“And I heard a voice from heaven saying, ‘Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Blessed indeed,” says the Spirit, “that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them!’”(‭‭Revelation‬ ‭14‬:‭13‬ ‭ESV‬‬).

I noticed that in the month of July at least nine celebrities passed away. From what I’ve read, at least two had a saving relationship with Jesus. I hope the rest of them did.

I wish I could say that the Bible teaches that everyone will be saved in the end, but I know that’s not the case. Otherwise, Jesus could have stayed in heaven and avoided the cross. There had to be a payment for the sin punishment that we deserved. God can’t overlook sin and still be holy.

But that also got me thinking of what it will be like for the believer to fall asleep on earth and to wake up in heaven. It will be like that first day of summer after the school term is over. It will be like that first day of vacation after some long weeks at work. Oh, and multiply those by infinity times infinity, and you’ll have a good idea of heaven.

The older I get, the more I’m ready for heaven. This world makes less and less sense. There’s more chaos and darkness everywhere you turn. Things are definitely not improving toward any kind of utopia. More like a dystopian nightmare becoming reality.

But we have a certain hope. Our story doesn’t end with dystopia or futility. It ends with Jesus coming back and setting everything right. All the pain, suffering, and death will end. Can you imagine? It will be like your best day times a million. And your best day will be every day for the rest of eternity.

Hopefully, the rest of my time here will be so that more people can know Jesus and experience that abundant and eternal life both now and in eternity. May that be the goal of every believer between now and when Jesus returns.