Giving Thanks for Heaven

November 24, 2024

planksgiving devotional #4: giving thanks for heaven

I have a new reason to give thanks for heaven. My Dad’s life on this earth ended this year with his last breath on May 1st and I know he is there because he believed that Jesus is God’s Son and his personal Savior. He was 97 and had lived a full life. He was a runner and a great athlete all of his life. His mile relay team at Texas A&M was All American during his years there and he was inducted into the Hall of Fame. He also competed in the Senior Games many years as a biker, swimmer and eventually a race walker.

Dad spent his last year near me in Bryan, Texas. I was available to visit him almost daily at his Retirement Community home. We read about heaven often. We read the Bible and we read from Randy Alcorn’s book, “50 Days of Heaven.” The biblical teaching about heaven gave my Dad hope especially in his final years when life wasn’t going as he had hoped it would. It was such a blessing to read about heaven together and it also gives me hope - now I know that my Dad is present with the Lord as well as with my Mom and other loved ones there.

I know that the “New Heaven and New Earth” are coming! We will all be given new bodies, living on a new earth, and God will dwell with us and we shall be His people. God will wipe away every tear from our eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away. Hallelujah! (from Revelation 21:3-4).

It makes it easy to give thanks when such joy lies ahead!

by Lee Ann Postma, College Station, TX
Body & Soul® Spiritual Impact Team

Body and Soul® Fitness is an international Christian fitness organization that trains and equips instructors to lead a variety of group fitness programs including choreographed aerobics-style Cardio Strength & Flexibility™, cardio dance style Dance Blast™, free-weights-focused Power Strength™, boot camp style FIT360™ and Longevity FIT360™, and GOLD™ - lower impact programming for participants that are pregnant, have weight challenges, injuries, or other medical conditions. These exercise classes meet in church gyms, community centers, gymnasiums, parking lots, schools, etc. across the United States, Europe, and Africa. In-person and virtual fitness classes are available.

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