Heaven's Anything But Boring!...Continued from page 2

There will be plenty to do in heaven. We will review and celebrate the victories of life on earth. We will join in the dynamic, joy-filled worship choir of the New Jerusalem. With new bodies and new voices, some of us will sing in a choir for the first time. Sorry, Sarah, but I am planning on singing lead in heaven! There will be feasts and banquets galore. Somebody will need to do the cooking and decorating. Good wholesome entertainment will abound. Gardens and orchards will need tending, but not weeding. The curse of Eden is gone forever. Work will continue but labor will cease. In the Bible's language, labor is the grunt work, the drudgery that takes time and energy but never accomplishes anything. Work makes, builds, and does things that last and matter. Vast stretches of a new earth will need exploring and mapping. A great storehouse of eternal knowledge and wisdom will be ours for the learning. Boring ? not on your life!

Another factor will keep heaven from getting boring. There will be so many people to meet and so many new friendships to make. Imagine meeting all your new neighbors. The saints of old will be there ? Abraham, Moses, Jonah, and Paul. On and on the list could go. Just think of all the long discussions and unanswered questions you could talk over with them. Adam, what was life in the garden like? Noah, tell us about the animals in the ark. Elijah, tell me about the fiery chariot ride or the battle with the prophets on Mt. Carmel. I would love to hear David's version of the fight with Goliath or Peter tell about walking on water or James and John's description of Pentecost. And that's just the beginning.

Imagine meeting the pioneers who planted your church or the reunion with your own departed loved ones. There's nothing boring about getting together with old friends or relatives. Imagine your great grandparents you never knew or your favorite uncle who passed away when you were a child. Or the sister, or the spouse, or even the child who preceded you into eternity. Seeing them, boring?

An unknown author wrote, "As a boy, I thought of heaven as a city with domes, spires, and beautiful streets, inhabited by angels. By and by my little brother died, and I thought of heaven much as before, but with one inhabitant that I knew. Then another died, and then some of my acquaintances, so in time I began to think of heaven as containing several people that I knew. But it was not until one of my own little children died that I began to think I had treasure in heaven myself. Afterward another went, and yet another. By that time I had so many acquaintances and children in heaven that I no more thought of it as a city merely with streets of gold but as a place full of friends. Now there are so many loved ones there I sometimes think I know more people in heaven than I do on earth." Boring? I don't think so!

But one other thing will keep heaven from becoming boring. On top of the people, the places, or the vast array of things to do, God will be there! For those who know him here and love him now, being with him could never be a waste of time or anything less than the most exciting, exhilarating experience imaginable! God's presence makes heaven, heaven!

I suppose that's really at the root of the mistaken notion that heaven might be boring. People who haven't yet gotten acquainted with God can't possibly imagine how fascinating, creative, and exciting he can be. His love is without limits. His imagination goes beyond anything that has yet crossed our minds. To know him is to love him. To love him is to want to know him more and spend forever discovering the vast richness of his blessings. That's what following Jesus is all about ? beginning the never-ending adventure of discovering God. All that and heaven too!

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