God of Now
You will make known to me the path of life; in Your Presence is fullness of joy; in Your right hand are pleasures forever. Psalm 16:11
I have just finished reading a book titled, Heaven – an unexpected journey. An incredible first-hand account of a man who spoke six words that changed his life forever. “God, forgive me. God help me!” Frequently in this book, he stated, “I am not a pastor. I’m not a preacher nor a Bible scholar.” I’m not convinced that he was even a Christian before his journey took him to heaven and back, but he certainly is now.
There are a couple sections worthy of sharing.
God of Now
I think most folks tend to live in the past or the future, in regret or worry. Heaven and God are focused on the “now.” The time and dimensions of Heaven all seemed to be focused on the present moment. Things that we would see as having physical distance here on earth were within my grasp just for the reaching. I could see a single flower on the side of a mountain that we might see as miles away. All of the sensory aspects, colors, smells, sounds were all merged together in a concert filling every sense in the present moment of eternity. Eternity seemed to be the eternal now. There is no regret or holdover from the past nor is there a worry of the future. Though God lives in the present moment with us, there is nothing lost.
God hears and regards each thought and prayer of our hearts as valuable. Nothing is lost. There are no lost prayers, no lost babies, no lost tears, no lost acts of kindness. All are present and eternal with God. Every aspect of Heaven wrapped me with a blanket of God’s intimate love for me. God is the God of now.
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Not to worry about what the future holds for our children and grandchildren would be a relief. To have no fear of the upcoming doctor’s visit would allow our blood pressure to return to normal and ease our stress. No financial worries? It probably would be a huge weight off our shoulders if we could let go of all regrets from the past. I wonder what life could be like if we constantly lived in the present with the God of now.
Gracious Lord, thank You for Your patience. We confess that we are chained to this world by routine and habits. Please release us to live with You in the now. AMEN.