A New
Reality
By Tracy Smith
When Christ, who is your life, appears, then
you also will appear with him in glory.
Colossians 3:4 (NIV)
A recent sermon series at church
explored the truth of the resurrection. One result: Because of the truth of the
resurrection, we can look forward to the new
reality of experiencing God’s presence. [1]
The words “new reality” took my mind
down a different path for a time. Our oldest son will be graduating from high
school in June. And then in September, he will be starting college away from
home. His new reality is spending the next four years preparing for his chosen
career as a middle school/high school teacher. His new reality involves
learning how to be more independent than he’s ever been, even while knowing
that his parents are only a text or phone call away.
The rest of us in the family prepare
for our new reality of living each day without his presence. My mind is not
even sure what that will look like! This young man has been a part of our daily
lives for almost 18 years, and his younger brother has known his presence since
the day he was born. What will our days look like without him!? We can read
about others’ experiences, but every family is different. So until we are there, we just won’t know
what it will look like for our family.
A new reality: exciting, scary, nerve-wracking,
highly anticipated and necessary.
The new reality our pastor talked about is being in God’s presence.
What is that going to really look like? Just like our family’s new reality that
happens this summer, none of us will really know… but the new reality of experiencing God’s presence is definitely something
to look forward to!
GOING DEEPER:
1. A new reality can be exciting, scary, highly
anticipated or something you really want to avoid. How do you feel when you
think about being in God’s presence?
2.
If your answer to the first question is more apprehension/fear rather
than excitement, what can you do to change that?
FURTHER READING:
Along with being a wife and mother
to two teenage sons, Tracy is a ministry assistant at Oakwood and works with a
great group of Junior High girls.
[1] Colossians 3:4
