THE NEW JERUSALEM

Mike gave me a cross that I wear almost every day.  He bought it after we finished our Revelation study.  It says "Jerusalem" on the front and it makes me think about the new Jerusalem and what's ahead one day.  I'm grateful that the Lord left us a description of His coming kingdom to encourage our hearts; He knew we would need to have our eyes lifted toward the prize.  Here are some thoughts from our study that I love to run over in my mind.

Our teaching leader is named Bill and he told us about a time when he was in the family engine-rebuilding business.  He said that such a business was not all that glamorous, but it did afford a nice perk...a trip to a piston rings convention in Europe.  Bill's dad was not interested in going and so Bill and his brother went and took their wives.  They all tried to talk their dad into going along.  But the dad said he had been to Florida and California twice, so why would he want to go to Europe?

When the four travelers came home, they brought slides and stories about what Europe had been like.  And Bill said, "I must have done a better job of selling Europe than I realized because the next year he and my mother WENT!"  Then Bill continued..."in this chapter of the Revelation, God has done a wonderful job of telling us what it will be like so we will want to go".

I LOVED that.

Also, Bill said that when he and April were first married, they were in school up in Fayetteville and lived in a 350 square foot apartment.  The first time the parents came to visit, they spent three days cleaning to get ready.  At this point I am already killing myself laughing about meeting "in-law expectations" and the length of time to clean 350 square feet.  So Bill says he goes in and April is cleaning the commode for about the third time.  She's standing on her head getting under the rim.  And Bill says "why are you doing THAT?"  April replied "my mother will look".  He says "you are crazy, she won't look THERE!".  But later Bill goes by the bathroom door and catches his mother-in-law inspecting.

Bill went on to explain, "we spent THREE days in preparation for our parent's visit.  God has spent TWO THOUSAND YEARS preparing a place for us!"  

These thoughts and all the other new thoughts collected from the book of Revelation have renewed our minds.  I guess my previous understanding of heaven had been that I would "go up" somewhere.  Now I have a different scenario of what the Lord will do as He makes a new heaven and new earth...and the New Jerusalem.  For me personally, just reading about all the precious stones in the city was a trip.  I'm a beader and I find it exciting NOW to drive to North Little Rock and look around in the bead shop.  One day I will have access to dazzling colors and varieties of precious stones that exist to declare God's creativity and reflect His glory.  I can just "see" the gold pavement and clear sparkly jewels.

Our Revelation study has increased our sight and made us thirsty for the city whose builder is God. 

"And the city (the new Jerusalem) has no need of the sun or of the moon to shine upon it, for the glory of God has illumined it, and its lamp is the Lamb." Revelation 21:23