I am not a morbid person, so I don’t really sit around and think a lot about death. I do, however, sit around and think a lot about Heaven.
I have no idea what I will be like when I open my eyes upon dying and see my Savior’s face. Run toward Him? Stand back in awe? Fall to the ground in tears? Weep in shame over the countless opportunities I missed to show Him to someone? Cling to Him in desperation? I just don’t know. Like the song, “I can only imagine.”
Then I think about seeing all of my loved ones who are already there. In my version of Heaven, there’s always great food. My grandmother’s coconut cake and her fried chicken and grits. My other grandmother’s green beans, biscuits and lemon pie. Then I think about Mr. Hugh who lived across the street from my grandparents and made the best squash and hashbrown casseroles I have ever tasted. I imagine feasting with all of my loved ones and feeling the warm sun and ocean breeze. It’s so calm and beautiful when I picture Heaven that way.
But other times, I imagine it being like full blown worship services. Praising, singing, dancing.
“Revival’s in the Air,” by Melissa Helser and Bethel Music makes me think of The Kingdom. If you have not been listening to it, I am willing to bet you are going to soon start hearing it. “Revival’s in the air … my prayer is that it would feel like Heaven coming close.” - Melissa Helser said about when she wrote this song.
“Revival’s in the air. Catch it if you can!” These lyrics make me feel like I am already singing and dancing before Jesus!
Imagine an incredibly upbeat St. Patrick’s Day song with excitement, music, dancing, but no green beer. That’s this song, only more so. Please give it a listen.
When I was reading my Bible one morning, this really spoke to me: “Everything is permissible,” - but not everything is beneficial. “Everything is permissible,” - but not everything is constructive. Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others.” - 1 Corinthians 10:23-24 (NIV)
The good of others.
How often do we seek revival for the world around us, considering the good of others? When Pastor Steve closes out his prayers each week, He prays for all of the churches to have every resource they need to tell of Jesus so we can see renewal and revival in the world around us. His prayer that sounds so simple is actually not simple, at all. Those words carry tremendous meaning.
We need to be doing anything and everything in our power to excite the world around us for what’s to come.
The Kingdom is waiting for them, and it is our responsibility to live our lives not seeking the best return on our stock purchases; not just looking for the best high yield savings accounts or the cheapest interest rates, but living our lives seeking the good of others. We should be living our lives as though revival is indeed in the air, enticing those around us to catch it! As Michala once put it after a weekend retreat, “we should smell like Jesus.”
We should smell so much like Jesus that when we leave a place, people are left smiling, wondering what’s so different about us? We should smell so much like Jesus that when people see us coming, they immediately want to know what gives us so much joy and hope.
Seeking the good of others might be as simple as putting our old ways aside, allowing for The Holy Spirit to guide us. This might look like stepping outside of your comfort zone and doing something you were once too afraid to do. It could be having a conversation with someone you love about a topic once considered too uncomfortable to broach, but now far past the time of being needed. Maybe you are a straight-ticket voter and this means opening your eyes and heart to candidates who sound different from what you once believed to be true, so you become more open minded to listen to their beliefs.
Paul was so wise when he wrote, “Everything is permissible,” - but not everything is constructive. Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others.”
I wonder how many times I was more concerned about what I thought would be best for me, and did not weigh the good of others.
“Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” - Galatians 6:2 (NIV)
Seeking the good of others above my/our good means carrying the burdens of those around us. When we do this, we fulfill the law of Christ. I want us all to pray every single day for eyes that see and ears that hear what Jesus would want us to see and hear for the people around us.