The Kingdom of Heaven Is Like...
It's been a while since my last post as I just attended an Opus Dei retreat. It's difficult for me to get the writing engines running after they have been turned off. So forgive me if I am a little clumsy in my delivery.
Ah..... silence. I spent much time in the classroom of silence just listening to God's voice. There is nothing like spending some alone time with God. Silence is the gateway to God. Silence is where you hear God's "still small voice" most clearly. Silence is being naked but not ashamed. I was able to ponder a lot in silence. God put many things on my heart during this time; one of them was the message of beauty of God and heaven.
One of the speakers on the retreat made this great point about the mystery and vastness of heaven.
Trying to describe the kingdom of heaven is like trying to describe the outside world to a baby in the womb. If you could communicate intelligently with the baby in utero you could try to explain the amazing world by mentioning the sweeping sky, the blinding, yet warm sun, the scent of fresh flowers, or the taste of a ripe peach. The baby might reply by saying that while all that sounds interesting, there's no way to relate to those concepts. The baby would probably reject those images because the only reality it ever knew was that of the womb. Why would the baby want to experience anything other than the safety and comfort of its prenatal existence?
My wife used to have conversations with her boss about God. He believed in God but didn't believe that in all that "heaven and bible" stuff. He used to say ... "Christians have it all wrong.... their premise is faulty..,, why do Christians presume that people want to go to heaven? Why aspire to that? Heaven seems weird.... a bunch of flying people singing classical music and streets paved with gold. It's not my thing."
The purpose of this post is not to try to explain heaven. I wouldn't be able to anyway. I was struck by idea that heaven is impossible to grasp, but yet it's there. It exists outside our periphery. Our minds cannot conceive of its beauty because all we know is our earthly existence. I'm probably not at that point yet in my walk with God where I can say that my spirit "yearns" for heaven. But I am at the point where I want to strive for that yearning.
Ah..... silence. I spent much time in the classroom of silence just listening to God's voice. There is nothing like spending some alone time with God. Silence is the gateway to God. Silence is where you hear God's "still small voice" most clearly. Silence is being naked but not ashamed. I was able to ponder a lot in silence. God put many things on my heart during this time; one of them was the message of beauty of God and heaven.
One of the speakers on the retreat made this great point about the mystery and vastness of heaven.
Trying to describe the kingdom of heaven is like trying to describe the outside world to a baby in the womb. If you could communicate intelligently with the baby in utero you could try to explain the amazing world by mentioning the sweeping sky, the blinding, yet warm sun, the scent of fresh flowers, or the taste of a ripe peach. The baby might reply by saying that while all that sounds interesting, there's no way to relate to those concepts. The baby would probably reject those images because the only reality it ever knew was that of the womb. Why would the baby want to experience anything other than the safety and comfort of its prenatal existence?
My wife used to have conversations with her boss about God. He believed in God but didn't believe that in all that "heaven and bible" stuff. He used to say ... "Christians have it all wrong.... their premise is faulty..,, why do Christians presume that people want to go to heaven? Why aspire to that? Heaven seems weird.... a bunch of flying people singing classical music and streets paved with gold. It's not my thing."
The purpose of this post is not to try to explain heaven. I wouldn't be able to anyway. I was struck by idea that heaven is impossible to grasp, but yet it's there. It exists outside our periphery. Our minds cannot conceive of its beauty because all we know is our earthly existence. I'm probably not at that point yet in my walk with God where I can say that my spirit "yearns" for heaven. But I am at the point where I want to strive for that yearning.
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