A Slice of Heaven

1 Peter 2:11 Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul,
I grew up with a priceless childhood as a kid on a farm in the country of NC. That feeling for nature, for the woods and fields, is the same tug that many have for the sea. You really can’t describe it, but it is a trait God has placed within you, a peace within you that comes when you spend time there. My surroundings changed in my lifetime; the farm was swallowed up by communities, the woods leveled and the fields filled. The constant drone of people going somewhere is the sound from my front porch; this is no longer home, no longer how I wish to live, and the tug to find a place for my boys has been the number one goal of my life for the past five years. They are like me, the same DNA, and we all desire that place of peace that we have had glimpses of together; our little peace of heaven in the middle of nowhere.

This scripture above has deep meaning to me, a reminder to me, that this place is not my home. Peter uses two words, sojourners and pilgrims, to remind us that we are just passing through this place. Will my little piece of heaven even remotely compare to Heaven? NO! Peter is reminding us that all we face here is temporal; all the pain and struggles of this life are just temporary, for this life is temporary, and this life is preparation for the next. That is one of the biggest struggles for the Christian is to avoid getting consumed by the woes of this world, that are only specks of sand in the hourglass of eternity. Peter was reminding the Christian to live with eternity in view; to ignore the lusts of the world (for they are countless), and to live and represent Christ when the struggles of life come. He goes on to remind Christians that they are being viewed by those on the outside, those without faith, on how they handle every situation in life, especially the tough ones. 12 having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation. The apostle Paul wrote of how Christians are viewed to the church in the epistle of Colossians; 4:5 Walk in wisdom toward those who are outside, redeeming the time. 6 Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one. The weeks like we have had in my own city this week, the strained relations between races, and between authority, are critical when we look at our behavior and speech as Christians; we are under the microscope of how we handle these situations.

There is a peace, there is a glimpse of His peace, the peace of the Holy Spirit living inside of you, when you begin to understand this is not your home. Philippians 4:7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. We will only be here for 120 years maximum, so we understand that life is temporal here. We will spend eternity somewhere, either Heaven or Hell, but that is our final resting place. When we place our faith in Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, the eternity in our hearts that he places there at creation, begins to focus on paradise eternally. That glimpse of heaven can outweigh any trial of life, and is incomparable to any slice of heaven you think you find here.