No Eye Has Seen

What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him (1 Cor. 2:9)
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​Recently a close friend of mine passed away and went to be with the Lord.  As a result, I find myself thinking about the afterlife a little more often these days.  Barring the return of Christ, death comes to all of us.  It’s the one thing no one can escape or avoid.  It’s one of the reasons people, even believers, fear it and are so frustrated and angered by it.  Death leaves us feeling powerless and vulnerable.  When death comes knocking, there is absolutely nothing we can do to stop it.  But what we can do, as believers, is look beyond the grave.  Scripture tells us that “no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him.”  Though the thought of dying can be difficult, especially for those who know they are dying—those dying slowly from a terminal disease—what makes it tolerable and prevents us from spiraling into a dark place is reminding ourselves of what awaits us beyond this life.  We need to remind ourselves that the moment we transition from this life into the next we will be immediately immersed into the full unmitigated glory of God and experience more joy and bliss and peace than we ever thought imaginable, and that whatever we we think might miss out on in this world, the thought of not seeing our children grow up or not seeing our dreams and goals become reality, will be forgotten the moment we see Jesus face to face.  This truth by no means erases the real struggle of facing death in this life, but should enable us to count as rubbish the things of this world in light of the surpassing worth of seeing Christ Jesus our Lord.