Eternity is a long time, right?
A million years?
There are some things the human mind just has trouble grasping – at least my finite mind struggles with the idea of eternity… Take the concept of “1 million.” Last century I was teaching a group of 5th graders, and they didn’t get that 1,000,000 was a MUCH bigger number than 1,000.
So, over the weekend, I got some graph paper and made a sheet that had 1,000 black dots on it. Then I taped 100 copies of that sheet around the room, down the hall, and all around the school. Monday morning, we took a walk to see them all. They were quite impressed. I mean, that really was a lot of dots.
Eventually, of course, one student finally asked, “So, that’s a million?”
“Oh, no!” I said. “That’s only 100,000!” Then I put a stack of 100 sheets of paper on my table. “We would need 10 more stacks to get a million dots.”
The room fell silent.
God of Eternity
So when we talk about 1,000 years, or a million years… or ETERNITY, my brain has to struggle to comprehend that. But God is the God of Eternity. He is El Olam, the Everlasting God.
Olam [o-LAWM] is found more than 400 times in Hebrew Scripture and means eternal, everlasting, forever, ancient. El Olam is first found in Gen. 21:33, “Then Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beersheba, and there called on the name of the Lord, the Everlasting God.”
Isaiah 40:28-29 says, “Have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting God, the Lord, The Creator of the ends of the earth, Neither faints nor is weary. His understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the weak, And to those who have no might He increases strength.”
God’s View
God sees time much differently than we do. “For a thousand years in Your sight are like yesterday when it is past, And like a watch in the night.” (Ps. 90:4) And Jesus is Eternal as well as being our source for eternity. In Rev. 1:8, Christ says, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End,” says the Lord, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.” John 17: 3 tells us, “And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.” And yet another promise in John 6:40, “And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day.”
Insider’s Truth
I freely and gladly admit that I am an insider: I’m a Christian. You can read my story here. I met Jesus, and He saved my life. But the big truth today is that I get to spend all of eternity with El Olam. He’s been around forever, and He’s not going anywhere. If you don’t know Him, you can meet Him, too.
Prayer – using 4 Aspects of Prayer
Adore-We praise You, El Olam, the One Eternal God, Who not only created the world, but Who existed before time began!
Admit-Forgive me, God, when I can’t comprehend how You transcend time to be the same throughout eternity.
Ask-Please help me stay focused on what I can do to further Your Kingdom today. Show me when I stray from that path.
Acknowledge-Thank You for Your consistency and Your presence. When others are fleeting, You are always there.
Thank you, dear reader, for spending your precious time with me today. I pray that you can settle into the eternal love of God today. Let me know how God’s eternal presence changes how you look at life.
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