Almost Heaven!

Wow! What a beautiful morning!! The fog was so thick that we're almost walking on the clouds in the sky or almost in heaven!! It was absolutely beautiful!! And how I wish it was like this every morning!!

Heaven is closer than you think! If you don't think heaven is near, you're saying that God is far away. Really, heaven is waiting for us!! Exciting, huh? I'm really anxious to go there and meet all the Bible heros, poets, historians and faithfuls!! Meanwhile, we're on our way! And I can say it is just right around the corner!!

I'm looking at David's Psalm 23 to help increase our excitement has Heaven is near...

"Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever." Psalm 23:6

Yes! God is watching over you! "Surely goodness will follow…" Isn't David is saying, "Surely only good things are going to happen to me!" No! Bad things happen to good people. Rather he is saying only goodness will follow. Good things will always come out of whatever happens - even the bad, the evil, and the difficult. God will insure that good will come!

It’s a great promise that God has given to believers: We know that all that happens to us is working for our good - if we love God and are fitting into his plans (Romans 8:28). If you're a believer, the Bible says all things are working together for good - not that all things are good - but working together for good. There is no difficulty, dilemma, defeat, disaster in the life of a Christian that God can’t ultimately get some good out of.

GRACE IS WORKING IN YOU!

When you understand God's grace and mercy, then you have no need to fear the future. God isn't trying to get even with you. Jesus has taken the penalty for everything you've ever done wrong or will do wrong. He paid for it on the cross. Amen!? So when a bad thing happens, you don't have to think, God's getting even with me. That's grace and mercy.

Mercy, like goodness, follows us in life. Picture a parent following a little child around picking up after them. How often do I do that to my own children? So God is constantly picking up our messes.

Christians go to the future - not with a question mark - but with an exclamation point. God will be with you no matter what happens, of course, we don't have a "license-to-sin". He will help you out. He wants to. He loves to. He knows we need it the most because we're absolutely powerless and he's powerful!

God's goodness will provide and protect.
God's mercy will forgive.
God's goodness will supply.
God's mercy will comfort.
God's goodness will assist those in need.
God's mercy will heal the hurting..

Goodness is the fact that God gives us good things in life that we don't deserve. Mercy means God holds back the condemnation we deserve.

Heaven is waiting for you"... and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever." That's one of the most important connections we see in the Bible. It connects yesterday and today with tomorrow. God says, "I've got this great life planned for you and surely goodness and mercy will follow you through it, BUT that's not the end! I've got something else at the end!" He has everything prepared for the faithfuls.

David ends this Psalm by saying "We're going to heaven!" Jesus saves the best until last. When I get a cake with thick frosting on the top, I go for the cake and crumbs first saving the icing for the last. After eating the cake and crumb, then eating and licking the icing to the plate brings satisfaction to my soul! Heaven is our icing on the cake (life in the world). With God it just keeps getting better and better. The best is yet to come.

"We know that our body will be destroyed. But when that happens, God will have a house for us. It will not be a house made by human hands; instead, it will be a home in heaven that will last forever." 2 Cor. 5:1

How long is forever going to last? Forever! Someday your body is going to die, but you aren't! Your body is going to end but that's not going to be the end of you. You're going to live forever in one of two places - heaven or hell. They’re both real places. You will spend eternity in heaven or hell. Your body is going to die, but you're not going to die. Rick Warren quoted in the Purpose Driven Life book, "We were made to last forever!"