No More Goodbyes

Published: March 9, 2023, midnight

b'Saying goodbye is my least favorite thing. And my honorary \\u201cniece\\u201d agrees with me.\\n.\\nLast year, my husband and I bought a house with our dear friends from college\\u2014the parents of our aforementioned niece. We wanted to live in community and save money, and it has been such a joy for our two families to live together.\\n.\\nWhile we were in the process of buying the house, we were still living in separate apartments, and I was babysitting my niece while her mom worked. On one particular day, when it was time to go home my niece burst into more tears than usual. We had been having so much fun together, and she didn\\u2019t want it to end.\\n.\\nShe was too little to understand, but I was desperate to find a way to comfort her. \\u201cLittle one, I have good news for you!\\u201d I said. \\u201cPretty soon, we\\u2019ll be living in the same house.\\u201d\\n.\\nIt really reminded me of Jesus\\u2019s promises to us. As Christians, we rest in two great promises: (1) that Jesus Christ is always with us, constantly present in our lives, and (2) that He will return someday to make all things new. Jesus is present with us even on the worst of days through His Spirit, His Word, and His people. And when Jesus returns bodily to restore the world, we will dwell forever with Him and our siblings in Christ on the new heavens and new earth. Then, we will be free from the sadness and brokenness sin introduced into our world. Free from the heartbreak of goodbyes.\\n.\\nIn Christ, no matter what we face, we can trust that our future is secure. Even death can\\u2019t separate us from God\\u2019s love because our Savior beat sin and death when He died on the cross and rose from the grave. Now that\\u2019s good news!\\xa0\\n.\\n\\u2022 What kinds of changes or disappointments have you experienced lately? How can the promises from today\\u2019s reading give you hope for both the future and the present? (If you want to dig deeper, read John 14:16-23 and Romans 8:38-39.)\\n.\\n\\u2022 If you want to learn more about what it means to know Jesus, check out our \\u201cKnow Jesus\\u201d page.\\n.\\nI heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, \\u201cLook, God\\u2019s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them.\\u201d Revelation 21:3 (NLT)\\n\\xa0\\nRead Verses:\\nMatt.28.20|Rev.21.1-Rev.21.5'