Eternal

“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16).

Saint Peter and the Keys (Icon)

What is eternal life?  Is it a new life or a continuation of the next life?

In our current life, we are supposed to know, love and serve God and to be with Him forever in Heaven – one day…  And if we do not set ourselves up in this way (as stipulated in the Catechism of the Catholic Church) we are not going to be ready to get to Heaven.

I have been thinking about this.  Because really what this means is that in this lifetime we are supposed to let go of all the things of this world to prepare for the next one. Every single human being who will die – whether they die quickly or slowly – will need to do this.  No human can die carrying anything in their hands.  The Ancient Egyptian Pharaohs tried to take their physical bodies and their jewels and even slaves and pets with them into the next life.  The ancient Chinese Emperors tried carrying armies into the next life.  But though these monuments of death are staggeringly interesting to examine and though many of the things inside these ancient tombs remain in very good condition, all of them are decaying.  All of these things are wearing down.  And all of these things remain on the earth while the owner has been dead for thousands of years.

And what this really tells me is that before I die, I must let go of everything.  I must let go of all my health (after all a healthy body does not die – even someone murdered in the peak of health will be unhealthy in the seconds before they die due to the injury done to them).  I must let go of my money (there are no banks in Heaven).  I must let go of my children and my husband and my family and my friends (we each of us stand alone in front of God to be judged according to our thoughts, words and deeds).  And we must let go of grudges (God judges and not me – so there is no point taking my grudge with me into judgement).

Everything in this life is designed to prepare me for that next one.  The next life is not a separate thing from this one – but a continuation of this life.  And this means that in order to continue living in Heaven, first I must let go of everything else…

“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him...This is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.” (John 3:16-21).And today, I pray for the Grace to LET GO!

For with prayer, I stand on Holy Ground where everything is clear. Here. At the Foot of the Cross.