Chotard Doll

Friends,

Recently two of my friends have confronted death, being sent home from the hospital to die. Both of them accepted the news gracefully, and refused extraordinary measures to prolong life.

I deeply admire their decisions and their courage.

One of them, who is absolutely confident that death will be a gift from God, has wondered out loud about heaven:  where is it, how it can contain all those who have died, and will we encounter those we love?

Although these questions may sound naive, aren’t they questions we all might wonder?

Revelation today speaks metaphorically about death and the encounter with God in heaven. Although the text speaks of martyrs, I hold fast to the promise that:

they will hunger and thirst no more, the sun will not strike them, nor a scorching heat; for the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to the springs of the water of life and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes. (Revelation 7: 16-17)

Since I know from my own experience that God leads us in this life to the springs of the water of life, I am confident that life in God’s nearer presence will be better than anything we could ask for or imagine.  

Faithfully,

—Chotard