Extended Metaphor on Heavenly Patience and Such
I have just had the most monumental thought, so big that I can't stand to write it on paper because it would not burst from my mind so quickly as typing allows.
So God calls us to be patient, but I now know why. And it has a lot to do with why he calls us to be selfless.
This whole time I've been living my life as if life itself is what is meant to be happening. But this mortal life is only the shadow of what our real lives will be after we leave these carbon bodies. But no one gets that. I mean, God wrote a whole long book about it, and we still imagine that we need to take advantage of the wonders of life all before we die.
I know in theory heaven is perfect, but concretely I only ever think of bouncing on clouds and everyone being happy but stoic and bland. I now know, that can't be it at all.
Every single human being was given numerous gifts. Some of them serve a worthwhile purpose: letting us support ourselves and make money. But some are altogether "useless" in the context of earthly living. I was born with a great ability to dance. I was not raised any differently than my siblings, and yet this is how I am. My sister can draw beauty into existence. My brother can make anyone laugh. But unless we really push it, these skills are essentially useless. As are some that may seem valuable but happen to never come into play in our lifetime.
I'm really smart, but I'm a journalism major. It doesn't make sense. So that means that this mind was made for another purpose than to be exhausted in this short life.
God says to serve Him and others our whole life, and there will be treasure for us in heaven. Eat your vegetables, and He promises there will be the best dessert ever afterward. But you're not going to glimpse the dessert, or smell it, or even have an idea of what kind of dessert it is until you finish your vegetables. And the dessert will taste infinitely sweeter after your vegetables. You can try to make your own cake out of your broccoli and some sugar you find, and that might make you happy and think you've made it, that you've found your dessert. But you don't know what you're talking about. You have no clue.
This life is full of sin, and so God gave us this short period to try to reveal to each other that sin is real, and that Jesus is the only way. But meanwhile, everyone is running around looking for dessert, or at least something sweet. They are unwilling to accept that they MUST eat their vegetables, and are convinced that no dessert awaits them, so they must find their own.
Oh to be ignorant of God's glory.
We are meant to be patient because we are to serve God in this life WILLINGLY, and wait for the blessings to come after. But so many just want the blessings now. It is the ultimate example of instant gratification. And we cannot seem to get past it.
We are meant to be selfless because in this life there is literally one thing to do: to accept Christ, and then see that you save as many others as you can while you die slowly for 90 years. We must think of others, because thinking of ourselves is a waste of time. You cannot take a single earthly blessing into heaven. But you can grab people's hands and lead them to the light. They are what you can take. Nothing more. So if you're going to hoard something, hoard saved souls.
I have lived as though I'm in a rat race. But this life doesn't even reach the concepts of joy and comfort and peace. Luckily, now I'm close friends with God, and so through Him, I'm having a little bit of heaven on earth. That being said, by no other means is there any heaven to be had before death. It is all an illusion, a distraction, from the one who wants to make you think that you'll never experience anything better. For those that do indulge on earth, that is true. They will NOT ever get anything better.
So, broccoli cake now, and filth later. Or, broccoli now, endless dessert buffet later.
But this must not be our focus. The dessert is not the point. The faith in the promise is the point. The recognition of the problem is the point. The realization of the vacancy is the point.
Here on earth, every reason for living given by those who are apart from God does not make any sense. Fulfillment means nothing once you die. Benefiting humanity means nothing once they die. Changing the fates of the souls of others is the whole and only meaning of this life. That is, once your own soul is saved.
If I can dance, but never become a dancer, then that means that God has given me a glimpse of the joy it will be to live with Him and dance to my heart's desire. Not a day in my life have I danced as much as I have wanted to. So there must be a studio somewhere with the best music I've ever heard that I'm destined to use for my own dance routines.
Many get these gifts but are sidetracked by them in this life. God gave us each a ticket to heaven. Some people heard that the ticket is for heaven, and so they saved it. But some people were skeptical that the ticket was worth anything, so they folded them into paper airplanes and threw them at each other and they got lost in the river. And some tore them up into confetti and had a party. And some burned them, thinking they needed the fire to stay warm. But when each faces their turn to hand over their ticket, many find that they don't have a ticket to speak of.
Our gifts and talents are not our tickets. They are the little ray of light coming out of heaven. Jesus' death for our constant wrongdoings, many of which are unintentional but wrong nonetheless, is our ticket. But many waste it.
I am here on this earth to tell people about what someone else told me. That there is a God that controls everything. That he doesn't just make rules. That he loves us all deeply. That he wants us to love him for who he really is. That our collective tendency to do wrong has created our collective pain. That we cannot undo our wrongs no matter how hard we try. That God knew we were incapable, so he himself became the greatest scapegoat ever. That God plunged himself into the chasm of darkness that is earth (ruled by the manipulator) only to be expelled violently by those he came to save. That God is above pain and should never have experienced it but did so anyway for the sake of his unloving children. That all he asks is that we recognize that we did and do wrong and that he's the one and only ticket vendor that will work.
Satan has filled the world with plentiful distractions. He didn't make heaven, so he can't quite mimic the lovelier qualities. But he tried his hardest, and it seems to work well enough, because hardly anyone questions the quality of the happiness that can be found on earth. But every now and then, someone whispers to another that we're all trading in counterfeits, and that they know a guy who can give them the hookup to get a real ticket. But it won't be easy to obtain.
Many have told themselves that there's no need for a ticket. There's no destination other than here. God wants to wildly indulge us, but the sad part is that we are too dumb to see how little happiness we even have to work with down here. But that is what we chase day in, day out.
I think I have gotten in close enough proximity to God to be able to claim that the joy he brings me is of a different caliber- a higher caliber- than anything in this world for the precise reason that it is not of this world. Meanwhile, everyone is trying to grow their flowers under their individual fluorescents, unaware that there is a great big hole in the ceiling letting in enough light for every flower ever.
The mistake is in thinking that we can do it alone. We can achieve heaven by ourselves. Many think we can do it simply because there is no other option. "This is the one option, so it must be possible."
That's where I, and any willing soul, come in. I will tell them all about that grand ceiling hole. I will graciously point out how wilted their flowers are, not because the species is bad, but because the conditions are poor. My flower was wilted too before I saw the hole in the ceiling. It is the nature of flowers to wilt outside the presence of glory light.
I do not know which skill of mine I will use to sustain myself for the duration of this life. But my self is no priority. My flower is already sitting in the light, so I'm free to run around and tell others. I may not travel, I may not yell, I may not be listened to. But as long as everyone knows, I have done my job.
The light itself is what pushes me back into the darkness again. Not because it rejects me, but because it changes me and sustains me for the long treks in the shadows. I am much lighter of foot than any wilted flower because of the light shining on me and, by the power of the Holy Spirit, within me. Even if people are skeptical when I tell them about the huge ray coming in, they may sense my own health and warmth that I gained from being in the light, and that alone may be enough to convince them of the reality.
The problem is, many disguise themselves as wilted flowers, which is why they are not believed. Why would anyone believe someone who seems to have it just as bad, if not worse? For some reason, some Christians assume that it would be disturbing for the wilted flowers to be around someone who has experienced the warmth of the natural light. But that is the only way they can believe.
This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine.
Along with this, I also now know how to overcome absolutely any temptation I will ever face again. Right now, I want to eat a piece of provolone cheese, but I know that there is a much higher quality piece of provolone cheese waiting for me in heaven, and if I were to indulge in it now, it would spoil my effort to maintain self-control. So I will ignore the temptation.
I will serve God all the days of my mortal life. I will face danger, temptation, discomfort, and pain. But I will remember the promise and the sacrifice, and I will get through. Not just because I decide to, but because the strength I gain from living in the light trumps any strength held by anyone else anywhere.
"The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name's sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me. Your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a place before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil. My cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life. And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. Amen.
So God calls us to be patient, but I now know why. And it has a lot to do with why he calls us to be selfless.
This whole time I've been living my life as if life itself is what is meant to be happening. But this mortal life is only the shadow of what our real lives will be after we leave these carbon bodies. But no one gets that. I mean, God wrote a whole long book about it, and we still imagine that we need to take advantage of the wonders of life all before we die.
I know in theory heaven is perfect, but concretely I only ever think of bouncing on clouds and everyone being happy but stoic and bland. I now know, that can't be it at all.
Every single human being was given numerous gifts. Some of them serve a worthwhile purpose: letting us support ourselves and make money. But some are altogether "useless" in the context of earthly living. I was born with a great ability to dance. I was not raised any differently than my siblings, and yet this is how I am. My sister can draw beauty into existence. My brother can make anyone laugh. But unless we really push it, these skills are essentially useless. As are some that may seem valuable but happen to never come into play in our lifetime.
I'm really smart, but I'm a journalism major. It doesn't make sense. So that means that this mind was made for another purpose than to be exhausted in this short life.
God says to serve Him and others our whole life, and there will be treasure for us in heaven. Eat your vegetables, and He promises there will be the best dessert ever afterward. But you're not going to glimpse the dessert, or smell it, or even have an idea of what kind of dessert it is until you finish your vegetables. And the dessert will taste infinitely sweeter after your vegetables. You can try to make your own cake out of your broccoli and some sugar you find, and that might make you happy and think you've made it, that you've found your dessert. But you don't know what you're talking about. You have no clue.
This life is full of sin, and so God gave us this short period to try to reveal to each other that sin is real, and that Jesus is the only way. But meanwhile, everyone is running around looking for dessert, or at least something sweet. They are unwilling to accept that they MUST eat their vegetables, and are convinced that no dessert awaits them, so they must find their own.
Oh to be ignorant of God's glory.
We are meant to be patient because we are to serve God in this life WILLINGLY, and wait for the blessings to come after. But so many just want the blessings now. It is the ultimate example of instant gratification. And we cannot seem to get past it.
We are meant to be selfless because in this life there is literally one thing to do: to accept Christ, and then see that you save as many others as you can while you die slowly for 90 years. We must think of others, because thinking of ourselves is a waste of time. You cannot take a single earthly blessing into heaven. But you can grab people's hands and lead them to the light. They are what you can take. Nothing more. So if you're going to hoard something, hoard saved souls.
I have lived as though I'm in a rat race. But this life doesn't even reach the concepts of joy and comfort and peace. Luckily, now I'm close friends with God, and so through Him, I'm having a little bit of heaven on earth. That being said, by no other means is there any heaven to be had before death. It is all an illusion, a distraction, from the one who wants to make you think that you'll never experience anything better. For those that do indulge on earth, that is true. They will NOT ever get anything better.
So, broccoli cake now, and filth later. Or, broccoli now, endless dessert buffet later.
But this must not be our focus. The dessert is not the point. The faith in the promise is the point. The recognition of the problem is the point. The realization of the vacancy is the point.
Here on earth, every reason for living given by those who are apart from God does not make any sense. Fulfillment means nothing once you die. Benefiting humanity means nothing once they die. Changing the fates of the souls of others is the whole and only meaning of this life. That is, once your own soul is saved.
If I can dance, but never become a dancer, then that means that God has given me a glimpse of the joy it will be to live with Him and dance to my heart's desire. Not a day in my life have I danced as much as I have wanted to. So there must be a studio somewhere with the best music I've ever heard that I'm destined to use for my own dance routines.
Many get these gifts but are sidetracked by them in this life. God gave us each a ticket to heaven. Some people heard that the ticket is for heaven, and so they saved it. But some people were skeptical that the ticket was worth anything, so they folded them into paper airplanes and threw them at each other and they got lost in the river. And some tore them up into confetti and had a party. And some burned them, thinking they needed the fire to stay warm. But when each faces their turn to hand over their ticket, many find that they don't have a ticket to speak of.
Our gifts and talents are not our tickets. They are the little ray of light coming out of heaven. Jesus' death for our constant wrongdoings, many of which are unintentional but wrong nonetheless, is our ticket. But many waste it.
I am here on this earth to tell people about what someone else told me. That there is a God that controls everything. That he doesn't just make rules. That he loves us all deeply. That he wants us to love him for who he really is. That our collective tendency to do wrong has created our collective pain. That we cannot undo our wrongs no matter how hard we try. That God knew we were incapable, so he himself became the greatest scapegoat ever. That God plunged himself into the chasm of darkness that is earth (ruled by the manipulator) only to be expelled violently by those he came to save. That God is above pain and should never have experienced it but did so anyway for the sake of his unloving children. That all he asks is that we recognize that we did and do wrong and that he's the one and only ticket vendor that will work.
Satan has filled the world with plentiful distractions. He didn't make heaven, so he can't quite mimic the lovelier qualities. But he tried his hardest, and it seems to work well enough, because hardly anyone questions the quality of the happiness that can be found on earth. But every now and then, someone whispers to another that we're all trading in counterfeits, and that they know a guy who can give them the hookup to get a real ticket. But it won't be easy to obtain.
Many have told themselves that there's no need for a ticket. There's no destination other than here. God wants to wildly indulge us, but the sad part is that we are too dumb to see how little happiness we even have to work with down here. But that is what we chase day in, day out.
I think I have gotten in close enough proximity to God to be able to claim that the joy he brings me is of a different caliber- a higher caliber- than anything in this world for the precise reason that it is not of this world. Meanwhile, everyone is trying to grow their flowers under their individual fluorescents, unaware that there is a great big hole in the ceiling letting in enough light for every flower ever.
The mistake is in thinking that we can do it alone. We can achieve heaven by ourselves. Many think we can do it simply because there is no other option. "This is the one option, so it must be possible."
That's where I, and any willing soul, come in. I will tell them all about that grand ceiling hole. I will graciously point out how wilted their flowers are, not because the species is bad, but because the conditions are poor. My flower was wilted too before I saw the hole in the ceiling. It is the nature of flowers to wilt outside the presence of glory light.
I do not know which skill of mine I will use to sustain myself for the duration of this life. But my self is no priority. My flower is already sitting in the light, so I'm free to run around and tell others. I may not travel, I may not yell, I may not be listened to. But as long as everyone knows, I have done my job.
The light itself is what pushes me back into the darkness again. Not because it rejects me, but because it changes me and sustains me for the long treks in the shadows. I am much lighter of foot than any wilted flower because of the light shining on me and, by the power of the Holy Spirit, within me. Even if people are skeptical when I tell them about the huge ray coming in, they may sense my own health and warmth that I gained from being in the light, and that alone may be enough to convince them of the reality.
The problem is, many disguise themselves as wilted flowers, which is why they are not believed. Why would anyone believe someone who seems to have it just as bad, if not worse? For some reason, some Christians assume that it would be disturbing for the wilted flowers to be around someone who has experienced the warmth of the natural light. But that is the only way they can believe.
This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine.
Along with this, I also now know how to overcome absolutely any temptation I will ever face again. Right now, I want to eat a piece of provolone cheese, but I know that there is a much higher quality piece of provolone cheese waiting for me in heaven, and if I were to indulge in it now, it would spoil my effort to maintain self-control. So I will ignore the temptation.
I will serve God all the days of my mortal life. I will face danger, temptation, discomfort, and pain. But I will remember the promise and the sacrifice, and I will get through. Not just because I decide to, but because the strength I gain from living in the light trumps any strength held by anyone else anywhere.
"The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name's sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me. Your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a place before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil. My cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life. And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. Amen.
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