by Rev Douglas Brauner

Because of Jesus our names are written in heaven’s stone.

You can listen to today’s devotion by clicking on this SoundCloud link.

“To the one who conquers I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, with a new name written on the stone that no one knows except the one who receives it.”
Revelation 2:17 English Standard Version

Why are we obsessed with writing our initials on rocks, structures, and trees? I guess it’s better than having your girlfriends initials tattooed to your body and then breaking up with her. You won’t be reminded of your mistake every morning when you look in the mirror. On the other hand if things work out between the two of you, and you have a quiver full of children, you can take them to the place where you etched your undying love and show them your initials.

Fox Run Regional Park, Black Forrest, Colorado

This tree has seen a lot of undying love.

This isn’t the first picture I’ve taken of this tree. I’ve done a couple of family portraits at Fox Run Regional Park and this tree has been a part of both of those photo shoots. However, neither of these families confessed that they wrote their initials on this aspen tree.

The day is coming when these trees will die and the initials will disappear, but your name has been written on something that will never die, erode, or disappear. Your name has been written on heaven’s white stone, in fact it is a new name symbolic of the old things dissolving into nothing.

Because of the baby born for us, a start over (not a do over) is waiting for us when Jesus returns in glory. Everything that we did (and everything that we didn’t do), that hurt someone else, will be no more, it won’t even be a part of our memory.

The white stone, and new name, signify that the old things will be no more. May we always hold on to Jesus who was born to give us a new beginning now and for eternity.

Copyright Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Colorado Springs, Colorado