…from a conversation after a friend passed away: how we die, is a symbol.

“If you understand how to die, the living comes. Making your relationship with death clear, as an act of service to others. Serve and be thankful through it. Manifest, the way and life of Jesus in it, as you did in life-That’s the point. How we die, tells people how we lived. People need to see that inner trust in God to carry you over. Most of us never expected death, so don’t really know how to walk through it in service and trust. I’ve watched people do it well, and it blesses in every direction.

  Also i think there is something about the cloud of witnesses involved. I don’t mind resting, but i really want to be with those guys directly. They feel like my buddies. Really. I’ve been going up in that elder circle for a while (sometimes God has me visualize a stairwell, other times an elevator or a balloon; though the balloon symbol is usually about perspective and pacing on earth—going up there periodically to ask questions. I can’t remember when that started, sort of open visions, and visitations to my elder’s circle, but it’s frequent.

 If I have a pastoral question, i’ll ask Nouwen, if a deep spirit soul question or how the metaphysics of it works, I’ll ask Thomas Merton etc. There is also a native american in my circle. Also there is active learning going on there. So it’s not that we stop growing, when we die. Not sure how aging works in heaven.

Fast forward to the moment before you die; would you not just slip right over, just more constantly. I mean it’s the same God on “both” sides. And your relationship doesn’t change, so why not just slip right over into Him, as you slip out of your physical body. Still, i don’t like the idea of resting or laying around in some in between. I want to be in the action—right in the action!

Especially if that action is restoring the earth and being in Jerusalem, and setting the nations in order, so we can see what its all meant to look like. Then later in the new heavens and earth, i’m also interested in collaborating. But just keep me near Him and in the action.

Since we live in plain view of such a cloud of witnesses, live accordingly!”