“When an English vicar was asked by a colleague what he expected after death, he replied, ‘Well, if it comes to that, I suppose I shall enter into eternal bliss, but I really wish you wouldn’t bring up such depressing subjects’” (Heaven, by Randy Alcorn).

Death is something I NEVER wanted to talk about let alone experience. The fear of the unknown lay heavily on my chest and guided my reasoning. Panic attacks were the norm for me. I realized, as a young pastor’s wife, helping others would only be effective if I myself could truthfully put my fears in their rightful place.

Death should not trouble those who are believers (John 14:1-3). Joni Eareckson Tada espouses, “One thing’s for sure: Earth can’t keep its promises, but aren’t you glad Heaven does? And oh the joy of one day enjoying not only new glorified bodies but hearts free of sin!” Randy Alcorn also relates, “In The Country of the Blind, H. G. Wells writes of a tribe in a remote valley deep in a towering mountain range. During a terrible epidemic, all the villagers lose their sight. Eventually, entire generations grow up having no awareness of sight or the world they’re unable to see. Because of their handicap, they do not know their true condition, nor can they understand what their world looks like. They cannot imagine what realms might lie beyond their valley.” He goes on to say, “Spiritually speaking, we live in the Country of the Blind. The disease of sin has blinded us to God and Heaven, which are real yet unseen. Fortunately, Jesus has come to our valley from Heaven to tell us about his father, the world beyond, and the world to come. If we listen to him—which will require a concerted effort not to listen to the lies of the devil—we will never be the same. Nor will we want to be.”

“At the age of eighty-three I asked myself what I knew about the home of God, and I was truly shocked to admit I knew very little. . . . Increasing age and the fact that I shall soon be making my own pilgrimage, have begotten within my soul an intense desire to explore this fascinating subject” Ivor Powell (Heaven, by Randy Alcorn).

Still hard to believe, April 2^nd, 2015, my dad left this world behind and walked into the eternal bliss of Heaven. None of us know how much time we have left in this life to prepare for the next. And once we take our last breath here, we will inhale on another shore. If you know Jesus, your resurrected world will be Heaven where disappointments and heartbreaks are no more. In fact, like Ivor Powell, I want to know all I can about my new home before I get there. It really does combat fear and relieve the unknown!