When our body goes to the grave, our spirit and soul (mind, will, and emotions) go straight to the presence of the Lord (2 Corinthians 5:8). Authentic Believers never taste of death (John 8:51). When we see Jesus, we shall be just like Him, because we shall see Him as He is in all His glory (1 John 3:2).
Once we take our last breath on this earth, our very next breath will be in Heaven. God rejoices in the death of His Saints (Psalm 116:15), because we are no longer separated from Him physically, but we dwell with Him for eternity. The day of our death is actually even better than the day of our birth (Ecclesiastes 7:1).
After we pass from this earth, we are not disembodied spirits wandering around until we finish the business we failed to accomplish in our lifetime. Neither do we need to contact some human being to help us to leave a message for our loved ones or to straighten out some misunderstanding we left behind.
While we are still here on earth, God fills our body, soul, and spirit with joy as we experience exquisite pleasures in His eternal presence within us (Psalm 16:9-11). However, He does not leave us to rot in the grave after we pass. He is our guide into eternity, and we have a refuge in Him (Proverbs 14:32; Psalm 48:14).
Death is not the end; it is the beginning. We leave the limits of this earthly realm and enter the glorious riches of the Kingdom of God. We passed all the tests, graduated from the school of life, and we earned our diploma to enter the grandeur of heaven and receive our rewards (Matthew 16:27).
Prayer:
Father God, we thank You for drawing us to Your heart during times of strain and sorrow, which accompany the death of our loved ones. We thank You that Your peace, which surpasses all human understanding (Philippians 4:7), will flow over us like a waterfall. You fill our heart with Your love so fully that we feel no other emotion.
I ask that You help us to always find our refuge under the shadow of Your wings, our strength in Your joy, and our comfort and clarity of thinking in Your wisdom as You lead us beside the still waters and restore our soul (Psalm 23:1-3; Revelation 7:17). We look forward to Your river of life in eternity, flowing down from Your throne, and whose streams bring us joy (Psalm 46:4).
Thought for the Day:
Our last breath on earth is followed by our next breath in Heaven, and the angels carry us into the presence of God in heaven where we will never die – although our human body goes to the grave; we are like angels in this respect, because we are the sons of God, and He raises us from the death bed into a new life with Him.
- Luke 16:22, 20:36
