Lessons at the Grocery Store - Heaven

Lessons at the grocery store – Heaven (by the way I never know whether or not to capitalize heaven - I go back and forth in this blog)

We have had a lot of conversations about heaven the last several months.  Hannah went through a phase where she was very scared about heaven and kept saying she didn’t want to go there.  I realized she thought if she became a Christian she would automatically leave us and go straight to heaven.  We talked that out and she seemed to be okay.  We also reminded her about how happy a place heaven will be.  Not long after that “Heaven is a Wonderful Place” a Psalty song became her favorite song.  

I hadn’t heard much more from the kids on the subject until today.  I can’t remember what brought it up but Benjamin asked if we would go to heaven when we died.  I told him that all who believe in Jesus as their Savior would go to heaven when they die.  He asked if everyone dies and I said yes.  He wanted to know how long we would be in heaven.  I said, “forever” so they both starting saying things like “you mean 600 days?!?”, “or 100 days?!?, or “1,000 days?!?”.  I said no much more than that, more days than we can even number, for all eternity and then it came out, a Buzz Lightyear quote, I couldn’t help myself and I said, “To infinity and beyond!” J 

Benjamin started to cry.  “I don’t want to be in Heaven forever”, Hannah added, “I want to bring something to Heaven with me”  I explained that Heaven is so wonderful that we won’t need to bring anything with us.  Hannah said, “but I want to bring lambie pie with me” and Benjamin said, “I need puppy and bear”.  I told them they wouldn’t need those things because we would be with God and it will be more wonderful than anything we can even think of!  The conversation went on and on and we talked about lots more things (will we go to bed in Heaven, will it get dark in Heaven, etc.) I don’t think I ever convinced them how good Heaven is.  We read Revelation 21 when we got home so I could show them what the Bible says.  Benjamin is still not sure he wants to go.  I told him it is not time for him to go yet and not to worry.  I also reminded him that we must believe in Jesus as our Savior to go to Heaven (don’t want him to think that everyone just automatically goes there when we die). 

So what lesson can Mama learn from this “lesson at the grocery store”.  I think of a couple of things;  first of all they were very focused on their “things” here on earth that they wanted to take with us.  We do get very attached to our things (me too).  However, the Bible tells us we should lay up for ourselves treasures in Heaven (Matthew 6:20).  I love giving my kids gifts, it is such a joy, but I need to remind them of the greatest gift they could ever receive, God’s gift of salvation.

The second lesson is to remember that this is not our home.  We are temporary residents here.  God has a much greater plan for us to spend eternity with Him.  Eternity is something that my 5 and 6 year old cannot comprehend….and I cannot comprehend it either!!!  In my Bible Study a few weeks ago (Kay Arthur's: “Lord Give me a Heart for You”), Kay was talking about Heaven and how we don’t think about it much.  She asked us to consider how we would be feeling if we were “at death’s door”, what would we feel?  What would we fear?  I thought about it and though my fears are not the same as my kids but I do fear the unknown too!  My biggest fear is leaving my family behind to live without me.  I don’t really want to take anything with me like they do but I don’t want to miss out on them growing up.  But that is not up to me and not something to worry about.  Oh to be like Paul and be able to say, “For me to live is Christ and to die is gain” Philippians 1:21

The lesson today is to live my life in a way that is pleasing to God and to always be ready for the time when He decides to take me home.  We don’t know how Heaven will be but to quote one of my favorite singers, “to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord, and from what I know of Him that will be very good.”  (Sara Groves – What do I know)  (Go listen to the song now and then buy all of her albums :))

Lessons at the Grocery Store - part 2

So this story I'm about to tell you did not happen at the grocery story.  However, last year I posted Lessons at the Grocery Store  and I like that title.  Just think of this as a new series entitled Lessons from the Grocery Store.  These lessons are things that God teaches me as I'm teaching my kids!!!  Think of the Grocery Store as representation of the life of a stay-at-home Mom!  I do frequent the grocery store at least once a week (usually more or I send Daniel on the 2nd and 3rd trip!).

Today's lesson is about being thankful for what we have.  We were in the van on the way to get allergy shots and to visit Daddy at work.  In a very whiny voice I hear, "Mommy!!!!  Hannah's umbrella has a full princess on the end of her umbrella and my umbrella only has a Spiderman head!!!!!".  My quick response was, "I hope I don't hear complaining because if you are complaining I can just take your umbrella away and then you won't have an umbrella at all!"  "do you want me to do that?".  "no".  "Okay then, let's be thankful that you even have an umbrella."  I was having trouble hearing and communicating in the van (they sit in the VERY back) and so I thought to continue the conversation later.  I as continued to drive I began to think....you know I do the same thing.....I compare what I have to what other people have.  It seems so silly to have a cool spiderman umbrella and to complain because it just has his head and not his whole body like Hannah's princess umbrella.  What a small thing!  Then I began to think.  Does God think some of the things I "complain" to Him about are just as silly!  The answers is probably so!!!

Once we got to Daddy's work we had more chance to talk.  I reminded the kids of the verse we have taped to our wall it says, "Rejoice always, pray constantly, give thanks in everything for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."  1 Thessalonians 5:16-18  We listed things we need in life to actually live, we decided food, water, sunlight, shelter (our house), and clothes (can live without clothes but ever since Eden that has been decided we should wear clothes) were about all we needed to live.  The other things we have our toys, our car, our tv, our movies, our games, etc., etc., etc. were added things that God has blessed us with.  We talked about how God wants us to Rejoice always.  We decided that means to be happy all the time about what God has blessed us with.  We talked about praying all the time and giving thanks for everything, Hannah had a good definition for everything, "all the things in the whole world", I added "that God has given us."  We decided that we have been very blessed and we should not complain about the things we have.

So what can Mommy learn from all of this....Mommy needs to remember to rejoice always too and to give thanks in everything!  I can be thankful for the two beautiful babies that God has given me and rejoice over them.  I don't have to worry why so and so has 6 kids and they have 8 and that person who didn't even want her baby keeps getting pregnant! (these are random not actually thinking of particular people).  I can be thankful that God has provided a beautiful home for us to live in.  I don't have to worry that we don't have a homeschool room and a playground that has more than one functioning swing in the backyard, etc, and we only have one bathroom!  I can be thankful that we had a wonderful vacation to the beach for 3 days and not be jealous of the person who took their family on a 10 day excursion to the beach and stayed in a beautiful resort and didn't have a tv that looked like it was going to fall and kill one of their children!  All of these things are silly!!!  I have kids!!!  I have a house!!!  I got to take a vacation!!!  Benjamin has an umbrella!!!!  Let us Rejoice!!!  But most importantly let us rejoice that Jesus is my Savior and He is all we really need!!!

Thankfully God hasn't taken away the things I haven't been thankful enough for (I have removed toys from my kids that they were not thankful for)!  What a great reminder to be thankful for all we have!!  Because I sure don't want what I have to be taken!

Hope you enjoyed this Lesson at the Grocery Store!  God teaches me so much through my kids and through my explanations to my kids about things.  I read a quote just yesterday and it rings true, "God created families to do a perfecting work in us that couldn't possibly be done unless we were thrown together with the same group of people day in and day out."