A glimpse of Heaven
Martha Olawale
“After these things, I looked, and this is what I saw: a vast multitude which no one could count, [gathered] from every nation and from all the tribes and peoples and languages [of the earth], standing before the throne and before the Lamb (Christ), dressed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands;”
As I walked into the room that evening, I was flushed with a wave of the feeling of what Heaven looks like. It was the hundredth-year anniversary of my church in a few days and choir members from times past and present were gathered in the choir room to rehearse for the event. It was the first time I’ll be meeting most of the people in the room because many traveled in from other parts of the country for the event. But somehow, I felt I’d known everyone all my life.
We all looked different; there were old, young, Black, White, Hispanic, male, female, long-haired, and short-haired. However, regardless of all the differences, there was an undeniable sense of kindred spirit in the room. We were gathered for one single reason, to glorify our Savior, the Lord Jesus.
Sitting in the corner of the room and singing with all those people left a mark on my heart. It makes me long for the day I will walk through the gates of Heaven. I will not be the new kid on the block or the Nigerian American in the room. I would simply be home!
The longing for Heaven and standing in God’s presence remains the single most comforting feeling anyone can have. You can live in a house that spans across lands and extends to the end of the ocean, but it can never compare to standing on the shores of Heaven. It’s a crossover from death to eternal life; shame to glory; rot to incorruptible; uproar to tranquility.
Some of those I shared the altar with that weekend are now with Jesus. They’ve joined the angels to worship at the throne of God. Like the saints before them, they’ve crossed the line between mortality and eternity, and their salvation in Christ has earned them a right to Heaven. I can imagine their reaction as they walked through the gate because on an evening not long ago, I too got a glimpse of Heaven as I walked into the room, I shared with them.
