Life After HeavenSample

Heaven's Nearness

Early in his ministry, Jesus sent seventy-two followers out to do the things Jesus himself was doing. What was their message? “The kingdom of God has come near to you” (Luke 10:9).

The kingdom of heaven is a lot closer than we’ve been led to believe. We need only open the door to allow it in. And when we do that, life changes. The quality of our lives literally changes.

It’s surely amazing, but the truth is, we’re not talking about wild and crazy stuff here. This is how normal should be! There’s just so much more to God’s normal than we think.

How do we get to that? It’s simple but not easy. We get there by being in a place where we recognize the kingdom is near and then opening the door. Not so we can go out, but so the kingdom can come in. Not to make the journey of faith simply about our getting to That Place, to heaven, but for the God of That Place to bring heaven right here.

Today.

What do you do with that? If the people in your circle of the world received a taste of heaven, what would life be like?

Would it change the way you relate to them?

Would it change the way you respond?

Would life be different?

Do you think your life could be different?

I know it can.

My best advice, if you want to live this way, is that you should intentionally invite the Father into your life. He will take whatever time you give him, occupy whatever space you allow him, and accept your invitation every time. Your life will be forever different.

Of course, not all experiences of heaven on earth are miraculous or supernatural. Sometimes they are ordinary (or so they might seem). But the feelings that come with them—the sensations within a bubble—are every bit as powerful. It’s real and it’s important.

The true Christian experience, I now believe, looks like living out heaven on earth. That makes this life—for all its pain and blandness (compared to life in That Place)—heavenly. It is freedom in Christ, not an imprisonment. “To live is Christ,” Paul said, “and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21).

Doesn’t that sound like something God would do?

Be on the lookout today for ways you can “open the door” to let heaven in.