Set your mind on the things above and move forward with courage today. Earth has no sorrow that heaven cannot and will not heal.
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SHAUNA: Hi, I’m Shauna on Joni Eareckson Tada: Sharing Hope. As you know, Joni loves thinking about heaven. We’re told to do so in the Bible. Well, let’s let Joni explain.
JONI: And we’re told to do so in the Bible. Colossians 3 says, “Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.” Don’t you love that verse? I mean, right there what a great command. As busy as we are, as demanding as the needs of people around us are, as much as the Gospel requires of us here on earth, nevertheless we are to set our minds on things above. And for me it’s one of the best things I can do for myself when my soul feels weary and overwhelmed with the cares of the day. Thinking about heaven helps me endure every earthly trial. Like that line in the old hymn, “Earth has no sorrow that heaven cannot heal.”
Because if I had thought that this wheelchair, my quadriplegia was the only thing in life; if I thought that my paralysis was eternally permanent, that life in my wheelchair is the only thing I’d ever know— man, that would depress me! When I am in pain, when my paralysis gets me down, I bolster my heart with thoughts of heaven. I tell my weary soul, “Joni, it’s not always going to be this way. Heaven’s coming, it’s right around the corner, it’s just over the horizon. The finish line is in sight and soon the battle – the good fight – will be over. So, Joni, can you hang on? Can you believe and hold onto God's grace till the end? Of course, you can! God says you can.”
It is, in fact, why God wants us to think about heaven and all that it will mean, not only to us, but to Jesus. Because in heaven, all the tears we will have cried will be atoned for; all the painful disappointments will be explained; the underside of the embroidery which, to us, now looks like only a messy tangle of dark threads will be flipped upright, and we will see the beautiful design that God had in mind all along. Heaven is gonna close the curtain on sin and suffering and Satan, and Jesus is gonna be crowned King of Kings and Lord of Lords. In fact, the plan behind his own suffering will be made clear to the whole universe, and we will see the wonderful story of redemption conclude its last chapter, with a new fresh chapter yet to be written for all of eternity. And so, with all this in mind, I console my weary heart with these words from an old hymn.
“After the toil and the heat of the day, After my troubles are past, After the sorrows are taken away, I shall see Jesus at last. After the heartaches and sighing shall cease, After the cold winter’s blast, After the conflict comes glorious peace—I shall see Jesus at last. After the shadows of evening shall fall, After my anchor is cast, After I list to my Savior’s last call, I shall see Jesus at last. He will be waiting for me—Jesus, so kind and true; On his beautiful throne, he will welcome me home—After the day is through.”
SHAUNA: That hymn is called “After” and if you’d like a copy to console your own weary heart, visit us at joniradio.org today and download your free copy. Tuck it in your Bible as a constant reminder that you, my friend, have a destination. You’re heading home. You are a citizen of heaven, and earth is merely a pilgrimage to a far better place. So, set your mind on things above today and move forward with courage. Earth has no sorrow that heaven cannot and will not heal.
© Joni and Friends