The Lady in 27C

Dr. Greg Quakenbush, Geissler Corp., & Dr. Doug Ford, Production Animal Consultation

“Are you spiritual?” she asked. My initial reaction was to ignore the question, turn back and watch the rain falling outside the airplane window. Where did that question come from anyway? After all, it was Friday evening. I was tired and anxious to get home but saw no way out of this impending conversation. I had to wonder, what happened to “hello” or “are you heading home?” This was an opener I had not encountered before, and honestly, I felt reluctant to engage. Surely this was not part of my frequent flyer perks.

I put on my best smile and replied to the lady in 27C, “Why yes, I am spiritual.” Time did not allow me to pull out a dictionary and see what her definition of being spiritual might involve. I assumed it could include anything from being a Woodstock attendee, a latent member of the Branch Davidians, a New Ager or even possibly a vegan. I felt the need to tread carefully, somewhat like a member of a bomb squad, as I was unsure what would happen if I tinkered with the wrong wire.

The next 15 seconds seemed like an eternity as I flipped through my mental Rolodex of appropriate responses. “How ‘bout you?” I settled on.

“Oh, yes,” she quickly responded with great emphasis and passion. There was no escaping this continued conversation. It reminded me of the uneasy anticipation of my first blind date as our conversation became more awkward.

Silence temporarily paused our conversation as I turned back to look outside at the rain. Searching for a follow up, it came to me. I turned back and asked, “May I ask you a question?”

“Why, yes,” she replied.

“Do you believe in heaven?” I inquired.

A smile came over her face as she quickly responded “Yes. Yes, I do.”

“So, what do you think it will be like?”

At this point, she paused and looked up at the ceiling of the plane. She continued to stare at the ceiling and then replied to me as she continued to look upward, “I see myself flying around.”

“OK,” I replied.

“I’m able to fly from place to place and I can go into a room and watch the people and listen to what is going on or being said.”

“Anything else?” I asked.

She continued to look at the ceiling as time passed before she responded, “That’s it. Nothing else.”

At this point, it seemed like we were the only two people in the plane engaged in some type of odd conversation. I somewhat reluctantly asked her my next question, almost afraid of the answer: “Are you alone?”

This question provoked a seemingly nervous response as she became slightly animated, as if searching the ceiling for the answer. After a bit, she came back from her vision, looked my way and responded. “Yes, I am all alone.”

I now felt a prompting to keep quiet and let the previous answers marinate a bit. It was quiet between us for a minute or so and then she continued, “So, do you believe in heaven?”

“Absolutely” was my bold reply.

“What do you think it will be like?” quickly followed from her.

“Do you like flowers, trees, hills, and mountains? How about rivers and streams and such?”

“Yes, I do,” was her reply.

I explained that my view on heaven was based on what the Bible says about heaven, and the Bible actually says a lot about this topic. For starters, it states that in the future there will eventually be “a new heaven and a new earth”. Most people tend to think that heaven will be non-earth like, but the Bible speaks of a “New Earth”. In fact, God called the original earth and accompanying creation “good”. It was only after sin entered the picture that things started going south and a “do over” was put into the playbook. There is good reason to believe that the coming heaven (“new earth”) will be more familiar than foreign and that many of the things we love about the current creation will still be present, although in a new and greatly improved version.

“Does the concept of home have appeal to you?” I questioned. She shook her head yes. The Bible indicates that heaven is actually our home and not earth. We are only visitors on earth, just “passing through” if you will. We were originally created for heaven and as such are eternal beings. Home has the connotations of relationships with family and friends, eating, drinking, comfort, security and so forth. Jesus talked about the banquets and reveling that will take place in heaven. He also said that His Father’s house had “lots of room” and that he was going ahead and preparing a place for us.

I went on to explain that Hollywood’s or popular culture’s typical picture of heaven is disembodied people floating on a cloud, which is totally off base according to scripture. This worldly concept is far from the factual reality of heaven. The Bible paints heaven as “dynamic” rather than stale and dull. Many people picture heaven as “boring” but nothing could be farther from the truth.

I tried my best to sum up my answer regarding heaven with a quote that I had previously read in the book “Heaven” by Randy Alcorn. I had been reading Alcorn’s book, which is based on his extensive review and research of the Bible regarding the subject of heaven. He had a couple of eloquent summary statements which I stumbled through with the lady in 27C. While I was disappointed in my loss of recall, I believe she got the idea. Here is the original from Alcorn:

“A bright, vibrant, and physical New Earth, free from sin, suffering, and death, and brimming with Christ’s presence, wondrous natural beauty, and the richness of human culture as God intended it. ... Real people, with real bodies enjoying close relationships with God and each other, eating, drinking, working, playing, traveling, worshiping, and discovering on a New Earth. Earth as God created it. Earth as he intended it to be.”

As the momentum of our conversation changed, 27C looked like she would like a turn at looking out the window. The conversation had once again died down as she obviously was reflecting on the two polar opposite “heavens” that we each had presented. The choice between “Door #1” or “keep what you have” could not have been more obvious, even if Monty Hall from the old “Let’s Make a Deal” TV show tried to coax the decision. This was one conversation where the “good news” was clearly not only “good”, but incomparable and without equal.

From here our conversation regarding the subject of heaven morphed to the topic of “who gets to go?” This is a conversation we will save for another time. For now, however, the next time you find yourself sitting in an airplane in need of an “ice breaker”, instead of asking, “What’s in your wallet?” ask if they believe in heaven. You will be encouraged to know that even 37 percent1 of atheists and agnostics are reported to believe in an “afterlife”. The followup question from there is where the fun begins. “So, what do you think heaven will be like?”

Digging Deeper:

“Most people live unprepared for death. But those who are wise will go to a reliable source to investigate what is on the other side. And if they discover that the choices they make during their brief stay in this world will matter in the world to come, they’ll want to adjust those choices accordingly.”

(Randy Alcorn, Heaven. Tyndale House, 2004. pg. xxi)

“If you read history you will find that the Christians who did most for the present world were precisely those who thought the most of the next. It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this world. Aim at heaven and you will get earth ‘thrown in’. Aim at earth and you will get neither.” (C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity)

2 Peter 3:13 (ESV) 13 But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.

Col 3:1-2 (ESV) 1 If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.

Revelation 21:1-2 (ESV) 1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea. 2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband.

John 14:2-3 (ESV) 1 “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. 2 In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.

Matthew 6:19-21 (ESV) 19 Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, 20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

1 Peter 1:4 (ESV) 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you.

Resources

1 https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/11/10/ most-americans-believe-in-heaven-and-hell/

The following articles have been translated into Spanish: