Who Stole Forever?
had a toy wrenched from his hands by his older brother is more than a scream of protest; it is a cry for forever. The tears of a mom at the end of a talk with a lost and wayward son are more than tears of parental grief; they are the tears for forever. The anger of the man who has just been laid off by a boss who didn’t seem to care is more than anger at a career injustice; it is a plea for forever. The sad silence around the casket of a dear one is more than the silence of the bereaved; it is a wordless longing for forever. The frustration of the erstwhile gardener that weeds grow faster than the flowers is more than a fight with the forces of nature; it is a wish that forever would come. Forever is more than a hope and a dream. It is more than a theological formulation. It is more than a distant spiritual expec- tation. The Creator placed forever inside you. Longing for eternity doesn’t mean you’re spiritual; it simply means you are human. Life that never ends was the Maker’s original plan. Now, I’m not saying that we all live with a consciousness of forever or with an intentionality about life that is formed by a belief in forever. I’m not talking about forever as an essential piece of our theological paradigm. I’m not talking about how you are thinking about eternity or what you are doing about eternity. I’m talking about something God wired inside you when he made you. If you are a human being, you are a forever being. So much of your distress at what is, is really a hunger for what will be. It is just the way you were made. You may not have been aware of it, but this longing for paradise is an essential part of what makes you human and on a moment-by-moment personal quest. Yes, paradise has been hardwired inside all of us. You may escape formal religion. You may avoid signing on to some theological system. You may question whether there is such a thing as life after death. You may think that the concept of a heaven and a hell should be left for naive, unscientific Christians. You may never call yourself a Presbyterian, Buddhist, Lutheran, Hindu, Mormon, Baptist, or Muslim, but you will also never
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