Facing Death Without Fear (1)

"In your presence is fullness of joy."     Psalm 16:11 NKJV
Ask twenty people to describe heaven, and chances are you'll get twenty different answers. But there's one thing that's not open to speculation: "To leave this life and be with Christ... is much better" (Philippians 1:23 NCV) than anything we can imagine. Recalling a conversation with her mom before she went to heaven, Billy Graham's daughter Anne writes: "I told her about my recent visit to Westminster Abbey, where kings and queens are crowned and royalty are married. The door for tourists that leads to the cathedral entrance is a dark, cramped space. Opposite is another door that opens into the magnificent, glorious cavernous sanctuary of Westminster Abbey. The dimly lit narthex is just a place to purchase your ticket and guidebook before transitioning to the cathedral. I can't imagine anyone clutching a ticket or leafing through a guidebook being satisfied with staying in the [entrance hall]... We pick our ticket to heaven when we're born again through faith in Jesus. And we familiarize ourselves with the 'guidebook' to heaven - the Bible... My mother left the narthex and moved into the sanctuary on June 14, 2007... It's unimaginable that I can no longer see the sparkle in her eyes, or hear the wisdom of her words. Yet despite my aching heart, I know her whole purpose for being - and ours - is to transition into heaven. The psalmist said, 'In your presence is fullness of joy, at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.' One day I too will move, to live forever in the sanctuary. In the meantime, I want to show others a glimpse of our Father's house, so they'll look forward with hope to moving there."
This message taken from: Daily Devotional - The Word for You Today