Paradise

Awe, what is paradise? To Pelican people it’s  a plethora of p’s: palm trees, pink & purple sunsets, pickleball, parties, programs, preserve walks, parades, etc. Then reality creeps in with problems, pain, and pills — the not so nice “p” words. A little voice tugs at us, pry yourself away from your problems , dig deeper. Maybe it’s not the “perfect paradise” the sales office led us to believe.

My wise-beyond-his-years son told his parents that his retirement would be heaven. We are very proud that he and his wife have taken their  five children on missionary trips in several different countries all around the world (all the while he has been working as a chemical engineer in Hong Kong the last 5 years). They also started the first Young Life in Hong Kong and brought over 100 kids to the United States to a Young Life Camp last summer.

Perhaps, we are just passing through in this life, and God gives us little glimpses of paradise teasing us about the grandeur that is in store for us hereafter. Maybe paradise is both present and future. Perhaps it’s God’s way of being near to us on earth. You can feel His presence in the radiant sunshine, reminding us of His brilliant Light. Flowers, trees, birds praise His holy name and point the path to heaven –if only we’d be so wise as to follow it. And not so foolish to think that paradise is of our own making.