Longing for something more...

Last Friday my newly married daughter (two weeks) and her husband left for Belgium (his home country). It may be a whole year before I see them again. It will be a long year. I’m so thankful we have Skype and FaceBook and email, but it’s still not the same as seeing them and hugging them in person.

I hate good-byes. I especially hate good-byes when you’re not sure when you will see the person again. I’ve found that good-byes do serve a purpose, though, they create a longing in my heart, a longing for something more, for something better. Good-byes make me long for a place where there will be no more good-byes.

One of the things my illness has done for me, is it has given me more of a reason to long for heaven. I’m looking forward to being able to walk, run and dance again. I’ll be able to play my guitar again and don’t even get me started on the foods I can eat again. My husband thinks that the Wedding Feast of the Lamb is figurative. I told him, “It had better be real, because I’ve got my order ready.”

God wants us to long for heaven. He wants us to long for Him. When our sights are on heaven and on Him the things we have here become less important. When we are thinking of things eternal and have a “heaven bound” world view we see life differently, we see people differently. I hate the saying, “To heavenly minded to be any earthly good.” When we are heavenly minded, and not “holier then thou” minded, we depend on God for our next breath, we look to God for our every need, we see a lost world that needs to be loved, that needs hope, that needs a Savior.

This world is broken. Every longing we have here is meant to point us to Him. Every longing we have can only be fulfilled in Him. If we are longing for heaven then we are longing for Him. And, more then anything He wants us to long for Him, because He longs for us.

I love this song by Randy Stonehill because it speaks of the longing I’ve been talking about, a longing to be with Him.

Tell Me You’re Coming Back Soon – Randy Stonehill
Morning steals the night,
The sun breaks through the rain,
A little girl is sleeping,
While I pack to meet my plane.
Then I kneel down by her bed
And I kiss her sleepy head,
She hugs me tight,
She knows I'm going away.

CHORUS:
She says, "Tell me you're coming back soon,
Now don't forget me,
I want to be with you.
If you'll tell me you're coming back soon,
Then while you're gone,
The days won't seem so long."

I watch my little girl
And start to realize,
How God looks down from heaven,
And we're children in His eyes.
Even though we're far apart,
He left behind His heart,
Like a promise to return for us someday.

She says, "Tell me you're coming back soon,
Now don't forget me
I want to be with you.
If you'll tell me you're coming back soon,
Then while you're gone,
The days won't seem so long."

I know sometimes she feels so lost without me.
The world is such a big confusing place
And it's then I pray she'll do the things I taught her,
Remember right from wrong,
Remember daddy's face.

I know I'm going home
And hunger for that day,
Just like the Lord is waiting
And He longs to hear us say…

"Tell me you're coming back soon.
Now don't forget me,
I want to be with you.
If you'll tell me you're coming back soon,
Then while you're gone,
The days won't seem so long"