Revelations 21:1 – NIV and The Voice

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away and there was no longer any sea.

Let's listen to that verse again from The Voice – “I looked again and could hardly believe my eyes. Everything above me was new. Everything below me was new. Everything around me was new, because the heaven and the earth that had been, passed away and the sea was gone completely.”

Some days the news of the world is so filled with sadness, pain, heartache, destruction, and hateful rhetoric, that I want to leave it all behind. So, I turn off the noise of the world by shutting off all the electronics and all the social media sources and I go into my quiet place to pray.

This quiet place is just an easy chair, in the corner of a room with no TV, no computer, no phone. This quiet place was claimed and designated several years ago, as my Prayer Chair. When I go there and sit in quiet solitude it is easy to find God’s peaceful presence and He covers me with His loving arms, calming my fears, and leading me beside the still waters.

And there, with Him, in the quiet, I see the new heaven and the new earth, filled with God’s LOVE and peace. I rest there as long as I need. Then, refreshed and full of his LOVE, I return to my busy day. But I take the feeling with me and with my refreshed spirit I see new possibilities, new hope, and God’s LOVE everywhere I look.

I see the potential for that new Heaven and that new Earth. And I feel peace, hope, and LOVE, washing away the old earth inside my heart and mind. The short journey to my Prayer Chair was not easy when I first claimed it as my refuge. It took courage and determination to shut out the world’s noise, just by sitting quietly in one plain armchair.

But as time passed in this special place, the chair became a place of respite and hope, a sacred quiet place, where God is always waiting for me. Simply sitting in that chair seems to “plug me in” to God.

Now the chair itself is absolutely nothing unique, but its purpose has come alive over time. She has become a portal, a place to quickly plug into God, shutting out the noise of the world. There is physically no new heaven and no new earth, outside of that chair…yet, sitting here in my Prayer Chair, I can see the promised New Earth clearly – the New Earth ruled by LOVE!

Friends, if you need a respite from the worries and pain of things of this old world, I highly recommend claiming your own Sacred Chair, or Spot, or Closet. Go there physically or mentally, whenever you need to be closer to God and to see the hope, the LOVE, and the new possibilities of God’s new earth, ruled by LOVE.

Please pray with me now…

Lead us, Lord, to our sacred place close to You, where we can find LOVE and peace in Your New Heaven and New Earth, as we work to make this old one better through your LOVE. In Jesus’ name we pray. AMEN!

This devotion was written and read by Bernice Howard.

Grace for All is a daily devotional podcast produced by the members of the congregation of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee. With these devotionals, we want to remind listeners on a daily basis of the love and grace that God extends to all human beings, no matter their location, status, or condition in life.

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First United Methodist Church is a lively, spirit-filled congregation whose goal is to spread the message of love and grace into our community and throughout the world. We are located on the web at https://1stchurch.org/.