Many of you have asked about Nanci’s memorial service. It will be held Sunday, May 15 at 3:30 p.m. at our home church, Good Shepherd Community Church, 28986 SE Haley Rd, Boring, OR 97009. A live stream will be available, and the video will also be available at that web address after the service.
Thanks so much for your continued prayers for our family. We would also appreciate your prayers that the service will be honoring to Nanci and above all honoring to her beloved Jesus.
Contemplating Heaven is where my heart is at right now. In this excerpt from my novel Deception, I picture one of the characters entering Heaven:
One moment Carly Woods was awake in a world of pain. The next moment she felt herself falling to sleep. A rush of sound and light awakened her.
At first she thought she was walking through a glowing passageway. Then she realized she was being carried, effortlessly, in mighty arms.
Behind her was a ruined paradise, a wasteland waiting to be reclaimed. Ahead of her was a world of substance and light, overflowing with color. The place beckoned her to come dive into it, to lose herself and find herself in something greater than she’d ever known. In one moment, Carly Woods had moved from midnight to sunrise.
“Awesome!” she said.
“Yes,” said a deep, resonant voice above her. She turned and looked up at the rock-chiseled face of a great creature, a shining warrior, looking like a man, yet different. She’d never seen anything like him. Yet somehow she thought she’d known him for years. She sensed he was rescuing her, that his job was to carry the wounded to where they’d be made well.
“I am Tor-el, servant of Elyon, God Most High. I have served Him by watching over you each day of your life in the Shadowlands.”
“I never knew.”
“Elyon knew,” he said, the edges of his lips turning barely upward. “That is all that matters.”
She turned to look where she was going. With every step the warrior took, she saw more color, detail, and activity. She could taste and smell life. The place reached out to her, pulling her in, as a magnet pulls iron filings.
“I’m getting stronger,” Carly said, recognizing her voice, but realizing it was much fuller. She’d never liked the sound of her voice. Now she did.
“I thought my life was over. It feels like it’s just begun.”
The voice above her spoke again. “The end is behind you, little one. This is the beginning that has no end.”
People crowded against a beautiful white fence, reaching their arms toward her. She heard their applause and an enchanting laughter. The warrior put her down.
She turned and said, “Thank you, Tor-el. For everything. I… I’d like to talk more.”
