“And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” Revelation 21:3-4
This picture was taken on this past Mother’s Day in Penang, Malaysia. As I watched this sunset from the roof of our apartment building, I was frustrated. The mountain was blocking the sunset that I wanted to see so badly. Sure, it was still a beautiful view, but I felt like there was more that I was missing on the other side. As I stood watching, I listened to Lauren Daigle’s song Trust in You, as she sang these words…
When You don’t move the mountains
I’m needing You to move
When You don’t part the waters
I wish I could walk through
When You don’t give the answers
As I cry out to You
I will trust, I will trust, I will trust in You
This song has held a lot of meaning to me over the past two and a half years, as this is the song that my family and I listened to in the waiting room of the hospital right after my mom entered into the arms of Jesus…as we were looking upon Mount Everest in front of us, facing leaving the hospital into a world without Mom, but choosing to trust that God was still in control. So as I listened to it again on Mother’s Day, watching the sunset, I was struck with the imagery I was gazing upon. There was literally a mountain in front of me, blocking me from what I wanted. And I’ve had plenty of figurative mountains, too. But with the sun shining behind this literal mountain in front me, I felt like I was seeing a tiny glimpse of the glory of heaven that is to come, and I was reminded that Heaven is nearer than it seems.
Since my mom passed away, I’ve had a greater interest in Heaven. Don’t get me wrong, I know that when I get to Heaven, I’ll be more concerned about seeing Jesus than anything else, but on this side of Heaven, I’m also really excited to see my mom again. But knowing that she’s there now, it makes me want to be closer to Heaven, it makes me want to impact the Kingdom that she’s currently living in, the one she is advocating for on the other side, because somehow it makes me feel closer to her. That we are both still worshiping the same God and fighting for the same thing – God’s glory. So even though I can’t see Heaven now, I’m encouraged that Heaven is nearer than it seems. That every time we worship here on earth, every time we share the gospel and love others and pursue Christ, that we see a glimpse of Heaven and the glory that is to come. I can’t wait to see my Mom again, but even more so I can’t wait until I will see Jesus face to face, and there will be no more sin or sorrow or pain or death or hurting, but we’ll be living in perfect unity for all of eternity. Oh what a day of rejoicing that will be.
