The day after my dad died, I realized there were no words anyone could say to make me feel better, and nothing could be done to bring him back. However, one thing my mom told me the following day would forever change my perspective of how I saw life on this earth.
She said, “Jill, picture a birdcage with two open doors. One on each side. Now, picture a bird flying in one open door, and just as quickly, he flies out the open door on the other side of the cage. As swiftly as that bird flew in and flew out is how short our lives are on this earth. The rest of the world that the bird is now free to fly in represents eternity.”
Life can often feel like a cage with no door open on either side.
It is good to keep the perspective that no matter how difficult the loss or the pain may be, we are here but for a moment in light of eternity. And outside the birdcage, God will wipe away every tear from our eyes.
It isn’t just a wish or a hopeful thought.
It is a promise He made.
My mom often asks, “What eternal significance does it have?”
I never fully understood that question until I shifted my perspective from the brevity of this life to the permanence of eternity.
May we remember that phrase the next time we begin to major in the minor.
When we get so stuck in something that won’t even matter in a week.
Or when social media makes us feel we don’t measure up.
Whether your heart is aching from losing someone you deeply loved or if you have felt caged in with anxiety for the future, keep in mind this life is not your forever home.
You are flying in one door and out the other.
And in the blink of an eye, not only will you be reunited with those who have passed through the cage, but you will never ache again.
