His Gentle Whisper

I've never given a lot of thought to heaven.  I just know it's there - and someday we'll spend eternity with Jesus.  But I've never really wondered about all the details.

However, since losing Floyd and knowing he's in heaven now, I think about it a lot.  And I now have a million questions!  I wonder what Floyd is doing.  I wonder if he can find our friends and relatives who have gone before him - and how he finds them in the midst of all the people there.  I wonder about conversations he might be having with Jesus - and who else he might be talking to.  I wonder if he knows what is happening here on earth.  Well, I just wonder about a lot of things!

I've been listening to a very moving, very poignant song by Casting Crowns - Scars in Heaven.  In the world in which we live, where many of us have suffered loss, the words are so beautiful:

"The only scars in heaven, they won't belong to me and you

There'll be no such thing as broken, and all the old will be made new

And the thought that makes me smile now, even as the tears fall down

Is that the only scars in heaven are on the hands that hold you now."

Floyd and other loved ones who are in heaven are in the nail scarred hands of Jesus.  He is tenderly loving them, caring for them, and He has healed them!

I still have all my questions about heaven, but I'm so encouraged when I think of the relief from pain and suffering - and spending eternity with our precious Lord!  Our loved ones who have gone before us just have a jump start on being in the presence of Jesus.

C.S. Lewis once said that on this earth we are "on the wrong side of the door."  But, "all the leaves of the New Testament are rustling with the rumor it will not always be so."  Someday we'll be with our loved ones on the other side of the door with Jesus.

"Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him." 1 Corinthians 2:9

"Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven."  Matthew 5:12

"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 21:4

"Our citizenship is in heaven."  Philippians 3:20

I take comfort in knowing Floyd and all our loved ones who have passed are basking in the presence of Jesus.  The nail scarred hands are tenderly holding them.  However that works in heaven, it's a beautiful thing!

I love that in our relationship with God, He speaks to us!  From my earliest days as a young girl I can remember God speaking into my heart - long before I even understood what was happening.  I can remember kneeling by my bed and praying.....and by a little bench in my parent's room.  I could hear God speaking to me - tenderly, gently, clearly.  I knew He loved me.  I knew He had a plan for my life.  I knew He was a wonderful Father.  I somehow knew that He made His home in my heart.

I've often reflected on this passage from 1 Kings 19:11,12

"Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind.  After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake.  After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper."

Many times when I'm seeking the Lord for answers or direction, for clarity about something, I want Him to speak strongly - in wind, earthquakes, fires.....something powerful and clear.  But 99.99% of the time, He speaks in quiet, gentle whispers into my heart.

In order to hear that whisper, I have to be still in His presence.  I have to shake off the cares of the world.  I have to silence my own voice and thoughts.  I have to rebuke the voice of the enemy.  I have to resist all the worries and cares that are impacting my day, my heart.  When I do that (it usually takes time), then I can hear His intimate holy whispers.

It's so easy to get distracted by the "noise" of the world around me - especially with all the craziness of our current world.  There is so much happening that screams for our attention!  I often have to consciously work at being still - even when I'm physically weak.  But, when I quieten all the other voices, I love hearing His precious whispers!

I don't know about you, but I need to hear His holy whispers into my heart more than ever before.  I can't make it without Him.  I need His love, His care, His guidance, His peace.  I am so, so grateful that God speaks to me!

"Cease striving and know that I am God."  Psalm 46:10

"My sheep hear my voice."  John 10:27

"Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known."  Jeremiah 33:3

How precious it is that God speaks to us!  Often in tender, gentle whispers.....when we quieten our hearts to listen.