It seems to me that we should already be gone but God has a plan greater than we can imagine. I do not know the reason why we are still here but it sure seems that it won't be much longer. I cannot conceive of it being waaaaayyyyy longer 😉 , though I have been wrong before. Something I have been pondering for some time. We here at Ritan want to be with our God and Savior more than we want to life in this broke world. Yet in the Scriptures God promises a long life for those who walk in His ways: Psalm 91:16 With a long life I will satisfy him And let him see My salvation.” Deuteronomy 5:33 You shall walk in all the way which the Lord your God has commanded you, that you may live and that it may be well with you, and that you may prolong your days in the land which you will possess. Ephesians 6:1-4 Proverbs 16:31 A gray head is a crown of glory; It is found in the way of righteousness. Deuteronomy 6:1-2 1 Kings 3:14-15 To me this is a great dichotomy. There is something about this life that I do not see and I find it interesting that we only have one chance to live it. Why does God promises a long life? Wouldn't it be better to be with Him and living unabated from His holy presence? Yet we are programmed by our Creator to grieve at the loss of a loved one even when we know they are in Heaven. We are also programmed by our Creator to self-preserve. And we are programmed to help others escape death*. So it is apparent to me that God values our time here on this earth even if we want to leave it. This is a great mystery to me and one I cannot reconcile. So while we wait patently, or impatiently as the case may be, God wants us here for a reason and it is that unknown reason that we must cling to while we wait. I would very much like to hear everyone's thoughts on this. :feedback * I am quite sure that both Churchgal and Tammie are very fulfilled when they help save lives. It sure is 'character-building why we have a difficultt time trying to grasp that: “With the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day” 2 Peter 3:8. ~ ~ after 2,000 years in waiting among Christ's believers, expecting Christ's imminent return, 'it seems like forever' the waiting is just 2 days in God's mind. . Because God is God, and displays unimaginable Patience so beyond our understanding, it is no wonder these days, that Jesus truly shall delight in rewarding a crown for His beloved watchers. God's Spirit keeps reminding us to remain trustful over His timing and HIs perfect plan known to the Father. Thankfully our God will give us Strength to endure, for He promised by His abidng Spirit ever our indwelling. To us watchers, it makes more sense each passing day WHY Jesus shall pass out rewards to His watchers believing in His imminent return to rapture us. Our Lord is proving true in His mind, that eons passing are like moments to Him (something we cannot understand but do trust) . . , He is so not bound by time as we are, and no amount of time can ever nullify His faithfulness. Our Lord shall honor our faithfulness and trust, especially when we don't feel like waiting anothor moment. ~ ~ we can cling to this Truth, that: “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is LONGSUFFERING toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance” 2 Peter 3:9) Jesus promises to never let us go, always to be our Shelter and Refuge, and never negligent or careless in fulfilling His promises. . . , the long delay before Christ’s appearing Mightily reveals and underscores the remarkable depth of His nearly inexhaustible mercy and longsuffering. What would we do, really if we didn't believe Christ's return was imminent, AND IT IS, because Scripture says so . . our Lord's rapture call IS imminent . . it could occur at any moment for Scripture says so . . . . ~ ~ If it was applicable to the early church, Paul very much expecting the rapture . . HOW even more urgent our watching IS valuable to our LORD and us . . , knowing two thousand years later God's announcement for Christ's return IS 'at hand' at hand, surely we do sense Jesus IS at the door, and in my opinion His Hand IS on the knob . . Indeed loving life and self preservation is paramount! It gives us the opportunity to thank God for creating us in the first place! Long life is a temporal blessing! Allowing us to see His many blessings and given time to draw ever closer to Him and out love of Him to grow! But as precious as Heaven will be and first hand knowledge of His presence, God is pleased by our looking forward in faith to a more glorious life with Him! While there are many exceptions to the rule, that cause is to question His promises! It has also long been a mystery to me as well!!! Point being I guess, is that He is God, not us! Long life only seems to further entrench us to the only thing we have known and loved! But then again, God tests our love so that no future rebellion will occur in Heaven later! This is why eternity is promised! TR Yohanan, It is very interesting that you bring these thoughts or contemplations forward. Ecc. 3:11 also states that … God put eternity into man’s heart, yet so that he cannot know the beginning from the end…. True I have seen people struggle to breath, hang on to what life is for them, I deal consistently with folks who do not want to die even though their bodies are “wrecked” and yet they hang on, even if it means living on a ventilator, having dialysis, lying in a semi-vegetative state, yet “living” because they do not want to die. I have seen others, just give up and they die, when they could have survived. When dealing with trauma patients, burn victims, a child horribly torn by a pit bull, or even those who lose a child as they deliver a non-viable infant, the grief is almost felt as a tangible thing. I would agree, this life has nothing here that I desire more than to see Christ, my savior, yet there is a “something” that keeps us here, struggling “if you will” for the existence we call life. We are to “enjoy” each moment, give glory for each new day, give thanks to our Father for all that we have and all that we are privileged to do daily for His glory. I look for and pray for the moments of His grace abounding in my life. I love to talk with my Father and feel cheated from my conversations when interrupted with this life’s responsibilities. What a mix of humanity we are. As to your statement of a sense of pleasure in saving a life - sometimes, yes … not always … in healthcare, we are very good at our job, most of the time, in saving a life, we revel in the ability to snatch someone from death’s grip … yet at times what we end up with in that body of flesh, is not always a good thing … walking on streets of gold is far better than snatching someone from this potential and leaving them in a semi vegetative state, it is often sad when I have to tell a loved one, “this is as good as it gets” — medicine cannot cure or fix everything, there are no “magic” pills, and sometimes a life time of bad choices creates an impossibility and ethical dilemma on the question of to save or not to save …. the oath I took is not always a pleasure, but it is a heavy responsibility that I have never taken lightly and I pray daily and often to honor God with the choices I must make. Like all of you, I read the news daily, watch YT videos of our favorite folks as often as time permits, and am constantly watching, waiting, listening for that last trumpet sound …. The season is here, the puzzle is complete, the door is open, and we wait patiently (or not) for the call to “come up here”. You ask a great question, “Why are we still here?” Not sure I can answer that, or anyone can except — Give glory in what our Father allows each of us to do daily to bring honor to His name, snatch those from the hell fires of an eternity separated from the Love of God. Try as hard as our human self can to not throw the temper tantrum for not being out of this broken world … as many of you feel … my vaca here is over and I am ready to go home. :flyup: 
Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. Honor your father and mother (which is the first commandment with a promise), so that it may be well with you, and that you may live long on the earth.
“Now this is the commandment, the statutes and the judgments which the Lord your God has commanded me to teach you, that you might do them in the land where you are going over to possess it, so that you and your son and your grandson might fear the Lord your God, to keep all His statutes and His commandments which I command you, all the days of your life, and that your days may be prolonged.
If you walk in My ways, keeping My statutes and commandments, as your father David walked, then I will prolong your days.
