On Jordan's Stormy Banks...

I appreciated Pastor Paul’s exposition of Philippians 3:17-21 last week, wherein he focused heavily on Heaven and the glorified bodies of Believers.  Both are topics that I have pondered heavily since Savannah’s passing.  It is exciting to think about how Savannah Grace will appear in the New Heavens and New Earth.  Will she be young in appearance?  Will I recognize her as my daughter?  These are questions upon which I can only speculate, as the Bible does not provide concrete answers to them.  There is contained within them, however, a truth of which I can be certain.  Whatever the circumstances, I will be filled with more joy than I can currently imagine.  I will, a la Edwards, have my cup filled completely to its brim.  Savannah’s cup, whether bigger or smaller than my own, will also be filled to capacity.  In other words, we will both be exceedingly joyful.  We will be filled with as much satisfaction as possible and it will never wane.  

But here’s what I want to focus on…my joy will not result from Savannah being present in Heaven.  Nor will hers be due to Ashley’s presence or mine.  That isn’t to say that we will not receive joy from the fact that we are all in Heaven, but that our joint presence will not be the source of our joy.  Our joy in Heaven will stem from the fact that we are in the glorious presence of Christ.  This doesn’t make sense to an unbelieving world.  When (or if) the world considers Heaven, they imagine a place filled with loved ones and whatever earthly pursuits they enjoy.  Christians understand that much of that will be present in a redeemed form, but that the center of it all will be Christ.  We must find our eternal hope in Him.  To modify John Piper: “If you could have Heaven, with no sickness, and with all the friends you ever had on earth including your beautiful daughter, and all the food you ever liked, and all the leisure activities you ever enjoyed, and all the natural beauties you ever saw, all the physical pleasures you ever tasted, and no human conflict or any natural disasters, could you be satisfied with Heaven, if Christ was not there?”  I can only answer this question with a resounding no.

The illustration above can also be inverted.  If I were to conjure a picture of Heaven without Savannah Grace but with Christ, the place I would be imagining would still be one of maximum joy.  This one is harder for me to comprehend, but I know it to be true.  It hearkens back to the same truth that I mentioned before…Savannah’s presence will not be the source of my joy.  It compounds upon it, however, by highlighting that a lack of her presence would not detract from my joy.   That seems incomprehensible to me on some level, and I don’t think I will ever be able to fully understand it while living in a fallen world.  Even so, I trust it to be true.  While I have no reason to imagine  Heaven without my daughter, it is encouraging to know that it would still be Heaven without her.  That’s how big our God is.  Christ is so glorious and majestic that His presence alone is enough to fill eternity with unsurpassed joy.  That is crazy love.

So in conclusion, I do long for Heaven.  I long to see my precious girl once again, and to do so in a World void of pain and suffering.  But streets of gold and Savannah Grace are not my hope…Christ is.

     On Jordan’s stormy banks I stand,
     And cast a wishful eye
     To Canaan’s fair and happy land,
     Where my possessions lie.

     O’er all those wide extended plains
     Shines one eternal day;
     There God the Son forever reigns,
     And scatters night away.
     -Samuel Stennett