A Pale Comparison

August 14, 2024

My mom passed away in 2010. My siblings and I rented her house for a few years and eventually sold it to a family friend. Just so happens that the friend we sold it to took care of my mom’s yard the last few years of her life.

Between her passing away and selling the house, the renters didn’t do such a good job of caring for the house. They had let much of the landscaping go and we had a lot of work to do to repair both the house and the landscaping between the renters and preparing the house for sale.

This picture is one of the last I have of my mom’s remaining rose bush. She always did such a wonderful job of caring for her flowers. From spring to late summer, the front of her house was resplendent with color.

Since my siblings and I didn’t really live close enough to keep a careful eye on the house, letting that friend buy it was the right thing to do. And I’m glad we did, but looking at the property in its post-rental condition was sad.

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That sadness was based on experiencing what Mom had left behind. And not only that, I wanted what she left to always be as she left it, which was unreasonable.

We do that sometimes. We put a lot of emphasis on what is here on earth. Our belongings, finances, and even accomplishments. I’ll even throw in our relationships. No doubt, we would all say, one of the most important things in life are our friends and family. Clearly important, but not the most important.

Our time on earth spent tending our property, managing our money, pursuing our goals, and protecting our relationships are but a speck in time compared to eternity. There’s no easy way to visualize eternity. Even if we pictured eternity as a year, which is 31,556,952 seconds, and our time on earth as only one of those seconds, it’s not even close.

Here’s something the Bible tells us,

“Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many rooms; if that were not so, I would have told you, because I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I am coming again and will take you to Myself, so that where I am, there you also will be.” (John 14:1-3, NASB)

Our most important pursuit should be our relationship with Jesus. That relationship provides the hope and promise of spending eternity (the vast majority of our life) with Him. If you’ve lost a loved one and they know the Lord, have joy that what they left here on earth pales in comparison to what they are now experiencing in the presence of Jesus.