Thank you for staying with me as I worked through Psalm 23 for the first time ever. Yes, I had read it multiple times. Yes, I have it committed to memory. But no, I had never taken the time to actually think about each of the segments of the psalm and what they meant.
So what have I learned?
Well, the psalm begins with truth — the Lord is my shepherd; continues in truth — God provides for and is with me through all the needs and realities of life; and ends in a tremendous truth— I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. (Psalm 23:6b)
How appropriate that the current women’s Bible study I am in is Jennifer Rothschild’s Heaven, and that the current book I am reading is Dr. David Jeremiah’s new book The Promise of Heaven.
As the world seems to be spiraling out of control. As wars continue to rage despite peace talks and “deals.” As people do whatever seems right in their own eyes (Judges 17:16) more and more, we yearn for something better.
We desire something more. We were MADE for something more. And fortunately, there IS something more.
As C.S. Lewis stated: “Creatures are not born with desires unless satisfaction for those desires exists. A baby feels hunger: well, there is such a thing as food. A duckling wants to swim: well, there is such a thing as water. . . . If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world. If none of my earthly pleasures satisfy it, that does not prove that the universe is a fraud. Probably earthly pleasures were never meant to satisfy it, but only to arouse it, to suggest the real thing.”
Man’s beginning was indeed heaven on earth. Eden was heaven. All God made was good. All lived in peace and harmony. Man had purpose. And God walked with man and had an intimate relationship with him. That is heaven.
And then . . . man made a poor choice—a very poor choice—he acted out of disobedience and broke his relationship with God and began the degeneration and corruption of this earth and human life.
But we have the hope of something better — something perfect — something that right now we can only imagine — and even then imagine imperfectly.
And the best part?
We will not only live in the house of the Lord forever, but we will be with the Lord forever. All desires satisfied in full.
(Two excellent books on what heaven holds in store and how it affects how we live today are The Promise of Heaven by Dr. David Jeremiah, and Heaven by Randy Alcorn.)
So what have I learned?
Well, the psalm begins with truth — the Lord is my shepherd; continues in truth — God provides for and is with me through all the needs and realities of life; and ends in a tremendous truth— I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. (Psalm 23:6b)
How appropriate that the current women’s Bible study I am in is Jennifer Rothschild’s Heaven, and that the current book I am reading is Dr. David Jeremiah’s new book The Promise of Heaven.
As the world seems to be spiraling out of control. As wars continue to rage despite peace talks and “deals.” As people do whatever seems right in their own eyes (Judges 17:16) more and more, we yearn for something better.
We desire something more. We were MADE for something more. And fortunately, there IS something more.
As C.S. Lewis stated: “Creatures are not born with desires unless satisfaction for those desires exists. A baby feels hunger: well, there is such a thing as food. A duckling wants to swim: well, there is such a thing as water. . . . If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world. If none of my earthly pleasures satisfy it, that does not prove that the universe is a fraud. Probably earthly pleasures were never meant to satisfy it, but only to arouse it, to suggest the real thing.”
Man’s beginning was indeed heaven on earth. Eden was heaven. All God made was good. All lived in peace and harmony. Man had purpose. And God walked with man and had an intimate relationship with him. That is heaven.
And then . . . man made a poor choice—a very poor choice—he acted out of disobedience and broke his relationship with God and began the degeneration and corruption of this earth and human life.
But we have the hope of something better — something perfect — something that right now we can only imagine — and even then imagine imperfectly.
And the best part?
We will not only live in the house of the Lord forever, but we will be with the Lord forever. All desires satisfied in full.
(Two excellent books on what heaven holds in store and how it affects how we live today are The Promise of Heaven by Dr. David Jeremiah, and Heaven by Randy Alcorn.)
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