A Vale of Sorrows?

The Christian Faith, The Bible, CS Lewis, and many other respected authorities seem to tell us that what we do today is just a prelude to the world to come.

CS Lewis speaks of this life as being like school, a period when we are learning and training. The Apostle Paul tells us how we cannot begin to know the wonders that are in store for the faithful, and John's Revelation speaks of the new City of God which the faithful will reside in.

I also believe that this is not the end, and that we are called to an eternal life of participation in the ongoing creation of God.

But the idea of this world as a prelude, an entryway, of this phase in history as just the portal to something larger concerns me, because I worry that it encourages us not to take it seriously. I worry that people will say 'this is too much for this age, and I will leave this for the next generation', or even the next world, to solve.

We are where we are, and if we cannot fix the world, perhaps we can find ways to make our corners of it places of blessing. I believe this is one of the calls of Christianity, to make our little corners places of blessing.

If we must live on the stoop of eternity, on the doorstep of the new age, in the entryway of the House of God, let us make our little spot as welcoming, as blessed as we can. This may be the morning of the new day, but there is much to do in the morning, even before the sun is up-no matter how dark it is.

This entryway is where we live and work today. Let's not treat it and each other with disrespect because we hope to be invited inside, to a better place with more exclusive company tomorrow.

So let's get to work. There is a lot to do here in the entryway. There are new arrivals, (many of them wounded, lost and hungry) to make welcome, food to serve, and water to bring to the thirsty. Roll up your sleeves, and put an apron on - the morning has broken, and God's house is open for the business of Life.