Having goals is good, yeah, but I'm wondering if this goes a bit too far.
The implicit message in the bucket list is 'do this while you can, because you won't have the chance again', and that either ignores the possibility of an afterlife, or at best makes it kind of bleak, a place of sitting around playing harps, and longing for the good ol' days back on Earth.
It makes heaven a place of lack, and that seems to me to be rather ungrateful-in-advance.
There's nothing wrong with wanting to visit the Grand Canyon or go parasailing or see the Louvre; worthy goals all. But to want to store up experiences...it just seems like hedging one's bets.
"Of course I'm a Christian, and I believe I'll be spending eternity with God, but I'd like to take along these memories..."
In case I get bored with God...right?
What do you think?
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Very perceptive, my friend.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much, Nomad!
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ReplyDeleteThank you for that wise truth.
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Eternity isn't time that goes on and on and never stops. It's completely outside of time and space. Our minds can't comprehend that. When we're in Heaven we'll always have just arrived.
ReplyDeleteJan, I think that's exactly right, that the structure of time and space in Eternity is completely outside our frame of reference.
DeleteAnd it'll be pretty cool, always having just got there.
I don't look at it that way. For me, things on my bucket list are simply things I would like to see, accomplish, or enjoy while I'm still on this earth. I don't expect to take memories with me when the Lord calls me home. Jesus is all I will need; and I'll enjoy being with him for eternity .
ReplyDeleteI think you make a good distinction; there are things I'd like to do while I'm still here...for example, seeing 'Christopher Robin' with my wife when it comes out on DVD, as I can no longer go to the cinema.
DeleteI know I'll be able to see it 'there', and compete with Jesus for popcorn, but that doesn't lessen the desire to see it with Barbara, as something to share.
Andrew, I always appreciate your perspective. You broaden my own. :) I think when someone sets up a bucket list because they don't believe in seeing amazing things in heaven, they are missing the point. When people have things they'd like to see on earth, maybe to experience God in those places or to learn, I think there can be value in that kind of bucket list. :)
ReplyDeleteJeanne, I think you're absolutely right; wanting to do things while we're here, to find a closer connexion with God...that's a really good thing.
DeleteGod's given us this life right here to enjoy while we can. Bucket list or not, nothing will compare to what's to come for all those who love Him.
ReplyDeleteMay you find some pockets of joy today, friend ... even in the midst.
Linda, you're so right; we've been given much, and we are offered God's insights to enjoy it.
DeleteToday hurt worse than any other, but I loved it nonetheless.
My good friend who died of breast cancer just before she turned 40 talked to me about bucket lists. She said it was one thing to think about all the places you want to visit and things you want to do, but once she was actually facing death, all she really wanted to do was spend time with her family and friends and have good days. It really made me think about how, as much as I want to see the Eiffel Tower or visit the Grand Canyon, I will not someday be in Heaven thinking, "If only I could have gone to ____." Whatever's down here will pale in comparison to what's up there!
ReplyDeleteGood thoughts, Andrew.
J, thank you so much for sharing the story of your friend. I feel the same way; one of the reasons I wanted to move to the Southwest was to see these glorious places, the Grand Canyon, Zion, Bryce...but now, coming to the end of things, I'd rather spend time with my wife and my dogs, nd dedicate the energy I still have to witnessing God's mercy, and His blessings in my life. There are so many!
DeleteAnd the Canyon is just a pale shade of what we'll see in heaven.