Category Archives: Heaven

Welcome home!

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Our family has looked forward to today for many months. Nelson was scheduled to arrive home after literally traveling to the other side of the globe and back, leading a Youth With a Mission team most of that time.

We practically had to draw straws to determine who would get to make the run to O’Hare Airport to collect him, each of us wanting that quiet car-time to talk with Nelson before rapid-paced group activities and conversations began. Klaus “won”, so he and his girlfriend, BrookeLyn, did the honors.

When Nelson finally walked in the door at 9:00 PM, we were so wound up, we didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, so we did both. What joy there is in reuniting with a loved one who’s been gone a long time! When Nelson left, it was still 2009. Now the end of 2010 is coming into view. Much time has passed, all of our lives have continued to move along, and we’ve missed having Nelson sharing in it!

But that’s the fun part of reuniting, catching up on all that’s occurred during the separation. On our end, since Louisa has spent a week organizing a shopping bag full of photographs, we can “show” Nelson what’s happened in his absence. But tonight, over a late casserole dinner, we heard Chapter One of his story, part of which was a description of life in unsafe countries. When the leader of a mission trip thinks it’s important to Google “the five most dangerous countries in the world,” that journey is bound to have some harrowing moments. We were grateful to be sitting across the table from our Nelson.

In thinking about reunions, I’ve often put Nate’s face and voice into those thoughts. But tonight as I considered this phenomenon from God’s point of view, I couldn’t help but think of Jesus. The Father and the Son, mysteriously united from eternity past in a way we cannot fathom, were separated only once: when Jesus left glory to be confined to time and space in a human body on earth.

How difficult was that for both of them? What did they say to each other as Jesus left his Father’s presence to become the babe of Bethlehem? How frustrating was it for them to be limited to conversing only through traditional prayer for 33 years? And there was the all-inclusive, supernatural separation that occurred when Jesus became sin for us on the cross, indescribable anguish for them both!

But… then came their reunion. As joyful as it was for us to put our arms around Nelson today, it couldn’t possibly compare to what must have happened between the Father and the Son when Jesus returned to heaven, his work completed. Surely this reunion was accompanied by the music and worship of every angel and saint in paradise! He was home, and the rejoicing probably filled the universe!

I have a hunch, because we’ve become children of God through Jesus, that we’ll receive an unusual welcome in heaven, too. It will be unmerited and overwhelming, but when we finally get there, we too will be… home.

“I heard a loud shout from the throne saying, ‘Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them’.” (Revelation 21:3)

Why was I surprised?

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How did summertime flea-and-tick weather get such a jump on Jack’s Frontline treatments? The sad truth is we haven’t treated him for a year, thinking he was healthy enough to fight fleas on his own. Wrong.

Because of his itching, scratching, licking and nibbling, today we took him to the vet. Although Louisa and I thought he might have worms (common in outdoor-loving pets), the doctor disagreed, insisting it was just a bad case of fleas.

“Have you been using Frontline?”

“Uh…”

“Have you been giving him his heartworm prevention pills?”

“Uh…”

“Has he been tested for lyme disease?”

“Uh…”

“Did you bring a stool sample?”

The bottom line: we are negligent pet owners, and Jack not only has fleas but also lyme disease. The vet, who casually leaned on his stainless pet-examining table when he told us this, had no alarm in his voice. “We’ll treat it with antibiotics, and he’ll be fine.”

After two hours, we left the office with Jack and his bagful of goodies: Frontline, Hartgard, antibiotics, a fistful of explanatory pamphlets and a bill for $289.

But we can’t blame Jack. He got into trouble just doing what comes naturally, nosing under bushes, chasing deer through the woods (thus deer ticks, thus lyme disease), swimming in the lake and drinking creek cocktails.

While Weezi and I waited in the lobby between a stool analysis and the blood draw, a different drama unfolded in front of us. A whole family entered the office, mom, dad, sister and brother. The young boy came in last, carrying a fluffy white pillow on which lay a big Siamese cat. Louisa whispered, “I guess they brought the whole family?”

But in two minutes we understood. Their cat was very sick, and they had come to put him to sleep. While waiting to go in, the mom approached the receptionist with two vials of pills. “She didn’t use these,” she said. “We never opened them. Maybe you can donate them somewhere. If not… well… we never… we couldn’t… we didn’t…” and then she burst into tears.

Her daughter hugged her while she wept, and the receptionist offered Kleenex. Then all of a sudden, I was sobbing, too. Louisa turned and said, “But Mom, it’s not our cat…” I couldn’t explain. Somehow watching that family grieve as death approached their friend caused deep empathy to well up and overflow. It had to do with death’s finality, its forced separation from the ones we love and, yes, it had to do with Nate.

Why was I surprised?

God created people to live forever. He meant it to occur in a perfect world without sorrow, and when death aborts life, something inside us turns upside down. The scene we witnessed today and the one in our home last fall belong in that up-ended world, and we hate it.

God hasn’t changed his mind about us living forever, though. The only adjustment is our need to pass through earthly death (as Nate did) before we can reach eternal life. If we do things God’s way by entrusting our lives to his Son, death becomes a passage to the sorrow-free life he intended at the beginning.

God will bring joy from suffering and life from death. Why am I not surprised?

“His anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime! Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning.” (Psalm 30:5)

King of Rock ‘n Roll

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There’s been a running debate in our family since 1977: is Elvis Presley in heaven?

Although none of us knew him personally, thankfully God knew him and knows him still. And in deciding who goes to heaven and who doesn’t, he never makes a mistake. He made the decision about Elvis 33 years ago today.

Whichever way it went, several family members do agree Elvis made heavenly music here on earth. Nate absolutely loved the music and owned every recording Elvis ever made, including the “rare” ones and the re-makes. He played them so much, they actually wore out and had to be repurchased again and again.

Nate, tone-deaf himself, used to ask me, “Does Elvis have a really good voice? I mean, by musical standards, is he a good singer?”

With the high expectations of his question and the raised eyebrows of hope, the only acceptable answer was, “He’s the best.”

Mom thought Elvis was a worldly influence devoid of Christian thinking, and Nate gently chided her about this, citing the many gospel recordings he’d made. They agreed to disagree, and Nate just laughed when she’d say, “I don’t know what you see in that guy.”

What Nate saw was a down-home person who recorded singable music and never lost his country charm. Elvis produced huge volumes of music and was, Nate claimed, the best-ever in many categories. Having a mind for numbers, he was always ready with statistics: Grammy nominations and awards, #1 recordings, earned income, posthumous income and anything else that set Elvis apart. He knew the biography of every person he ever employed and had a full repertoire of Elvis quotes. Although Nate knew the words to every Elvis song, his singing was only in-the-shower acceptable. He did do some fine speaking impressions, though.

Despite the fact that Elvis’ home, Graceland, is the second most visited house in the nation (after the White House), Nate had never been there. A couple of years ago our boys surprised him with a guys-only trip to the mansion and surrounding sites. Although Nate already owned quite a few pieces of Elvis memorabilia, he came home with even more, a copy of his driver’s license and death certificate included.

I remember the evening several years ago, long after Elvis had died, when Nate and I watched a TV special that tried to define Elvis’ spirituality. No one could confirm his beliefs one way or the other, but Nate knew of his childhood days in an Assembly of God church and was sure his heart was devoted to God. Nate also mentioned that Elvis had recorded most of his gospel songs after he’d said, “I never sing a song I don’t believe in.”

Nate had taken that statement at face value, saying, “Elvis sang ‘rock and soul’ music.”

After watching the TV special during which former band members and a hair dresser described Elvis’ continual search for spiritual truth, Nate felt sure the King of Rock and Roll was dwelling with the King of Kings.

Either way, Nate now knows the bottom line… unless of course Elvis is spotted tomorrow at the local Burger King.

“When the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy.” (Titus 3:4-5)