Bringing Heaven Closer

 “Each day heaven gets a little bit more wonderful in my thoughts,
when I think of the people the Lord is gathering there.”

Larry Mancini

Almost all of us have lived long enough to have watched a loved one—family or friend—face a terminal illness, and die. And we have seen how the death of a loved one impacts those who are left behind. A man lost his wife to cancer two years ago. He was asked how he deals with it. He answered, “I miss her very much, but it’s okay—we talk every day.” His heart is in heaven, because that is where his love is. Jesus helped us understand this when he said, “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” What attracts us to heaven? God’s love does that. And Jesus’ presence does also. But what draws us to heaven are the saints we have known who have gone there ahead of us. Some day we will join them there.

 Lord, you remember Sister Anna Belle. She is in heaven now. Her funeral was a special time. Hundreds gathered to pay tribute to her life. She was 91 but lived life like a teenager—enjoying every day as if it were her last. Friends and family from the audience were invited to share stories about her. We laughed, and we cried. Knowing her, she would have laughed with us. She was a scholar, poet, colleague, friend, and now saint. She will really be missed. But she is where no pain will ever reach her again. Her eyesight is 20/20, her hearing perfect. She has made it safely home. She is with you, Jesus. On days like today it is easy to think of heaven. Because so many of my friends and family are there, I want to live my life in such a way that I will join them there some day. I pray that you will keep that hope before me each day I live. Amen.