Mommy Brain

I taught my last Bible study yesterday. We have a week off for Thanksgiving, and when we come back we start our new topic with a new teacher. I am glad that the responsibility is over, just in time to help plan the program and lead the music for our ladies’ Christmas Tea December 4th.

I know I’ve already gone on and on about how wonderful Randy Alcorn’s book Heaven is. I’m not going to bore you by re-hashing it, but I thought I’d share what I’ve taken away from this study.

First of all, we can never stop examining what we believe in the light of Scripture. I am continually amazed as I read the Word how wrongly I was taught on some subjects. I’m sure part of this is due to the fact that I was raised in two very strong – and completely opposite – denominations. I know that many of the things I was taught were based on denominational tenets, and not necessarily what the Bible teaches. I’m also surprised as I read certain verses that I’ve heard quoted over and over again to find that they are often taken out of context. We must make sure that we are in the Word. That is the only way we will be sure our beliefs are biblical and not denominational. (I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with denominations, only that we need to believe what the Bible says, not what people say the Bible says.)

I realize now that this life is not my real life. It feels real, in the sense that I can touch, taste, smell, hear, and see it. But I was created for a different life. Mr. Alcorn says that rather than calling the part after death the “afterlife,” Christians should call this life the “before-life.” I’ve always been taught that the Bible doesn’t say much about heaven, so we’ll have to wait until we get there to know what it’s going to be like. But that is wrong! The Bible gives us many scriptures that point to what Heaven will be like, and we’ve either super-spiritualized them and deprived them of their tangible meanings, or we’ve decided that all of those scriptures must be figurative. The book is worth it’s price for Appendix A: Christoplatonism’s False Assumptions alone. Mr. Alcorn shows how Plato’s belief that anything to do with our bodies or the earth were inherently sinful, and to truly be holy we must aspire to a purely spiritual state, crept into the church and robbed much of the Bible’s teachings about Heaven of their true meaning. “A New Earth couldn’t really mean a new earth because the earth is evil and corrupt.” We forget that God created this Earth and called it good. It was later that sin occurred and brought death. But is Satan so powerful that he could completely nullify God’s creation? All through time God has been slowly but surely bringing His plan back to His original design. Redemption, not only of those who believe in Jesus, but of the earth itself, His beautiful creation.

At this point many of you are probably thinking what I’m stating is not biblical. But it is. This book is not Mr. Alcorn’s opinions about Heaven, it’s an in-depth, inductive Bible study of what the Bible says about Heaven. If you don’t believe me, I challenge you to get this book and read it.

I’ll stop now before this turns into a novel-length post. The last thing that I want to share is how in Heaven God will redeem the things we missed out on here in this life. I don’t need to fret the lack of time to visit with my sisters because they live so far away. In Heaven, there will be no end to time. I don’t need to be disappointed that I’ve yet to visit Ireland, England, and Scotland. On the New Earth I’ll be able to do that. God will redeem all of the parts of culture that glorify Him, so I will be seeing the best of Ireland – the parts that glorify and honor God, without any of the evil or sin. Again, many of you probably think I’m crazy to talk this way. It’s in the Bible! (If any of you are interested, I have all of my lessons, with scriptures and excerpts from the book, saved on my computer in Word documents. E-mail me with the link on my sidebar and I’ll be happy to send them to you.)

One of the things I’m looking forward to in Heaven is meeting all of my online sisters and brothers in Christ. Most of you I will probably never meet face to face on this earth. But on the New Earth, there will be no limit to time and resources. I can sit down with Laney and swap stories of our wild but dear boys. I can laugh over coffee with Andrea, talking about our favorite books. I can discuss theology with Ron – and better yet, introduce him to my husband, the fellow computer nerd who loves to discuss doctrine. I can talk to Randi and hear about God’s faithfulness in her life. The list of possibilities goes on and on. I’ll meet my favorite authors and be able to tell them how God used their books to convict, encourage, and sustain me. I’ll see my grandfathers again and get to hear what they think of my children. And best of all, I’ll get to walk and talk with Jesus. To see the place He’s prepared for me and hear my new name. I’ll worship God without the barrier of sin. And I’ll live a life of joy and blessing. The fight between the flesh and the spirit will be over. I’ll no longer be able to sin, no longer feel drawn toward wickedness and iniquity. I imagine that first breath in Heaven will end with a long “Ahhhhh” of relief. Home at last.