Have you ever imagined what heaven will be like? When little girls in princess costumes hear that there are streets of gold and lots of gems, well, heaven sounds pretty great. Maybe you wonder if heaven is made of candy—and if you can eat all you want and never get sick. Some kids like to think about heaven because their friends here on earth hurt their feelings. Or maybe you wonder about who wins the basketball game in heaven if everyone has the perfect shot, the perfect block, the perfect rebound, and the perfect pass. Some kids hear that Jesus is preparing a place for them and they start designing their rooms right away.
As fun as it is to talk about heaven, because it is a real place, we easily gloss over the best part. In heaven we will be physically reunited with Jesus—the same Jesus who was once as old as you are now, the Jesus who loved you so much that he left that awesome heaven to come to our sometimes awesome but often sad earth to live in your place. This is the same Jesus who died on a cross and said to the thief next to him, “I can guarantee this truth: Today you will be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:43). This is the same Jesus who went to heaven where he is Lord of the universe.
So keep talking about heaven, but start with celebrating that we get to be with Jesus, God’s Son. Because, ultimately, no matter what the other side benefits are, the best part of heaven is that each day we will be with him in paradise.
