Another Day in Paradise

Those of you who know the fun conditions of mission trips – insects, lack of water, electricity, strange food, foreign languages, etc… might wonder at a title like "Another Day in Paradise," so let me explain what I mean. In Luke 23:42 Jesus tells the thief on the cross, "Today you will be with me in paradise." So logically you could say paradise is wherever Jesus is. We all know Jesus is in heaven ("seated at the right hand of God the Father,' as we say in the creed), and so I admit it is a stretch to say paradise is wherever Jesus is, or to even say that paradise might be somewhere else besides heaven. But…you could say paradise is wherever you experience the presence of the Risen Lord.

When I am in Africa, it seems like Jesus is right beside me practically all the time. I understand being on a mission trip is not the real world. Today I taught for four hours at the seminary; then I taught a music lesson for an hour and a half. The rest of the day was mine to do what I wanted. Not many of you reading this had the luxury of that kind of day today, I realize that. I won't either when I return (assuming I get a job!).

So what am I saying? I'm saying that anywhere can be paradise if we focus on the right priorities and make a conscious effort to enter into communion with the Lord. That place can be in Cumming, GA, or Kalamazoo, MI, or Poughkeepsie, NJ. The choice is ours to make. My prayer for you back in the States (and for myself when I return in a couple of weeks – is that we will seek him and not feel as though we have to travel to Africa, or Jerusalem, or anywhere else but right where we are at the present moment to find paradise. In other words, paradise is closer than you think; why not go there right now?