Psalm 17:14, 14 O Lord, by your hand save me from such men,
from men of this world whose reward is in this life.
And I—in righteousness I shall see your face;
when I awake, I shall be satisfied with seeing your likeness.

This appears to be a very clear reference to eternal life, at least for the righteous, and it’s a beautiful one. First it speaks of people of this world whose inheritance is life in this world, and then it speaks of “when I awake,” that is, from death. David seems to be saying that his enemies are pretty pathetic, because they have nothing better to look forward to than this life. That’s pretty remarkable, when Jesus had not yet been resurrected to demonstrate victory over death. And then there is the last part, which people who don’t enjoy fellowship with God really can’t understand at all: just seeing God will be the greatest reward, and complete satisfaction. I see lots of cartoons that imply that heaven is pretty boring, but they are certainly the works of people who have never tasted God in this life. The attitude of anyone who has tasted God is going to be that expressed in the song, I Can Only Imagine, which talks about getting to heaven. As John and Paul both said, there is much we don’t know, but what we do know is pretty wonderful. (1 John 3:2-3, 1 Corinthians 13:12) There is a lot in this world that can really drag us down, but if our hope is beyond this world we can have peace and joy in the middle of anything.

I will never forget a time when I was in a small prayer meeting with three brothers in Christ and the awareness of God, and the sheer joy of it, was so intense that I felt that one more drop and my physical body would give up, and I had to ask the Lord to back off a bit. When I write it like that it doesn’t seem to make much sense, but I know what I experienced. As David said, just seeing God’s face will more than compensate for anything negative whatsoever. Paul put it this way: “For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.” (2 Corinthians 4:17) I know that my current, temporal mind can’t grasp the fullness of what awaits me when I am done with physical limitations, but I know that God is love, (1 John 4:8) and His plans for me are incredibly good. “Incredible” means “unbelievable,” but by the grace of God I do believe, though I can’t begin to grasp the fullness of it all. I am never to fear anything on this earth, because I know that it is totally insignificant compared to what awaits me in my Father’s presence.

Father, thank You for the assurance of heaven. There is indeed so much that seeks to drag me down in countless ways. Help me lift my eyes from all the junk and fix them on Jesus, (Hebrews 12:2) so that You may fill my heart, mind, and spirit with Your Spirit, washing out all the dirt and preparing me for unhindered fellowship with You, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!