Looking Forward to a Trip

Some day, I'm going on a trip. It's going to be a wonderful trip. I'm going to see lots of new things and meet some special people I've always wanted to know. I'm anticipating this trip with genuine enthusiasm and joy; but I hope I'm as excited about it when the actual day approaches. You se, this is that final and ultimate trip the world calls death! I was thinking about this just a day or two ago. How excited we get when we start packing for a long-awaited vacation, a special cruise, a visit to see family or friends we haven't seen in many years! We look forward to going to places we've never before been! This is the way we are when it comes to trips on this earth--vacations and travel plans that will come and go in no time at all! Yet, when it comes to the most glorious trip of all for us who are Christian, we are reluctant even to think about it--let alone plan for it or anticipate it with joyful longing! Yes, I know, the instinct for self-preservation is strong; and we fear the pain or the discomfort of those final days or weeks leading up to the glorious day of embarkation on the ship that leads us to our eternal home! We think of those who will be left behind, and we will be sorry to leave them. But is there possibly even another element at work? Do we have doubts lingering about the glory that awaits us? Are we afraid that maybe what we've believed about the glorious eternal life in heaven with Christ and His saints may not be quite true? I don't look forward to the suffering; but the Bible reminds us that the suffering we encounter in this life is as nothing compared to the glory and the joy and the beauty that awaits us in eternity! As a pastor for these last 32 years, I have spent many hours with grieving families. I have witnessed the death of my own mother and other friends and family members. I am not at all making light of death. I also remember however that the apostle Paul said in Philippians that to live is Christ, and to die is gain. I hope that when it comes my time to take this glorious trip to my eternal home, I can be genuinely excited and joyous about it. I pray that when it comes time to take that glorious journey, I'll be ready to pack my suitcase as it were, to feed on the presence and the Word of God--that I'll be prepared to rejoice with all the saints who have preceded me! I hope I'll be excited! As good as life is on our best days here on earth, it'll never compare with the glory that awaits us. The time of our departure is in God's hands. I'll patiently wait on the call from my heavenly Father; but by His grace, I'll be happy to be homeward bound, looking forward to a trip!