Would Heaven be Heaven if I was There?
One of the great hopes of all people of various religious beliefs is that one day, after this life is done, we will enter into a utopian state of existence called "Heaven." When I think about heaven, I think about a place where everything is perfect, the weather, my health, my interactions with God, as well as my interactions with others. That's when it occurred to me that part of what will make Heaven, "Heaven" is how I interact with others, or more importantly, how others interact with me. In Heaven people won't annoy me, they won't pester me, they won't be selfish, they will always make me feel welcome.
The problem with this mindset is that all my life, I've looked at Heaven as what will be wonderful for me. I've never looked at the fact that for Heaven to be "Heaven" for others, it will largely depend on how I treat them. For Heaven to exist for others, I'm going to have to be able to treat everyone with true and complete love....unconditional love, the kind that Jesus extends to us. When I think about Heaven, I feel like it will be easy for me to extend this love there. After all, it will be easy to maintain a positive attitude in a world were everyone is kind and nothing bad ever happens. The problem with this thinking is that for Heaven to exist, everything outside of who I am has to change to make life easier for me. In essence, when the external circumstances of my existence change to the point that I'm happy, I can experience "Heaven." So for Heaven to exist for me, the entire universe must contort around me. But what if Heaven doesn't work that way? What if Heaven is not how the world reacts to me but rather how I react to the world?
If that's the case, then Heaven is something for which I'm simply not yet ready. But if part of what makes Heaven a utopian world is how I treat others, why do I have to wait until I die to start practicing? Why can't I begin now? Most of us hold back from treating others with complete love because we are afraid of it not being reciprocated. We are leery around that homeless guy because we are afraid he might hurt us. I don't stop on the side of the road to help that person because I'm afraid I'll be late to where I'm going. I'm afraid if I'm nice to so and so they will just walk all over me. If we carry this fear into the next life, Heaven can never be wonderful because nobody will ever take the chance to love. I suppose if enough people would take the risk in this life, perhaps we wouldn't have to wait until the next life to experience this wonderful realm. The question I find myself asking is even if this world isn't yet Heaven for me, can I begin to make is so for everyone else?
The problem with this mindset is that all my life, I've looked at Heaven as what will be wonderful for me. I've never looked at the fact that for Heaven to be "Heaven" for others, it will largely depend on how I treat them. For Heaven to exist for others, I'm going to have to be able to treat everyone with true and complete love....unconditional love, the kind that Jesus extends to us. When I think about Heaven, I feel like it will be easy for me to extend this love there. After all, it will be easy to maintain a positive attitude in a world were everyone is kind and nothing bad ever happens. The problem with this thinking is that for Heaven to exist, everything outside of who I am has to change to make life easier for me. In essence, when the external circumstances of my existence change to the point that I'm happy, I can experience "Heaven." So for Heaven to exist for me, the entire universe must contort around me. But what if Heaven doesn't work that way? What if Heaven is not how the world reacts to me but rather how I react to the world?
If that's the case, then Heaven is something for which I'm simply not yet ready. But if part of what makes Heaven a utopian world is how I treat others, why do I have to wait until I die to start practicing? Why can't I begin now? Most of us hold back from treating others with complete love because we are afraid of it not being reciprocated. We are leery around that homeless guy because we are afraid he might hurt us. I don't stop on the side of the road to help that person because I'm afraid I'll be late to where I'm going. I'm afraid if I'm nice to so and so they will just walk all over me. If we carry this fear into the next life, Heaven can never be wonderful because nobody will ever take the chance to love. I suppose if enough people would take the risk in this life, perhaps we wouldn't have to wait until the next life to experience this wonderful realm. The question I find myself asking is even if this world isn't yet Heaven for me, can I begin to make is so for everyone else?
You're a wise man Will Hathaway. Your insites to life are amazing sometimes. Is this not the way that Mother Theresa lived her life? What an amazing woman. Why is it hard for us as adults to show love unconditionally to all? I say go out of your comfort zone at least once a day and show others that unconditional love, kindness, and acceptance we all crave. It will not only change your life but others as well.
ReplyDeleteI belong to a FB group for my Thirty One business and one of the directors posted about being spoken to in her heart to go out and have breakfast with someone..so off she went to her local Mimi's not knowing what was to happen and on her way crossed the path of a women standing on the corner holding a sign "Hungary...need money for food" and she drove passed and then realized she was meant to meet this woman and whipped around and invited her to breakfast and it turned out to be one of the blessed breakfasts she had ever had (as she stated in her post not something she would have ever done before). Lives were changed that day. By being kind to strangers you never know whose you might impact in a positive way, your own being the most.