Eyes Open, Heart Hopeful
When your young ’uns get married, emotions run high. God gave us two sons so I’ve had the pleasure of being the mother of the groom twice.
Before those boys were born, I began praying for the young ladies God would bless my sons with as their partners for life. Because of that, I welcomed both of our daughters-in-love into our family with a glad heart. I trusted that these beautiful, amazing women were exactly who the Lord intended for our sons to find and build a life with.
Each wedding was a joyful, unique event perfectly reflecting the personalities and preferences of the bride and groom. I remember tearing up at the sweetness of their vows and at a couple of other tender, happy moments during the ceremonies, but for the most part, I held it together pretty well.
Until this happened…
My older son stood at the altar at the front of the church, flanked by his groomsmen. My future daughter-in-love’s attendants were in place on the opposite side.
The bridal march began to play, and we all stood in honor of the bride as she began the walk to the altar. I glanced at my son and did a double-take. Tears of joy were rolling down his cheeks!
I turned my attention back to the beautiful bride who was being proudly escorted down the center aisle by her dad. They arrived at the altar, and then her dad turned to my son - and gently wiped away his tears.
Then I kinda fell apart. Such a tender act of compassion – it tore up this mama’s heart in all the right ways.
I hadn’t thought of that moment in a very long time until I got to Revelation 21 in this year’s Bible study.
I don’t think we can even begin to imagine how wonderful the new heaven and the new earth will be. I don’t think we can fathom how beautiful it will be or how peaceful life will be with no wrongs or injustices. I don’t think we can comprehend how overwhelming it will be to finally experience the full weight of the Father’s pure and perfect love for us.
But I do believe that He gives us glimpses of eternity to whet our appetites for our ultimate destination. The breathtaking beauty of creation stirs in us a desire to worship the Creator. Courageous advocates for justice and mercy cause our hearts to long for the Day when all will be made right and suffering is no more. And a father-in-law who wipes away the tears of his son-in-law reminds us that a loving Father will one day gather us into His welcoming embrace and wipe every tear from our eyes.
The longing for beauty and peace and goodness that you feel was placed in your soul by God. Keep your eyes open and your heart hopeful. Even in the darkness, the light of heaven breaks through.
*****
“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Now the dwelling place of God is with men, and He will live with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.’” – Revelation 21:1-4
