A Prayer About Heaven

When I think about the future

FATHER,

All my life I’ve heard about heaven—in sermons, at funerals, and more. I have read about pearly gates and streets of gold and St. Peter meeting everyone. I’ve seen depictions of people in heaven sporting wings and sitting on clouds. Sometimes determining fact from fiction can be difficult. Whatever the specifics, I know heaven is real, and I will live there forever, after I die, because Jesus died for me and I have given my life to him. It will also be beyond anything I can imagine, certainly not boring. Like most people, I fear death because what happens, exactly, is a mystery. I am especially afraid that a loved one will die. So I rest on your promise, Lord, that heaven is real and that one day I will be reunited with family and friends who know you and with all who have trusted Christ through the centuries. Help me hold on to that hope, that assurance. And Lord, I pray for those who don’t know you. Help me be a strong witness of the reality of eternal life.

All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by his great mercy that we have been born again, because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Now we live with great expectation, and we have a priceless inheritance—an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay. And through your faith, God is protecting you by his power until you receive this salvation. 1 Peter 1:3-5