Pastor Greg Laurie of Harvest Christian Fellowship wants to learn everything he can about heaven, but the only source that he trusts to give him an honest account of heaven is Jesus Christ Himself.
"Numerous books about heaven have been published in recent years, and many of them have been written by people who claimed to have gone there," he writes in an article for WND. "To be up front with you, I don't immediately believe someone when they say they have been to heaven and back. The only way I can know what heaven is like is by going to an authoritative source, and I know of only one: Jesus Christ."
As a pastor, Laurie has preached his fair share of sermons about heaven. He, too has written a book about the matter. Even though he cannot completely describe what heaven looks and feels like, Laurie can at least make the conclusion that people's perception of heaven affects their lives here on Earth.
"Our belief in the afterlife has a lot to say about how we live in the before life, how we live in the here and now. The way we view the by-and-by affects us in the here and now," he says.
Those who believe in God want to "redeem" the time God has blessed them with, according to Laurie. Some people might choose to eat healthy in order to prolong their lives, but in the end, "it is God who appoints the day of your death. And then comes eternity."
"When you reach the afterlife and look back on the before life, you will see things far differently. You will see them from an eternal perspective. You will realise what really mattered in life was not what you got but what you gave. What will matter is not your competence but your character. What will matter is not your success but your significance," he says.
People who start thinking more about heaven and seeking heaven will inevitably be transformed. For Laurie, those who put God first in their lives have more fulfilling lives on Earth, and those who think more about the next life naturally make the most out of the lives they have now.
