Working

I've been pondering what work will I be doing in Heaven. Our service to Him now will be evaluated to help determine how we'll serve Him on New Earth (Heaven). It thrills me to wonder, what does God think I do well here on earth so that He'll have me doing it to serve Him in Heaven? Much insight can be earned from Jesus' parable of the Ten Minas in Luke 19:11-27. First, as an amazing notice of foreshadowing, notice Jesus tells this parable to the crowds as they walked toward Jerusalem right before his triumphant entry (Palm Sunday). He says, "A nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and then return." (v.12) How many times have I overlooked how much that foreshadows? Jesus, leaves the splendor of heaven enters earth to receive a kingdom, has left for a time and will return."Calling ten of his servants, he gave them ten minas, and said to them, 'Engage in business until I come.'" (v.13). He calls those of us who are his children and entrusts to us talents, money, time..and says work until I come back."But his citizens hated him and sent a delegation after him, saying, 'We do not want this man to reign over us.'" (v. 14) Just think, five days after Jesus shares this parable, the crowd yells "Crucify Him," (Luke 23:21.) And it is true today, when people who he loves and calls to himself reject him.When the king (Jesus) returns to his kingdom, he demands to know what his servants did with their minas. He commended the servants that worked and used their gifts. He condemned the one that did not. "'I tell you that to everyone who has, more will be given, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away." (v. 26) I want to think that I am using the talents, gifts, money, and things God has entrusted me with here on this earth so that when I get to Heaven, I will be entrusted with more. The more I serve Him now, the greater my capacity will be to serve Him in Heaven.
So, I think about the work God has given to me now. It isn't glamorous. Important, but not glamorized in our day: driving to practice and lessons, cleaning, cooking, teaching, nursing, discipling, book-keeping, organizer, back-rubber... Colossians 3:23-24 says, "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving." But if I am put on this fallen earth to work as preparation for our work in the New Earth (Heaven) then I really am working for the Lord. It makes me smile to think that as I'm scrubbing down the refrigerator again that I am working for the Lord and in preparation for my work in Heaven. (Although, surely, kids in Heaven won't leave sticky fingerprints all over...)
I will not soon forget a recent experience with the boisterous one. Walking through Menards, drooling over the coming displays of seeds and such, I am excited for a new growing season. I used the moment to sharing with the boisterous one how I hope that when I get to heaven, I get to work in the garden. Maybe I'll even have my own vineyard. In talking about Heaven recently, she has not been sure she's so excited about it but I'd like to think my enthusiasm has been contagious as she has now changed her mind and decided maybe she'd like to be helping me with gardening in heaven. Until that glorious day, I'll be working for the Lord here on earth.

Heaven-our home already!

I can't wait for Heaven! Since Micah's mortal death, I have been intrigued to know more about Heaven. I am reading Heaven  by Randy Alcorn and have been learning much! What cuts me to the heart and what God has taught me multiple times in the past months is that it starts now. Heaven isn't just our future home it's our home already! In Community Bible Study's lessons on 1 John, I realized this fall that a believer's eternal life begins when we receive the Son (believe that Jesus is the promised Messiah, God's one and only Son, come down from heaven as a man). This point of belief in Jesus as the God become man is the beginning of eternal life.

And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. 1 John 5:11-12

It doesn't say, "believe now and then when your mortal body dies you'll have eternal life." It says you have it when you believe.

Paul says in Colossians 3:3, "For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God." Notice that died is past tense, meaning my sinful nature has died and that is hidden is present tense. I am in Christ right now. It's Ephesians 2:6 that really blows my mind,

..even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ--by grace you have been saved--and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.

Notice again that raised is past tense. Because we were forgiven in Christ's work on the cross, we were raised up and were seated with Christ. We're already there. Our kingdom is already in Heaven. Notice the writer of Hebrews 12:22-23 uses past tense again

But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven and to God, the judge of all and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect.

God has already brought us into eternal life. I need to start living like that!

Never bored

The past three years have been marked by great spiritual growth and depth in my walk with Jesus. I have experienced other seasons in my life when I experienced spiritual growth, but those times have been just that: seasons. There was a beginning and an end. Secretly, in the back of my mind, I confess that I have fretted that this intimate "honeymoon"with Jesus with eventually end as the newness of marriage does shortly after the honeymoon. Before marriage, everything the engineer did was amazing, brilliant and wonderful and even after the ceremony, I just couldn't get enough of him. Then I began to notice his annoying (to me) habits and began to get bored with the same old routine. I have prayed against this stale, bored, stagnant relationship with Jesus. (Maybe I should pray against that in my marriage as well, however, not the point of my message here.)
What amazes me more and more every day I spend time with God, is that I keep finding out more about Him. I am constantly thanking Him for revealing to me more of the mysteries of Christ (Colossians 1:26). I know myself well and I know that when I get bored with something, I cease to do it anymore. Oh, I don't want to get bored seeking Him. This week, while reading Randy Alcorn's book Heaven, I read,

There will always be more to see when we look at God, because his infinite character can never be exhausted. We could--and will--spend countless millennia exploring the depths of God's being and be no closer to seeing it all than when we first started. This is the magnificence of God.. (pg. 179)

I am so thankful to serve such a big God that can never be put in a box and never have all figured out. I will seek Him and He will be fresh every day!