City Life Starter

Written by Aisha Darwesh

The Word

¹ Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared. And the sea was also gone. ² And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.

³ I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. ⁴ He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.”
⁵ And the one sitting on the throne said, “Look, I am making everything new!” And then he said to me, “Write this down, for what I tell you is trustworthy and true.” ⁶ And he also said, “It is finished! I am the Alpha and the Omega—the Beginning and the End. To all who are thirsty I will give freely from the springs of the water of life. ⁷ All who are victorious will inherit all these blessings, and I will be their God, and they will be my children.

–Revelation 21:1-7 (NLT)

⁶ And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.

–Philippians 1:6 (NLT)

² We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne.

–Hebrews 12:2 (NLT)

Aisha’s Analysis

Today’s verses depict one of my favorite things: happy endings. Right now we are in the middle of the story. You might have a messy middle. For those of us who do, it is so incredibly comforting to rest in the assurance that God will work it all out in the end. 

But how do we get there? Do we just keep our heads down and mind our business until the end? Hardly. This is a story where the characters are actively involved in the creative process. 

God created us with free will, and the way in which we choose to respond to Him throughout our lives plays a part in determining our fate. Verse 7 states: 

All who are victorious will inherit all these blessings, and I will be their God, and they will be my children.

–Revelation 21:7 (NLT)

Indeed, being with God is the victory. What could be better than that? The best part of all is we don’t have to wait until the end to enjoy God. We can do that right now. He is with us even in the messy middle. The moment we lose sight of that is to risk defeat. It’s our relationship with God, not the twists and turns we experience throughout this life, that makes us victorious in the end. 

If we can live with this end in mind, we can be victorious no matter what. 

Application

What can you do to express gratitude for God today? Sing a worship song, write Him a note, or be kind to someone in His honor. Do something to actively remind yourself that God is in your life and there is hope for a happy ending no matter what things look like today.  

Prayer

Father God, I am so exhilarated about my story because it begins and ends with You. You are what matters to me most. We get to be together forever. Help me to live with this beautiful happy ending at the forefront of my mind. In Jesus’ Name, amen.