Years ago, an Ohio teenager named James ventured out to seek a job on the Ohio and Pennsylvania Canal, leaving his widowed mother at their farm near Cleveland. A captain of one of the boats hired him as a deckhand and driver. James had a knack for falling into the canal. Over and over, he was rescued. But one terrible night while working alone on the deck, James tumbled over the railing and into the black and treacherous water. The sides of the boat were too slick and steep to climb. The boat was gliding by swiftly, and the rain was pouring. The other crew members were asleep in their bunks, and James knew he would perish.

As his arms thrashed about, James felt something—a rope. He pulled on it, and it was secured to the deck. Using all his strength, the boy hauled himself, hand over hand, up the side of the boat. Collapsing over the railing, he was amazed to be alive. Then he thought of the rope. He'd been uncoiling a rope before falling, but it was not attached to anything—just a coil of rope sitting on the deck. He had apparently pulled one end of the rope after him in his fall, and the other end had miraculously caught in a crack in the planks as firmly as if tied with a sailor's knot.

Only Providence could have saved him, and James realized God must have a definite plan for his life to have orchestrated such a miracle. "I thought He had saved me for…something greater and better than canaling," he later wrote. He was struck by the thought that God had a future for him, a plan that stretched ahead, not just through life but also into eternity. The boy returned home, pursued his education, and lived as though God had already mapped out his life. He later became a minister and the twentieth President of the United States—James A. Garfield.

Something wonderful happens to us when we realize God has a plan for our lives. Psalm 139:16 says, "You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed" (NLT).

You and I are in this world for a reason, and God has plans for us. The only way to maximize our potential is to focus on the long view and begin living with heaven in our direct line of vision.

Heaven is not a theoretical subject, and God has not spoken about it to satisfy our curiosity. God has shared details of heaven to keep us hopeful, motivated, diligent, and enthusiastic in our work for Christ. Sometimes we call this "living in light of eternity."

Paul David Tripp said, "Jesus not only gave us a future, but He also restored our ability to live as we were designed, with eternity in view." Dr. D. A. Carson wrote, "Living with eternity in view vitalizes faith and calls forth love." The great reformer Martin Luther said, "There are only two days on my calendar, today and that Day," referring to the day when Christ will return and we'll be with Him forever.

Some people scoff at Christians' fascination with heaven. They tell us we're in danger of being so heavenly minded that we are of no earthly good. But the opposite is true. Mindfulness of heaven leads to faithfulness on earth. The more we're aware of our eternal future, the more diligently we'll serve God now.

The Bible suggests many ways in which we're changed by living in view of eternity. Let me give you three of them.

Purity

First, heavenly mindedness cultivates greater purity in our personal lives. The book of 2 Peter makes this very clear. In chapter 3, Peter discusses the dramatic events that will end world history as we know it and usher in the new heavens and the new earth of eternity. He wrote, "But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness" (2 Peter 3:10–11).

He continues with this command: "…be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless" (2 Peter 3:14).

The apostle John makes the same point: "Everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure" (1 John 3:3).

Have you ever opened your home for a dinner party? Perhaps you've invited a church group over for a special event. When Donna and I entertain, we work hard to make the house presentable. Sometimes we'll touch up the paint or rearrange the furniture for the group. We want things to be spic and span so we'll not be embarrassed. We don't want people to find dirty towels in the bathroom or crumbs all over the kitchen floor.

When you're expecting a special guest, you get ready! Christ may come at any moment, or the Lord may call us to heaven at any time. The more mindful we are of those facts, the more diligently we'll work to remain morally and spiritually prepared. Heaven is a place of purity, and God is a holy God. It's impossible to settle our minds on those realities without wanting to grow in the purity and holiness that will please Him.

Positive Attitudes

Second, heavenly mindedness leads to positive attitudes. The nineteenth–century pastor J. C. Ryle said in his quaint style, "But reader, there are positive things told us about the glory yet to come upon the heirs of God, which ought not to be kept back. There are many sweet, pleasant, and unspeakable comforts in their future inheritance, which all true Christians would do well to consider. There are cordials for fainting pilgrims in many words and expressions of Scripture, which you and I ought to lay up against time of need."¹

Psalm 48:1–2 says, "Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, in His holy mountain. Beautiful in elevation, the joy of the whole earth, is Mount Zion on the sides of the north, the city of the great King."

There is no way to overemphasize this. Without heaven, we are without hope. But those who live with heaven on their minds realize the truth of Romans 8:18: "For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us."

Life is hard, and every day comes with a new set of pressures, worries, and burdens. We're living in a world of death and decay. It is dangerous and chaotic, and our personal lives are roller coasters of emotional ups and downs, triumphs and tragedies. If life led to nothing more than a cold grave, there would be no reason for hope. But those who focus on God's promises of heaven can ride above the storms. Like the psalmists, we rejoice over God's glorious dwelling place.

Purposeful Work

Third, heavenly mindedness leads to purposeful work. In Matthew 24, Jesus outlined the events leading to His return and to the establishing of His kingdom. He ended the chapter with the parable of the faithful servant: those who work diligently while their Master is away will be overjoyed when He returns and He finds them about His business. Jesus said, "Blessed is that servant whom his master, when he comes, will find so doing. Assuredly, I say to you that he will make him ruler over all his goods" (Matthew 24:46–47).

Heaven is filled with rewards for work "well done" here on earth. God performs His work through His people. That's why we are still here. Our work for Christ must be directly or indirectly evangelistic in nature. We long with all our hearts to see other people secure their R.S.V.P.s for heaven, and we must be about our Master's business.

Let's be so heavenly minded we're of great earthly good, for as the old couplet says: "Only one life, twill soon be past; only what's done for Christ will last." That's a rope we can grip whenever we feel we're drowning in life's alarms. It's an anchor for the soul, both sure and steadfast. How wonderful to live with eternity in view!

¹J. C. Ryle, Home Truths (London: Wertheim, Macintosh, and Hunt, 1859), Vol. 2, 215–216.