Just Wondering?

The glorious celebration of Christ’s miraculous sacrifice and resurrection, that brought redemption to all who would trust Him as Savior, ended on Sunday. The holiday is very brief. But that does not change the fact that it is the single most eternally profound act and evidence of God's undying love for mankind ever!

And yet, already many other unrelated things in life are entering the minds of God’s people. Ongoing external pressures continue to burden their souls daily. Other responsibilities are pushing in and invading almost every area of life. I feel it happening to me and try to fight it off. But the onslaught continues – like it or not. The normal and daily difficulties of a busy modern lifestyle go on and tend to quickly replace the impact of the heightened sense of cross and risen Christ until next year. In just 72 short hours the focus on the greatest event in human history slowly slides to the back burner even though believers should never allow the cross to ever drift far from their minds for any reason.

But for some reason, today I awakened early – very early. Perhaps it was even in the vicinity of the same hour that Mary reached the empty tomb that first Easter morning, meaning even before the sun arose. And for some reason my mind began racing and began to wonder. I first wondered about what life in Heaven must be like. And before long I found myself wondering about two very special people who were spending their first Easter in the presence of their Savior and Lord there.

One of these I knew my entire life, since she was my dear mother. She was the one most responsible for me coming to Christ. She entered through the glorious gates of Heaven just days before Christmas on December 22nd. The other one I have known for exactly one half of my entire life. He was involved in my wedding many years ago as I married his niece. But he then joined my beloved mom in Heaven exactly one month after her home-going. My mom’s departure was somewhat expected. But Dave Virkler’s was not – at least to all of us. But what matters most today is that both now bask in their new painless bodies and in a tearless and unimaginably joyous heavenly home forever. There they worship God and await their saved loved ones to soon join them there.

These two close events, just 30 days apart, caused great pain mixed with greater Christian joy. There is still in this life that lasting hardship and heartache. But we are assured that it is mingled with the blessed knowledge of their new, glorious, and eternal experience in the Creator God’s incomprehensible company. They are missed because they were so special and so loved. But again, the deep pain is spiritually accompanied for Christians with the priceless “Blessed Hope”.

But as I lay there in the dark this morning, I began to ‘wonder’ about a variety of things for which I had no answers. I actually wondered if my mom and my former friend and ministry partner had met yet? I have no idea how that all works in Heaven. But I still wondered if they had already gotten a chance to share their blessings ‘together’, of residing in the unparalleled glory of God and maybe about the living quarters, or mansions, they now will forever call home. I wondered too what it was like for both to finally be totally pain free after times of great suffering as Revelation 21:3-4 reveals, “God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away." (Revelation 21:3-4)

If I was at all smart, I should have stopped ‘wondering’ right there and tried to fall back asleep. I should have simply thanked God for their new blessed and secure existence and the reality that we will see them both shortly. But instead, the wondering continued. Somehow my questions began to skirt the theologically and biblically relevant context as just described and launched into some uncharted and odd areas. Hopefully this was simply from a lack of my much needed beauty sleep at that point.

For a few strange moments, I wondered if these two new residents of Heaven may have shared huge chunks of my earthly life previously unknown to each other? Or perhaps I was only in a semi-conscious state? I wondered if they revealed some of the more infamous moments in my time with each other. I wondered if they spoke of my many mistakes, whether they had occurred at home growing up, or even in the many years of ministry in New Jersey? Of course the only thing I did not ‘wonder’ about was that, any shared data must be shared in love, laughter and forgiveness since they are both now residing in a perfect and sinless place. And there was no wondering about the fact that both will receive the rewards of the earthly labor due them.

But now that I an up, dressed, sitting at my PC and almost in my right mind, the ‘wondering’ about what my mom and the friend of some 30 years are up to has faded – thankfully! In its place has come another form of ‘wondering’. My pre-dawn questions have caused me to wonder what God is thinking about my life. I’m wondering how well I am functioning, obeying and serving Him now. And I also wonder if my present course and Christian life will result in the words that my mom and Dave no doubt heard as they entered the joy of eternity and met their Lord - “Well done, good and faithful servant.” (Matthew 25:23)

If, for some reason, you ‘wonder’ about God’s plan and purpose for you during your very limited time on earth, simply read and study the passage below. It generally describes everything you may ‘wonder’ about, for salvation to service, in just one short passage in Ephesians chapter two. “But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” (Ephesians 2:4-10)

I no longer need to wonder about these two special people that had a major and lasting impact on my Christian life. They are enjoying the untold benefits and blessings of being saved through God’s grace and through their personal faith in His Son.  So all I really need to wonder about now is that last verse above and whether I am  truly involved in the ‘good works’ I was created for while awaiting that great reunion with those that have gone on ahead to their eternal reward!

Bill Breckenridge