Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord
“The one who descended is also the one who ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things.” I often contemplate the great beauty of Heaven. The possibility of possessing it, the hope of dwelling in it, the gift of eternal peace. As adults, we lose the hope of Heaven, the desire of obtaining it, the longing for peace. I often ask who wants to go to Heaven. I am often surprised at the unenthusiastic response and saddened by the lack of desire to be with God in the place of absolute peace created for us. A place of eternal love, perpetual peace, forever joy for all eternity. Who wouldn’t want that? Our minds are occupied by noise. Our ears filled with it, our lives governed by it, our hopes diminished by it, our dreams silenced by it. We love noise. We love noise so much that when we don’t have it, we create it, seek it, make it. Heaven on the other hand longs for silence and stillness. Stop for a moment; give noise a break and give silence a chance. Create an opportunity to experience the beauty of the Divine, the presence of your Creator and the possibility of Heaven. What does Heaven look like to you? Is it real? Is it possible for you? I am ever grateful and always filled with great joy when asking children, “who wants to go to Heaven?” With hands way up they shout, “I do, I do.” Their response moves and inspires me. I love their enthusiasm and their view of Heaven. They see it. They experience it. “A place where the sky is always blue, the sun is so bright and the grass is so green. There are flowers and trees and angels everywhere. No one ever gets sick there and no one ever dies there; they live forever.” Imagine that Jesus left Heaven to enter our darkened world filled with decay and disease, noise and confusion, sin and death. He did this because God really loves us. God desires us and hopes that we would love him and desire to return to our real home; the paradise that was created for us to dwell with God in peace. Not for a quiet moment or a day in our life but forever, for eternity. Christ died in atonement for our sins. He rose from dead to free us from corruption. He ascended to the Father to prepare a place for us. So, who wants to go to Heaven? I do, I do.