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When we say the Lord’s Prayer, we are praying for heaven to come down to earth. When we pray, ‘thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven’ we are making this request.❤️ In the Book of Revelation, Saint John has a vision: “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God,” and then there is a new dwelling place where we dwell with God.✨

We are told we will be given a heavenly body. “For we know that when this earthly tent is taken down (that is when we die and leave this earthly body), we will have a house in heaven, an eternal body made for us by God himself and not by human hands” (2 Cor. 5:1).

In heaven there will be no loss. On earth, we suffer, but in heaven, it is not the same. There are golden streets, and I believe we can walk beside angels like St. Michael. We spend time with Jesus and get to walk with some of the apostles. God sits on his throne. And I imagine that his size spans more than the earth. He created all the universe(s). The earth is “his footstool.” He is the maker of everything!

We will be in his throne room. We can probably watch our favorite preacher in person and perhaps our favorite musician. We will hear choirs of angels sing in a type of song we’ve never heard. There will be lots of praising, infinite praising all day long, and there will be churches, flowers, and colors you have never seen. I do believe there are “days” up there.

Einstein told us and the Bible affirms that a day in heaven is like a thousand years! It’s in 2 Peter 3:8. Time varies based on velocity, energy, and mass (gravity). Let’s take mass (gravity), according to Einstein’s theory of relativity, as gravity increases, time slows down. ‘Time moves more quickly for someone in a low gravity environment than it does for someone in a high gravity environment.’

This may explain why time moves slower in God’s throne room. ‘The Lord dwells where gravity is high relative to that on earth.’ Furthermore, we are told by the Mormons that we know that His throne is in a ‘star cluster’ containing many large stars, something which would create massive gravity and slow it down perhaps to where a day could equal a thousand years!

Abraham also 3:2 reads: “And I saw the stars, they were very great, and one of them was nearest unto the throne of God: and there were many great ones which were near unto it.” The name of the one nearest to God’s throne is Kolob. Abraham tells us that Kolob “govern[s] all those [worlds] which belong to the same order as that upon which [Abraham] standest.” Kolob could be at the center of our galaxy. The gravitational pull created by this cluster of huge stars (along with gravity from dark matter) holds our galaxy together and keeps the outer rims (where we are) from flying off.

Moreover, heaven is a reunion with loved ones and friends. I personally believe you can have emotions and are still experiencing concsiousness there. Perhaps there are family and friends who welcome you ‘at the white pearly gates?’ I think it may be a different experience for each of us; nonetheless, beyond beautiful for all. ◆◆◆

About Zina

Zina Hermez has authored the best-selling book, Not Without God: A Story of Survival. She’s been featured in numerous articles, guest posts, podcasts, websites, newsletters, and magazines. She’s recently been featured on the Intuitive Edge podcast! She’s also been on ESPN’s “Solutions from the Huddle” broadcast and on Grace and Truth Radio World! Zina’s written several hundred articles and has taught thousands of students of all ages from many different backgrounds and cultures. She’s appeared in Christianity Today, the Suite T blog, and the Southern Writers magazine among other places. She writes on faith, science, and overcoming adversity. She also writes on health and diet and loves to help others. Her latest book, Not Without God: Hope In the Storm is live and for sale! You can order your copy here: https://www.amazon.com/Not-Without-God-Hope-Storm-ebook/dp/B09P9T2DLT

We are living in an age where hatred and violence have become common place; we wake up to bad news of shootings (in schools, churches, malls, at Walmart), and in the last episode there were two of them within 24 hours!

I will give you a little background story and try to demonstrate (in my own views) what I think God is searching for out of us, and I hope, maybe, it will help you—the general population (or whoever reads this)!

Going to church as a young child often felt like a scary experience—I knew that the priest was often telling us ‘not to do something,’ and that if we did, ‘we would go to hell’ and God would not let us into heaven.

Don’t get me wrong, though, I have many beautiful memories of attending mass, especially on holidays. But I distinctively remember being aware that I had to learn more than this, because I knew that just going to church would not give me the full experience.

I knew God was great, but I wanted to understand him better. God was not one of vengeance and retribution, God was not one eager to send people to the fire pit; I knew God loved me, and even more so, now, I’ve learned how much He loves the outcast, those who are difficult, and even unlikable.

As an adult who has read and done my own research, sought after truth, studied and prayed (a lot), I have some favorite authors and people that I follow, some of which I have never met. But they are on my Twitter (Thank God Twitter is about more than the tweets of Donald Trump)!

So much of our faith is about love. There is a place referred to as ‘Hades’ in the bible, but I’ll admit, I’m not sure exactly what the translation is, I believe it means some form of hell, though. I am no Greek scholar, I do not know Latin, and I am no expert on the bible. However, I have read many parts of it. In case you’re interested, the NIV is a favorite version because it is so clear.

But one thing I’ve learned throughout my studies are, God wants you to give: I believe that when we give, we receive. You reap what you sow. But the whole point of giving is not to receive, it is just for the sake of giving! Jesus was a giver. Give to charities, give through your selfless actions, give through acts of kindness, give through a smile, give through advice, give through anything that would be pleasing to him.

God wants us to reconcile, also: we have to live in community with one another. Although we live in an individualistic culture, realize your reliance on each other. That is why we should forgive, forget, let go, and move forward. Of course, there should be boundaries after people have hurt us. But we are not meant to live alone, we are meant to live among each other.

Isn’t it nice when you know the names of your neighbors? When you can greet someone you know at the market with a smile, or when you run into an old friend? Doesn’t it feel good when someone comes to visit? We are meant to live together.

God wants us to be peacemakers. He says, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” Kingdom faith means living among one another; kingdom faith means being meek and humble; GIVING and knowing you will be comforted no matter what.

Give, love (the people that God would love, all people) and be a peacemaker!

About Zina

Zina Hermez authored “Not Without God: A Story of Survival” and her forthcoming book, “Hope After the Storm” will be the second in a II part series. Her stories have been featured in various guest articles, medical journals, magazines, newsletters, and over 200 of her very own articles. She works as an English teacher in the Detroit area and has been an educator for twenty years. She’s had the privilege of working with thousands of students from different backgrounds and parts of the world. She’s taught at automotive corporations like General Motors, Nissan, Toyota, Ford, and Mercedes-Benz. She’s worked with numerous children and accumulated many jobs throughout the years. Zina began her own teaching services incorporating math and other subjects. She currently home-schools at churches and teaches creative and structured writing as well as other Language arts courses. Zina’s goal is to help others overcome adversity. You can connect with her on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, or Twitter.