Last week as we completed our study on living a worry-free life with an overview of Psalm 23, Jo Cudney shared a beautiful quote from Don Baker’s book The Way of the Shepherd.
“The house of the Lord” in Psalm 23 is the same location Jesus speaks of in John 14 when He says, “I go to prepare a place for you.” It’s the same place John describes in the Revelation when he says,
And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, having the glory of God….(Revelation 21:10,11).
Heaven is a place on God’s map. It’s beyond the regions of all fancy. It’s within the realm of the actual, the local.
It’s not made of air.
It doesn’t float around in some ethereal dream world.
It’s not a Disneyland.
It’s real, and --in contrast with earth--it’s stable, secure, permanent and eternal.
It had been prepared for us as our very own residence for eternity.
There’ll be no “want” there,
no forced rests,
no polluted water holes,
no preying predators,
no “valleys” of fear or danger,
no search for food
no need for a rod or a staff,and
no cause for healing.
Heaven means different things to different people. We long for it for different reasons. It’s a place, a real place, but it has different attractions.
To the poor it means wealth.
To the imprisoned it means freedom.
To the persecuted it means relief.
To the lonely it means friends.
To the dying it means life.
To all of us--imperfect ones--it’s the promise of perfection. We shall be like Jesus.
The frustration of failure, the agony of guilt, and the reality of sin will no longer exist. We will be free.
We will be home.
Our Shepherd will be there.
We will finally have the opportunity to thank Him for the good trip and for the safe arrival.
We will ”dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”
And then we’ll all say it together,
“WE’RE HOME.”
Quoted from “The Way of the Shepherd” by Don Baker.
Our Good Shepherd continues to watch over everything in our lives for our benefit and His glory. No Covid 19 shutdown can change that fact. May our hearts be full of thanksgiving every day because of His great care for the details of our lives.