in the presence of my Lord

Tonight in teens, Nikki and I led a small group prayer/devotion time. Somehow during it we latched on to the topic of death. I told the girls that for a long time my biggest fear was being killed in a car crash or having to go through a lot of pain while dying. God has changed my perspective. He is helping me to look at everything from the most optimistic point of view. Death isn't anything for me to fear because the other side is the presence of my Lord! I can't wait! Today I read in Psalms 116:15, "Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints," and I remembered 2 Corinthians 5:8 "We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord." While looking this up in the concordance, I learned that it really means, "We are cheerful, excited, and ready to be away from this aching world and into the glorious presence of our Savior."

My time to go obviously hasn't come yet, and that means that God still has a job for me here. He'll help me press on towards the mark, looking forward to the day when I will see Him! Just thinking about that day fills my heart with an indescribable peace and joy.

1 John 3:2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.