05.26.2023 Psalm 23:6 Forever

and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord

    forever.

Forever. What an incredible word. Forever is a concept that only exists in our imagination. We have no practical experience with forever. Everything we know is fleeting. Yet, when we hear the word it strikes a deep chord in us. It gives us hope. We cannot truly conceive of a time going forward when we simply don’t exist anymore. Have you ever stopped to wonder why? It is because we were created to be forever beings. When God dreamed of you at the beginning of creation He saw a being with whom He would have an everlasting relationship. Death was not a part of the plan. Death was established as the cost of sin because it was a cost the God could pay for us at the cross. Death is a temporary reality. Our hearts know this. We hear God say we will live forever we instinctively know it is true even if we don’t understand how. Jesus tells us in John 5 that on the Last Day all the dead will rise from their graves. Every person God created will live forever. The only question remaining is where? Will we live with God in a new heaven and earth, or will we live apart from Him? For those in the Good Shepherd’s flock the answer is clear. David declares that we will dwell in the house of the Lord! How long will we dwell there? Until the next rebellion of sin? Until God gets bored with us? No. Forever! We will dwell in the house of the Lord FOREVER! Nothing will ever be able to separate us from dwelling with our Good Shepherd again. This is our hope. More than hope, this resounds in our spirits! This one little word sets everything right. Forever.

Jesus, my Good Shepherd, thank You for the promise that I will dwell with You forever. Let me live in with this confidence today. Amen.

Time is too swift for those who fear, too long for those who wait, too short for those who finally find peace, but for those who love, time is eternal. For nothing is ever lost that God wants you to find. ― Shannon Alder

There are not enough days in forever to allow me to fully express the depth of my love for you. ― Steve Maraboli, Unapologetically You