Deep within us all there is an amazing inner sanctuary of the soul, a holy place, a divine center, a speaking voice, to which we may continuously return. Eternity is at our hearts, pressing upon our time-torn lives, warming us with intimations of an astounding destiny, calling us home unto itself…. It is a seed stirring to life if we do not choke it….
~Thomas R. Kelly (1893-1941)
You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.
~ Jesus, King of the Universe, in Matthew 5
He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, He has put eternity into man’s heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end.
~ Solomon, in the book of Ecclesiastes
Oh beloved, it is true. It is a beautiful ache. For the true believer, there is this veneer to the world around us. In the past, eternity seemed like it was some time away – but now we know beyond any shadow of any doubt that eternity is now. At least it touches now. However, what also flows against now is the temporal and temporary nature of the world in which we live.
We move about in this place, but we almost feel that we have to hold still, for the construct we now see, seems as though it might come apart like a house of cards. Oh, many things are bright and shiny. And many things look solid, but they are but gossamer tissue in comparison to the place we now truly inhabit.
And, oh G_d, the pain. Around us, there are legion screaming through their eyes. They are desperately alone. Everywhere they look, they think they are going to see something that matters. They think this, because this is the only reality they can see – but even they somehow know a whole bunch is missing. They want for connection in way we can so remember. They want someone to know them. Oh, dear G_d they hurt! They bury themselves in a screen or a store or a habit desperately trying to connect.
We have, to put in profoundly, become a person in – but not of – this world. And the difference from before makes the difference between night and day seem a bit subtle. Everything is different. Nothing tastes the same. Nothing looks like it did before. It is as if we have become totally different – even alien – creatures in our former habitat.
Some look at us as fools who have lost grip on reality. We are seen as delusional. We are told that there is no way we could have moved beyond believing in some god, to simply knowing the Real Him for real.
We are not delusional though. And this we know. Our thoughts are now both lucid and sound. Our hearts now beat to a rhythm of Life that will not ever end, even when the muscle fades and stops pumping blood. Our eyes are clear and focused on Him. And our ears can clearly hear the flag of Zion snapping hard in the wind of His Spirit. Our lungs breath the clear air of heaven and the heaviness of our souls has already begun to lift.
But it has only just begun. We are not home yet.
Can we see it? Oh beloved, we are simply bursting with Hope. We are blessed beyond measure to know that life is really, truly exceedingly better than what we see in these four dimensions alone. And as we become full beyond the measure of our ability to contain it, the Light of the new creation we have been made into pours forth, onto and around others. And it is this light that helps those who cannot yet fully see – to see the path to Him.
We are the light of the world. We are portals of His Light into the darkness. We are beacons away from the house of cards, towards mansions of glory.
Shine beloved. We are almost Home. He is there.
