Can you imagine time that never stops?

The one statement that stands out so clearly in the latter half of Romans 6 is verse 23, “The price one must pay for sinning is death; in contrast, eternal life is God’s free gift to those in Christ Jesus our Lord. The three opposites are God or sin, freely given or costly, life or death. It certainly doesn’t seem to be a difficult choice, or is it? So many opt for sin. It can be alluring, apparently harmless and promises pleasure. What’s the problem then? Oh yes, it carries a cost – death, and this death, parallel as it is with “eternal life,” is forever. Those who are unconcerned about their future state need to take a long look at the options. People will overlook the consequences of sin because any one sin by itself doesn’t seem so bad that God would punish them for that. Yet in Matt. 13:40-42 Jesus teaches that those who do evil things will be “thrown into the fiery furnace, where they will cry and gnash their teeth.” You earn a reward for sin, and it’s death; you receive a gift from God, and it’s eternal life. And you are the one who must make the choice.
         I’d like to look at the bright side for a moment. One thing children do (and I find myself still in that class in certain areas) is to wonder about there never being an end to time. How could today last forever? Every today I’ve known turns into a tomorrow, but in God’s world it keeps moving on. In church we used to sing, “When we’ve been there ten thousand years, bright shining as the sun, We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise than when we’ve first begun.” Time simply will not stop. Some say that there is no such thing as time in God’s world and that may be right but while I can admit it I can’t envision it.
        And what will the believer be doing all that “time?” Praising God is what the preacher says, but most of us wouldn’t be up to that. I believe the best way to handle it is to substitute for “praise” whatever you honestly feel best about in the presence of God. For my sainted grandmother it was learning. She wanted to sit side by side with God in a country schoolroom and have him help her understand everything she’s ever wanted to know. Some of you might wonder about her sanity, but that’s because you don’t know her, yet. Well, whatever God has in store for his children one thing is certain and that is that it will be more rewarding than we ever could have imagined. So for the present I’d like to take off my scholar’s eye shade and sit still like a child.