We have Eternity.

Here is the drop in the ocean..
Here it is.
We hold onto this drop in the ocean with ferocious tenacity.
This drop in the ocean, this life.

This. Is. Not. All. There. Is.

Imagine that forever was represented by a beach.
A never ending beach that stretches in golden sand magnificence.
And this life is a single grain of sand.
A speck in the multitude.

Imagine that forever was represented by a monsoon.
A relentlessly raining, pelting and thundering-without-ceasing storm.
And this life is a single drop of rain.
A drop in the multitude.

It's not unimportant, this speck.
It's not unnoticed, this drop among many.
It is, after all, the life we have been granted.
He gifted us this grain, this drop. He has measured us out, counted our days, set our paths.

And if this life is the one minuscule grain of sand, the one tiny drop of rain...
Then eternity is all the rest.

And we have eternity.
This. Is. Not. All. There. Is.
We have eternity.

Eternity-
It is imprinted into the very DNA of our makeup.
It is written in clear, broad brush strokes on the tablet of our heart.
It is beating a resolute rhythm in the symphony of time, of hours, of minutes, of seconds.

It is whispering, screaming, encouraging, reminding us of its timeless message-
This. Is. Not. All. There. Is.
We have eternity.

Life and living it well is hugely important. It is entirely purposeful.
But often when we are standing in the grain that is this life...
When we are in the middle of the single drop that is our earthly days...
It's entirely all consuming.
This grain.
This drop.
It's often all we see.

We are so focused on this life- this stretch of days and experience, this collection of memories and moments- that we forget.
We forget that we have eternity.
I mean, we know that we have Heaven, but we don't live like we have eternity.

When this life becomes the be all and the end all, what despair awaits.
When efforts and exertions are limited to the here and the now, what futility abounds.
This life was never meant to be the sole focus of our existence.

This. Is. Not. All. There. Is.
We have eternity.

And when the reality of "We have eternity" dominates the thoughts, the decisions and the reactions of this life....well suddenly this life looks a little different.
Suddenly a glaring light of perspective is cast upon this grain, this drop in the multitude.
Suddenly a clarity of vision is found in the midst of trial and hardship.
When tough times and upsets and goodbyes come around, and they always will, they are seen for what they truly are- reminders that just beyond the borders of this life is the waiting reality of eternity.

We have this hope.... As an anchor for the soul.
This hope of eternity.
This hope of the multitude beyond the miniscule.

My family has faced, no...stared down the inevitable. We have walked a dark valley that is shadowed with the outcomes of being mortal.
And while we steadfastly hold on to the faith declaration that Sheldon is healed in Jesus name, we have also come to this beautiful recognition of what eternity actually means.
It means:
This. Is. Not. All. There. Is.

Days have been measured out. Each one.
Paths have been set. Each step.
Eternity has been stamped so eloquently on each of our hearts. Have you heard it?
The purchaser of all eternity stands... He is our Jesus, who waits for us.