A Thousand Years
Originally posted on March 26, 2019
If you’ve spent any time at all in the Christian world, you’ve probably heard people say, “a day is like a thousand years to the Lord, and a thousand years are like a day,” – a quote from 2 Peter 3:8, which Peter is actually quoting from the 90th Psalm in the Old Testament. It’s a line in scripture that we use to try to explain the eternality of the living God of the Bible who is not bound by this 4th dimension of time – a God who is never-ending and whose end and beginning are one in the same. Truly, a difficult concept to wrap our human minds around while we’re stuck in this linear existence of young and old, life and death, and those who are here and those who are not.
Admittedly, this notion of a thousand years being like a day has often eluded me, much like the string-theory of quantum physics (*scratches head and moves right along*)…. that is, until days like today.
A year ago today my sweet husband left this earth, and there is nothing quite like processing the death of someone you love dearly that forces you to decide where you stand on the issue of eternity. Are we here and gone and that’s that or are we truly eternal souls housed in mortal bodies?
I’ve spent the last week leading up to this day wondering how it’s physically possible that it has been 365 days since I last saw the light in his eyes, heard the tenderness of his voice, felt the warmth of his embrace, or the kindness of his smile. How has it been 12 whole months since he forced me to listen to Christian rap or one of his goofy rhymes. How has it been a year since I listened to him tell a wild bed-time story or watched him rock a small child to sleep? How has it been an entire year when it feels like yesterday? It feels like yesterday, but then it simultaneously feels like a lifetime ago as well.
In many ways, I’m a different person now than I was when I woke up on March 26, 2018 and found him lifeless in the kitchen, and that makes it feel like forever ago. Some days I’m not even sure I remember who I was then, only who I’ve become now. But the love I have for him and the fondness in my heart for the memories we shared together feel as fresh and as recent as yesterday. And there in that place between memories and now, the mystery of a thousand years and a day seems to reveal itself.
God is eternal, and God is love. Therefore, love is eternal. It doesn’t fade with time or distance, even when that distance is literally the span of eternity. When I remember my husband tomorrow and a thousand years from tomorrow, the love I have for him will be the same. I believe this is what the Apostle Paul was talking about in 1 Corinthians 13, the famous “love” chapter in the Bible, when he talks about how love believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things. He ends the chapter by saying that everything in this life will come to and end, but faith, hope and love will remain forever, “and the greatest of these is love.”
Today, I’m thankful for the hope of eternity. I’m thankful for the never-ending love of a God who didn’t spare his only son so that we can actually experience this eternity with Him and those whom we’ve temporarily lost. I’m thankful for the people around me who’ve exemplified and projected the light and love of Jesus to me and my kids on the days when the world seemed the darkest. This is obviously a weighty milestone of a day, and I’m feeling quite a bit of things today, but above all else, today I’m mostly thankful. I’m thankful for the saving grace of Jesus Christ, and I’m thankful for the real, everlasting love that can only come from the Lord himself that existed between Chad and me, because it’s the truth behind this love that will endure forever.
Happy 1 year in Heaven, Love. We still miss you just as much as we did 365 days ago. The pain of our loss has faded, but the love you left in our hearts is just as present as it was the last time we saw you. We still talk about you all the time and laugh at the funny things you did and the passionate way you lived your life. Thank you for teaching us how to be strong, live happy, and love well. You definitely set the bar high. We will never forget you.
Love you Forever. Miss you Always,
Shannon & the Kids
