Oct 20th, 2020: God's Dwelling Place, Our Rest

God's dwelling place-devotional-favor – First United Methodist | Jacksonville, Texas

 

I did a memorial service this week for a friend whose wife died in June. As far as I can remember conversations I had with her before the beginning of Covis-19, she was a believer in God and had her understanding of where she will be when she died. The service was not really for her because there is absolutely nothing we could do for her. It is for those who are left behind. It was a time to remember and to celebrate. It was a time to grieve and to welcome God into the midst of our sorrow. One of her granddaughters asked me where her grandmother goes when she dies. A good question, I thought. What answer should I give to a 6-year-old kid?


In John 14: 2, it says: "My Father's house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you?'


Where does our comfort come from when we say "goodbye" to our loved one who departs this world? It will be terrible to think that the person stops existing altogether. I know that it depends on where we put our faith. My certainty is based on my belief in what Jesus has done for humanity. For me, it is an exercise of having a reasonable faith. It tells me that we go to God's dwelling places (monai). Jesus has prepared a place for me there. It is hard to fathom what that it means. The best I can think about is how we prepare our home to welcome our kids back for the holidays.


We would like them to remember that it is still a home for them to come back. It is a place where they have a lot of good memories of growing up. It is a place where they can just be, and no need to pretend to be someone else. It is a place where love and safety are there for them. They just have to claim it.


We will have our personhood fully restored. We will discover that it is the place where we are supposed to dwell in God. We will learn about our real family. It is where there will be no more pain and no more suffering. We finally are at peace with the fact that we don't have to fight anymore. We feel safe and loved. I long for the day that I don't have to seek permission about where and when I can worship. I long for the day that my need for others' approval is no longer there. I long for the day that I can experience a complete union with God.


So I shared with the young daughter that her grandmother is joining God to get her room ready for her. She will welcome us with the family that we don't know at this present time.

 

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