you are lights in a dark world.  You have been given the opportunity to live the love of Jesus, even if you can't talk about it.  And maybe you're a pastor, a youth worker, a teacher in a Christian school, and then you have even more opportunity to spread the Gospel.

Everything we do has an eternal impact on the world.


Nothing is insignificant in God's eyes.  He calls us each to different vocations, and he works with each of us to do his work.

In this world we have troubles.  But Christ has overcome the world.  He has conquered sin, death, and Satan.  Our victory is WON!  We have nothing to fear.


Yes, we may struggle, with health, with finances, with relationships.  But those things will last such a short time when we look forward to eternity.  Compared to forever in heaven with Jesus, in a place of perfect rest and joy, the pain and suffering of this world is brief.

We were placed in the lives we have to bring the healing light of the Gospel to every suffering, painful place in this world.  We are here to point others to Jesus.  We are here to help give the world an eternal perspective--to help them see that in Christ, they have the victory.
 

My Sickness...HIS Suffering

So I've been down with a rather nasty case of influenza since Monday.  I wouldn't wish this on my worst enemy. Today is my second day home from school, and this is the girl who NEVER skips classes.  Today Hubby isn't feeling well either, so at least I don't have to stay home alone all day!

Since it's Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent, I've been pondering the connections my physical illness has to my spiritual one.  This sickness is a result of the fact that spiritually I'm sick with sin.  Before I was baptized and given faith by the Holy Spirit, I was literally DEAD in my sin.  Now sin does not have control over me like it once did--I'm not going to die permanently from its presence in my life--but it still rears its ugly head on a regular basis and causes much frustration, pain, and suffering in my life.

Then it hit me: I don't REALLY suffer all that much for the sins I've committed.  Yes, I have to deal with the consequences.  Sometimes they're very serious ones that affect my life and the lives of those around me.  Sometimes they cause feelings of guilt that I have to deal with until I realize, once again, God's amazing forgiveness.

But here's the thing: compared to how Jesus suffered on the cross, my sufferings are pretty minimal.  First of all, having the flu is nothing compared to being beaten nearly to death, being nailed to a cross, and then hanging there for six hours until He finally died.  The worst of it?  Jesus was literally, completely separated from God.  Because He took the sin of the whole world on Him, God couldn't bear to be in his presence, because of God's complete perfection.

Jesus took the physical sufferings  and the separation from God that I deserve--on HIMSELF.


Yes, I am sick with sin.  But MY sin caused HIM to die.

The incredible thing is, the story doesn't end there.  Yes, He suffered.  Yes, He died.  But Jesus is not only Man--He is GOD.  And as God, He didn't stay dead.  After conquering Satan, sin, and death completely, Jesus rose from the dead.  And He is still alive.  And He has promised that I and everyone who believes in Him will not die forever.  We will not have to endure eternal separation from God--or even get a taste of it like Jesus did.

And the physical suffering that we endure now, in this life?  Those won't last forever.  Compared to what a lot of people experience, this sickness I have is so short, so mild, so temporary.  But even the worst illness will be healed completely in time.  And in heaven, there will be no more sickness, no more pain, no more suffering.  The perfect bodies we will have there will last for eternity, because we will be with God.

All because of what Jesus did for us.

http://www.thesefiveofmineplustwo.net/search/label/A%20Handful%20of%20Heart

thankfulness of things tangible and things intangible.

I am thankful for my husband's extravagant love.  He helps me around the house.  He does laundry while I'm at class and work.  He works hard to help support our little family.  He blesses me with gifts, with little cards to surprise me, with a getaway last weekend!

I am thankful that my failures don't make me who I am: that God does not count them against me, but sees me as his precious child, holy, forgiven, sanctified.

I am thankful that I don't have to live focused on my sinful self.  I am always sinful, but I am always a child of God: holy, sanctified, forgiven--a saint of God.  This is my life, too.  God lets me be a worker in his kingdom, in ways that I don't always know about, but ways that always give him glory.

I am thankful for my amazing friends, women (and a few men, too!) who make me smile, who encourage me, who help strengthen my faith, who share their wisdom with me, who encourage me, who love me for who I am.

I am thankful for my parents, and my parents-in-law: people who bless us without ever expecting anything in return.  They pray for us all the time, they do sweet things to surprise us (like the Valentine's Day package my mom sent today!), they have raised us to believe in and love God, and continue to encourage us in our faith.

I am thankful for time to do homework.  Time to do housework.  Time to be with my husband.  Time, most importantly, to spend time with God.

I am thankful for the reminder that there is so much more beyond this life.  Earth isn't all there is.  This life isn't all there is.  To me, this gives meaning to my life right now: knowing that there is more to come.  Eternity with God.  Everything here points to my life with him in heaven.  Suffering won't last.  Sickness won't last.  War will cease.  Poverty will disappear.  Sorrow will stop.  Death will end.  This life has purpose and meaning, always.

He's Got the Whole World in His Hands

Ten years ago, it seemed like the world was ending.
For a lot of people, over three thousand, it did.  Their time on this earth ended.
Their families and friends probably felt like the world was ending for them, too.  But they had to live through their pain and grief.  Ten years later, I'm sure they're still living through it.

It's at times like that when the whole world cries out, "WHY?!?"


Why does an all-loving God allow evil things to happen?  If God is supposed to be good, where was he when those planes crashed into the World Trade Center?  If those things happened, does he even exist at all?

I'm one of those people who firmly believes in the existence of an all-loving, all-good God.  Sometimes I wonder, too, why he lets things happen.

Why he lets young fathers and mothers, husbands and wives, die, before it seems they've lived their lives fully.  Why so many babies get aborted, gypped out of a life they should have lived.  Why wars happen.  Why diseases take the lives of hundreds, thousands.  Why tyrants control innocent people.  Why people starve and go without clothes or homes or money.

I even wonder why he lets annoying little things happen to me.  Why do I get sick?  Why do I sometimes not have money for the things I want and think I need?  Why do things go wrong?

Enough questions.  I have an answer:

I don't know.


I don't always know why bad things happen.  I do know what causes them: SIN.  God has reasons for allowing them that my human reason cannot understand.  When I don't know why, I DO know that God DOES.  He is all-knowing, all-seeing, and all-powerful.  Nothing happens to me or anyone else without God knowing about it.

I can't understand why sometimes, but what I do understand is that God loves me more than I can imagine.  I know that I have a finite mind, that I can't see or understand the future.  I know that he's God, and I'm not, and I'm happy and content with that.

God has my life in his hands.  He has your life in his hands.  He does, in fact, have the whole world in his hands.  And considering how big, gentle, loving, and caring God is...I can't think of any place for my life to be.  No matter what happens.  And when this world ends for good, I know where I'll be...in God's arms.

When Jesus Takes Me Home

I just read (in about three hours, it's an easy read) the book Heaven is For Real, by Todd Burpo, about his son Colton's experience visiting heaven.  It's a good book, and you can read it yourself (find it here).  In a nutshell, three-year-old Colton develops a life-threatening case of appendicitis, and during his surgery he spends (according to him) "three minutes" in heaven.  There he sits on Jesus' lap, meets also the Father and the Holy Spirit, meets his long-dead great-grandfather, meets his sister who was miscarried before his birth, and sees other wonders of heaven.

This book is along the lines of Ninety Minutes in Heaven, but the really lovely thing about it is the child's perspective.  According to his father, Colton described many things that are found in detail in the Bible, without ever having read or been told about them.  I approached the book with some skepticism, but I do believe that God is all-powerful, which means he can give a little boy an experience in heaven to be able to bless the lives of many people on earth.  Everything Colton says about God and heaven are things that the Bible clearly states as well.  The book is an inspirational and encouraging story.

In the end, though, it doesn't matter much to me what other people say about heaven.  I can read about it for myself in God's word.  And what I can't understand about it (which is a lot), I am okay with just accepting until I can experience it for myself.  Because I know, without a doubt, that I will spend eternity in heaven with Jesus.  I don't know a lot about heaven, or about eternity, but I do know this:

God is all-good.  So heaven will be completely good.
I will have a perfect body: no more sickness, infirmity, ailments, weaknesses.
I will get to meet every other person who is a child of God, who has ever lived, including family members I've never met.
I will be in the very presence of God himself, and will get to praise him in his presence.
I will never sin again.  No bad thing will be able to exist in heaven.
I will never be sad, angry, lonely, or hurt in heaven.  Those things are all a result of sin, which won't be in heaven.
I will see Jesus for myself, face-to-face.
All the bad things I've ever done will be forgotten, because Jesus' righteousness will cover me.
However time works, I will be there forever, with God.

Holy Week: Monday

This week I'm going to read the accounts of what Jesus did each day of the last week before his crucifixion.  My Bible (the NIV Study Bible) has a timeline of what event took place on what day.  I'm sure if I studied the accounts myself thoroughly I could see how they determine what happened when.  In any case, the events that happened on Monday were Jesus cursing a fig tree, and his cleansing of the Temple (See Matthew 21:12-13, 18-19, and Mark 11:12-18).  I'm not going to get into any deep interpretation of the passages, just pondering what happened during this holiest of weeks.

Considering that yesterday was Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem, I imagine that his disciples were pretty pleased with how things were going.  Jesus had entered on a donkey, true, not on a horse as a conquering king would.  But he had been awfully well received!  The people had praised and honored him.  They were glad to have Jesus in Jerusalem.

This Monday morning, on their way into Jerusalem, the disciples witnessed Jesus curse a fig tree that had no fruit on it, despite the fact that it was full of leaves.  He explained his reason for this to them the next day.

Upon entering the Temple, he drove out the people who were selling livestock to be offered for Passover sacrifices, and those who were changing money for pilgrims who had come for the Passover.  Jesus was indignant because the money-changers were cheating people, and in turning the Temple into a marketplace they had desecrated the house of God.  After the Temple was clear, Jesus healed the blind and lame people who came to him there, while the religious leaders watched indignantly.

I wonder if the disciples were as shocked and angry at the proceedings happening in the Temple as Jesus was, or if they were more shocked at his response.  Perhaps some of the people there were among the ones who had praised him just the day before.  Didn't he know that?  Didn't he know he would offend them?  Did he have the right to throw the merchants out of the Temple? the disciples might have wondered.

When Jesus cleared out the temple, he said, "It is written, 'My house will be called a house of prayer,' but you are making it a 'den of robbers'" (Matt 21:13).  Did the disciples know who he was by then?  Did they know he was the son of God?  Did they have any idea what the end of that week would be like?  Did they realize how much he was still teaching them, as his time with them neared its end?

I wonder how Jesus was feeling at this point.  He knew it was only four short days until he would have to die. Not permanently, of course, but he would have to experience the complete and utter wrath of his Father.  But then he would rise again, and the course of human history would be altered for the salvation of many.  And yet he continued preaching, healing, and teaching his disciples.  He carried on as if very little was changing.  This is an example I could follow; we all could.  Right now I have one month and eleven days until my wedding.  I can hardly wait; I just want that day to get here, and yet I have school work to finish and a dorm room to pack and finals to take, and it's hard when I'm so focused on the wedding.  But I can, and should, make the most of every day, doing my best, continuing to serve and work hard, and think of others more than myself--as Jesus did.

The same thing can apply to believers who are anxiously awaiting Christ's return.  We don't know when it will happen; Jesus said that only the Father knows the day or hour (Mark 13:32-33).  So instead of sitting around and waiting for him to come again, we can be constantly ready, constantly serving, living our lives to his glory as best as we can every day.

[If you've stuck with me through this whole post, I realize it's not very insightful or poetic or theological today, but I was just writing what was on my thoughts.]

God, Who Richly Provides Us with Everything

I've expressed on here my continual struggle with worry, over the future, over money mostly.  I just get to wondering about how we'll pay for this or that, how we'll provide for ourselves.

More than once, actually many times, God had spoken to us by providing something we didn't expect, at the exact time we needed it.  Just yesterday I got an email offering me a job at the campus library next semester.  I've wanted to work in a library for years, and it will be a far nicer job than the one I currently have at the cafeteria.  God's timing is perfect- as always!

I like using my concordance to look up passages containing certain words, and today I looked up "provides" and was led to 1 Timothy 6:17-19, which reads:

"Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.  Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share.  In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life."

Now, by the standards of people living in a third-world country I'm incredibly rich.  By U.S. standards, I'm average, although in terms of what's in my bank account I'm pretty poor at the moment.  But I still have so much.  And I think what Timothy was trying to express in this passage, at least what I'm getting out of it, is to hope in God, not in physical wealth or money.  God will provide everything we need for life and for enjoyment.  What matters to him is not how much money we have, but the treasures we're laying up in heaven.

Matthew chapter six speaks to both these issues.  Jesus says in 6:19-21, "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.  But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.  For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."  When my goal is to obtain as much earthly wealth as I can, my heart will be with that money.  When my goal is to store up heavenly treasures, my heart will be heavenly-minded.  Jesus also said, "No one can serve two masters...You cannot serve both God and Money" (6:24).

Later in the chapter, Jesus says, "So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we wear?'  For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.  But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.  Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.  Each day has enough trouble of its own" (6:31-34).

I realize that some of my posts are more Scripture passages than my words, but the fact is, Jesus' words and the words of the God-inspired writers of the Bile are a lot more important than mine.  What I say will soon be forgotten if it is ever read, especially since what I'm writing here is my own considerings, and if anyone can benefit from them that's just an added bonus.  What God has said in his word has lasted thousands of years, and will last for eternity, even after Christ comes back for the second time.

This is what it means to be heavenly-minded, to seek first the kingdom and God's righteousness, to store up treasures in heaven.  It's not thinking about myself, but about other people.  It's about desiring and doing my best to do God's will, not mine, in my life.  It's about putting my complete trust in his providence, not mine.  It's about knowing that no matter what happens in this life, I have the assurance of eternal life in heaven.

Home: Coming or Leaving?

I am back in my hometown today, since the semester of college has ended.  I spent more than half of my growing-up years here, and this house is where my family has lived for the longest.  Right now I'm kind of in limbo: most of my belongings are in my dorm room, but a lot of my things are here.  My family is here, my childhood is here, but my future is with my fiancée in Nebraska.  The phrase "home is where the heart is" seems to apply very strongly to me.  My heart has been with my family, but now my heart belongs to my fiancée.  Now, home is wherever he is.  That is how it will be for the rest of my life.

Leaving my college-home and coming to my childhood home is making me think about where my home is spiritually.  If "home is where the heart is," where is my heart?  Where is my home?  When I leave this earth and go to heaven, will I be leaving home- or coming home?

Jesus said that he is not of this world, and therefore those who follow him are not of this world, either.  This earth, this life, is a temporary existence.  It is a meaningful existence, but it will not last for long.  We are, in a way, in limbo: part of us, our physical body, is in this world, but our spiritual ones long for the eternal world.  Right now I'm preparing to make a home with my future husband.  Are we, as Christ's bride, the church, mindful of our future home with Christ?  Am I in preparation for that life, for that new home?

All my thoughts these days, at least most of them, center around my future husband and my future home with him.  I have an intense longing for that new life to begin.  I'm ready for it to start.  But for now, I'm forced to be patient in the waiting period, and make the best use of this in-between time.  I feel like it's that way with my spiritual home, too.  I have a very deep desire to be with Christ eternally, and if he were to take me now I would be glad to go.  But I have much work to do in the time between now and then.  I have a purpose.  I have a life that he has given me in which to serve him, however temporal it may be.

My home is where my heart is: physically, with my fiancée.  Spiritually, with Jesus.  Today, during this vacation, I'm going to enjoy and relish being home in both ways.