I’m sitting on my bed in Sangkhlaburi, Thailand under a colorful mosquito net. A fan is whirring and blowing the humid, cool night air into my face. I hear the voices of a family speaking in a different tongue than I rising through the floor beneath me. I returned a few minutes ago from a church service where people sit eagerly waiting for someone to share with them the word of God. They look at me with expectant eyes, and hearts eager for a teaching. These people show up every night just to hear the word of God. They are hungry. I am unsure about the message I have to bring. I wonder if it means anything to them. Their culture is much different than mine. Their language, food, weather, clothing, etc. do not look like much I have experienced in my life. The culture here is a combination of Thai and Burmese refugees. Many people are transient. From week to week there are different families living in this small town. 
All of this runs through my head as I present the message I believe the Lord has given me to share. And so, I share about heaven. Everyone can relate to this, I think. I have often wondered about heaven, especially since my sister passed away. So, why is our heavenly home, the kingdom of God, a better place to be? Often, in America, we say, “God – I really want to go to heaven, but….” (you fill in the blank) “I want to get married,” “I want to have kids,” etc. But, Paul tells us that going to heaven and being with Jesus is better by far. I have seen the kingdom of God face to face as I have traveled around the world, and I have seen that it is better by far. God has given us work to do on this earth and we are to be good stewards of our time, working for the kingdom! We are not to live as if we are citizens of this world, but citizens of another place, citizens of heaven. We are spiritual beings having a temporary human existence. We will be reunited with Jesus, the lover of our soul, when we enter the kingdom of heaven. As Christians, we already live with Jesus and the kingdom of God within us, but when we enter the next life, we will be able to physically see God. I can’t wait for that day!
Enjoying a snack at the floating home of a family in
Sangkhlaburi. We are able to visit and encourage
them with scripture and prayer.
I recently read a book called, The Shack, which I highly recommend to anyone who is looking for a good book. In the book, Mac is struggling with the tragic loss of his young daughter. He has an encounter with God during this time and he is allowed to see heaven… imagine seeing colors you’ve never seen before! He describes heaven as a place of light and color. The relationships people have in heaven reflect different colors and light, and as one person moves to other people, the colors around them change to reflect the unique color of the unique relationship
they have with that person. As Mac views heaven, he notices one person having a lot of trouble. Lights and colors are flashing off of this guy in ever direction, so Mac asks God, “What’s wrong with that guy?” and God answers, “That is your father.” Mac’s father is so excited to see him, that he cannot contain himself. I imagine my reunion with my loved ones in Christ will be something like this. The heavenly fireworks of light and color coming off of those people I’m longing to see again. I see my sister, Karen, and my grandmother, Nana, having a heavenly, joyous celebration when Jesus welcomes me home… not to mention the celebration that God and the angels will be having.
So, I invite you to live in eternity, longing for your heavenly home, because what’s to come is so much better than what we have now. We have an eternal God, and we will spend eternity learning more about Him!
Jen Crane and I enjoying Mexican food during debrief.
