How God thinks of us is … infinitely more important. … It is written that we shall “stand before” Him, shall appear, shall be inspected. The promise of glory is the promise, almost incredible and only possible by the work of Christ, that some of us, that any of us who really chooses, shall actually survive that examination, shall find approval, shall please God. To please God. … to be a real ingredient in the divine happiness…to be loved by God, not merely pitied, but delighted in as an artist delights in his work or a son—it seems impossible, a weight or burden of glory which our thoughts can hardly sustain. But so it is.
~ C.S. “Jack” Lewis
“This is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins…. Come, follow Me and I will make you fishers of men…. Who is The FirstBorn of many brethren…. To Him Who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before His glorious presence without fault and with Great Joy…. I will never leave you…. I AM with you to the very end of The Age…. Ask, it will be given to you…. Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these…. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance…. “Mary!” Jesus said. She turned to Him and cried out, “Rabboni!…” Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in Thy presence is fulness of joy; at Thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore…. (John, The Beloved Disciple) saw this and fainted dead at His feet. His right hand pulled me upright, His Voice (like the sound of many waters) reassured me.) Do not fear: I AM First, I AM Last, I’m Alive. I died, but I came to life, and My life is now forever. See these keys in My hand? They open and lock Death’s doors, they open and lock Hell’s gates…. For if you have died with Him, you will Live with Him…. If any man be in Christ, He is a New Creation…
It is done. I AM the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life…. I, Jesus, have sent My angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star.” The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let the one who hears say, “Come!” Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life.
~ All about Jesus, King of The Universe, and my Best Friend
Oh beloved, it is true.
Oh yes. It is so very true. Us formerly lost boys from the Colony of Mercy grew up wanting – and needing something so deeply that we nearly chose death to find it; the Respect and Validation described in Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs (Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs (verywellmind.com))
We wanted to be known, without being crushed under the weight of judgment or laughter or disdain. We wanted to know people, without the fear of finding strings attached to the deal.
For some of us (maybe most of us), we grew up not knowing the glowing countenance of a father who valued, and guided our existence without regard to our success or failure.
We wanted to make a difference in this world and to just have someone notice it, and maybe give us that little clap on the shoulder that gives us a hint of our worthiness in the world.
We longed – deep in our heart – to find, as John Elderidge so eloquently says, ‘a battle to fight, an adventure to live, and a beauty to rescue.’
Pivot now with me here… Some of us have found some of these things.
Some of us have become the skilled Craftsman who leave the long-lasting mark of their trades wherever they go.
Some of us have fought real battles. We have taken ground. We have bled. We have laughed and wept on the other side of the eruption of hell through which we walked.
Some of us have found the beauty. We married up – bigtime.
Some of us have success in other areas. For this fool of a writer, it has been a three-pathed career in Engineering, Missions, and Education. And by the Grace of our Maker, I have achieved some pretty world class stuff. It feels good.
Others have grown solid businesses that do good things in their communities.
Others have grown the students in the classroom – so vital in our world today.
Others have grown the food a country – and a world’s daily need. You farmers are FAR more than guys who drop seeds in the ground.
Can we see it?
The list of these good things is long. It is real, it is vital. AND, it is good! But it’s never enough.
Actually, can we feel it? Can we feel the dull thud of the successes and recognitions as they bump back down on the ground after their too-short a flight? Oh, they were not worthless – but they fell infinitely short of soothing that ache in the bones of our souls.
The Welsh language has one of the only words that come close to describing this ache: “Hiraeth.” Hiraeth is a noun describing nostalgia, longing, a great homesickness, a deep feeling of yearning for something, someone or somewhere.
Hiraeth is so close, but still this noun only describes the feeling.
So, for what do we feel this nostalgia?
Where is the home for which we pine?
What is it – or Whom do we mourn?
Go back up to the multiple phrases from and about Jesus. Read them brothers. Slow down and chew on them a while. Do they not actually begin to answer the questions we never knew how to form, but somehow deeply knew were there?
All of this is deeper than deep, but it is not complicated. We ached so deeply, and we tried to find the answers… we just went the wrong way. We curved in on our own selfish feelings and lusts. We thought if we could just fulfill those shallow desires – it might get quiet enough in our heads to figure out the deeper stuff.
Again for all this, the answer is not complicated: Turn around beloved, the answer is waiting for us… Turn out and turn away from the self that screams for attention. The Validation and Respect is outside of you. All of the fear that we would never really know someone… All the ache that we would never just be known and accepted… All the hope that we might just make eternity shine a little bit brighter… IS HERE.
So, are you feeling like that Hiraeth is going to follow you into eternity? Nothing could be further from the truth. For The Truth is that Jesus Himself (our Maker, our King, our Friend, our Savior, our Beloved, and our Blessed Hope) is going to fill up what is lacking in us, in one astounding moment.
Slow down here. I know we have the crush of worldly things calling. Just let Him give you a taste of the Ages to Come. And these Ages will begin with the Hug we never quite got. They will start with that first look into the deepest and most joyful eyes there ever have been, or ever will be. Imagine it right now.
No more fear. No more death. No more sorrow. No more pain. No more separation. No more judgement. All of those former things have faded away. All that remains in this eternal moment are His Loving eyes, along with the folds of His manly robes, and the beautiful smell of a Carpenter Who has been preparing a place for us to stay near Him…
Forever.
Tonight is your night. Know that everything is not going to fall apart. It is going to be made whole That aching lack is going to be validated and filled to overflowing One Day!
One Day, SomeOne is going to hug you so tightly, that all your broken pieces are going to still back together.
~Unknown
