A Taste of Heaven

I've been thinking a lot about heaven recently because I've been reading a book that my aunts Carol and Donna recommended when I posted an entry about my fear of death. The book is Heaven, by Randy Alcorn, and it's really making me long for heaven.

For a few short minutes today at church, I felt almost as if I were in heaven already. We sang a song that absolutely thrills my heart, "Our Great God," by Fernando Ortega and Mac Powell. I love the song so much that I'm going to download it.

Here are the words:

Eternal God, Unchanging, Mysterious and unknown.
Your boundless love unfailing, In grace and mercy shown.
Bright seraphim in endless flight around your glorious throne.
They raise their voices day and night in praise to you alone.

Hallelujah! Glory be to our great God!
Hallelujah! Glory be to our great God!

Lord, We are weak and frail, Helpless in the storm.
Surround us with your angels, Hold us in your arms.
Our cold and ruthless enemy, His pleasure is our harm.
Rise up, O Lord, And he will flee before our Sovereign God.

Hallelujah! Glory be to our great God!
Hallelujah! Glory be to our great God!

Let every creature in the sea and every flying bird;
Let every mountain, Every field and valley of the earth;
Let all the moons and all the stars in all the universe
Sing praises to the Living God, Who rules them by His word.

Hallelujah! Glory be to our great God!
Hallelujah! Glory be to our great God!

The first verse made me think of heaven, and that unfathomable moment when I will first behold the face of our eternal, mysterious God--when I will know Him and be known.

The third verse gave me chills, and tears streamed down my cheeks as I sang, my hands raised up to the Living God. It was if I were all alone with God, and yet intimately connected with every other living creature, part of the universe's joyous chorus of praise.

I can praise God anywhere, and some of my favorite times of worship occur when I'm out on my bike and surrounded by the beauty of creation. But there's something so special about praising God in church with fellow believers.

Next, we sang "How Great Thou Art," and I felt my heart would burst when I sang, "Then sings my soul...." I had to put my hand on my heart--where I imagine my soul must be. The woman next to me must have been feeling the same thing. She was patting her heart and sobbing audibly. After the service, I gave her a hug and told her how much I enjoyed worshiping with her.

Can you imagine what it will be like when we are all worshiping God face to face, with people from every nation and every age in history? In the meantime, I'm so thankful for moments like these when we can experience just a fraction of the joy that awaits us in heaven.