They will not hunger anymore, neither will they thirst anymore. The sun will not beat down on them, neither any heat, because the Lamb who is in the middle of the throne will shepherd them and lead them to the springs of living water. And God will wipe every tear from their eyes. Rev. 7:16, 17.
I will never forget the Valley of the Kings! I was visiting Egypt with a group of graduate students. Since it rarely rains in Egypt, most parts of the country are lush and green within three to five miles of the Nile River, but beyond that stretches harsh desert. The soil is a fine powder with hardly even a weed!
To get to the Valley of the Kings we crossed to the west side of the Nile in a boat and then traveled several miles by bus until we were outside the irrigation zone. It was a bout 50°C (122°F) in the valley and dry as a bone. We visited the tomb of King Tut and several others that day.
Since the tombs are artificial caves it was a relief to enter them for a while. But we soon discovered that visitors bring their own humidity into the tombs. The high humidity over whelms the cooler temperatures underground. So over several hours the combination of high heat outside and high humidity inside wore us down, until we were tired and extremely thirsty.
When we had gotten back onto our bus, we would have liked nothing better than to head straight back to our air-conditioned hotel. But it was not to be. The driver insisted on taking us to his favorite alabaster shop (no doubt for the kickbacks he would receive from every purchase we made). Grumpily we entered the shop.
Suddenly, in a dark corner of the shop, I spotted a small refrigerator with a Sprite sign on it. The glass top revealed dozens of bottles inside! I quickly purchased one and drank it down in an instant. Then I purchased another, and another, and still another. It seemed that I could not stop. Our group cleaned out the entire refrigerator in a matter of minutes.
Scholars have noticed that descriptions of heaven in the book of Revelation are mostly negative. Rather than explaining what heaven will be like, it tells us what it won't be like. It won't be a place where we will be tired, hungry, and thirsty. Nor will it be a place like the Valley of the Kings, where oppressive heat bore down on us. There won't be any more tears there. The life of heaven means the absence of everything that harms or makes us miserable. And if it doesn't have a Sprite machine in the corner when we need it, it will have something even better!
I pray, dear Lord, that You would keep my mind focused on the incredible future You have in store, and on the fact that my life can be different now in the light of that future.
I will never forget the Valley of the Kings! I was visiting Egypt with a group of graduate students. Since it rarely rains in Egypt, most parts of the country are lush and green within three to five miles of the Nile River, but beyond that stretches harsh desert. The soil is a fine powder with hardly even a weed!
To get to the Valley of the Kings we crossed to the west side of the Nile in a boat and then traveled several miles by bus until we were outside the irrigation zone. It was a bout 50°C (122°F) in the valley and dry as a bone. We visited the tomb of King Tut and several others that day.
Since the tombs are artificial caves it was a relief to enter them for a while. But we soon discovered that visitors bring their own humidity into the tombs. The high humidity over whelms the cooler temperatures underground. So over several hours the combination of high heat outside and high humidity inside wore us down, until we were tired and extremely thirsty.
When we had gotten back onto our bus, we would have liked nothing better than to head straight back to our air-conditioned hotel. But it was not to be. The driver insisted on taking us to his favorite alabaster shop (no doubt for the kickbacks he would receive from every purchase we made). Grumpily we entered the shop.
Suddenly, in a dark corner of the shop, I spotted a small refrigerator with a Sprite sign on it. The glass top revealed dozens of bottles inside! I quickly purchased one and drank it down in an instant. Then I purchased another, and another, and still another. It seemed that I could not stop. Our group cleaned out the entire refrigerator in a matter of minutes.
Scholars have noticed that descriptions of heaven in the book of Revelation are mostly negative. Rather than explaining what heaven will be like, it tells us what it won't be like. It won't be a place where we will be tired, hungry, and thirsty. Nor will it be a place like the Valley of the Kings, where oppressive heat bore down on us. There won't be any more tears there. The life of heaven means the absence of everything that harms or makes us miserable. And if it doesn't have a Sprite machine in the corner when we need it, it will have something even better!
I pray, dear Lord, that You would keep my mind focused on the incredible future You have in store, and on the fact that my life can be different now in the light of that future.
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