“One of the … angels…showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God. … He then measured its wall: two hundred feet [thick} (Rev. 21:9-10, 17).
On May 22, Salman Abedi detonated a bomb in the Manchester Arena that left 22 people dead and scores wounded. As devastating as it was, the horror was intensified by that fact that the 21,000 seat arena was filled with young people—mostly girls, some as young as 8 years of age. They had gathered for an Ariana Grande concert. The evil viciousness that plotted and carried out such an attack is incomprehensible to our Western minds.
I have heard numerous discussions about how parents can calm their own young children and let them know they are safe. As I have heard the advice and counsel from professionals, I’ve wondered, Really? How can we reassure our children they are safe? Are they?
While we can be extremely vigilant—while we can watch and pray– we have no guarantee that our children or our grandchildren will escape violence and disaster. But there is one thing we can do that I have not heard the national pundits discuss. We can make sure our children will be safe in eternity—safe inside the 200-foot walls that encircle our Father’s house. Safe forever. How?
We need to tell our children and grandchildren the truth. And the truth is that we live in a very wicked and dangerous world. But God knows this. And God who loves our children sent His own Son to save them. If they would put their trust in God’s Son, Jesus Christ, asking Him to forgive their sins and come into their hearts, they would become His own children. He would be their Father. As a child of God, they will have certain privileges that include His own dear presence to walk with them through life. They will have access to Him 24/7 through prayer. And whenever the time comes for them to step into eternity, they will be ushered into the heavenly home He is already preparing for them. And inside that home, they will be absolutely, completely, permanently safe.
In the Father’s House called heaven, there are no suicide bombers or bombs. No drive-by shootings or guns. No missiles or weapons of mass destruction. No terrorists or secret police. No war or fights. No rapes or robberies. No strangers or kidnappers. No scary sounds in the night. No night. No mean people or mean dogs. No bee stings or snakebites or spider bites. Heaven is a very safe place for children.
Please. Help keep children safe. Forever. Tell a child this week about heaven and how they can get there. {eoa}
Author and speaker Anne Graham-Lotz is the founder of AnGeL Ministries.
