The other day I had on the Olympics. I have never actually watched a marathon and that day they were broadcasting the women's marathon. I started watching, thinking they would mostly focus on other events and then come back to the marathon to check in. I thought the event would take so long that there was really no way to stay with them for very long before taking a break and coming back later. I just thought that a marathon took many, many hours to complete (as it would take me a few days, I am pretty sure). Imagine my surprise when I realized that for these trained, physically fit athletes, a marathon can be run in just a few hours. WOW! Sorry for my ignorance, but there it is. So, I watched in awe as they followed these ladies. They kept ticking down the miles, and my eyes opened wider and my jaw dropped lower. I was amazed. Finally, the end was in sight and a runner from Romania was far ahead of the rest. She was going to win. She approached the "Bird's Nest" (the nickname given to the stadium in Beijing) and upon entering was greeted with cheers from the crowd. The stadium was FULL - people were there just to welcome in the marathon runners. WOW! That is when I had my glimpse into heaven.
Here we are running our own marathons of life. Each step we take hopefully taking us closer to our goal, each step closer to our Father in Heaven. As we stay on track and keep running, there is a stadium full of people waiting to cheer for us. I am left with the image that when we get to make that trek into our Father's Heaven, we will be met by more people than we can imagine. They will be congratulating us on our work, shouting "Hoorays" and "Congratulations". What's great is that people enter in their own time, just like the marathon, and each is a success. People in that stadium were there to cheer on the first runner and the last. Although only a few received a tangible reward, everyone was met with love and support beyond measure. And that is how heaven is in my eyes - love and support beyond measure.
This was made manifest to me years ago upon returning home from my mission. I attended the temple and realized one of my former mission companions was there. Although I couldn't get to her directly, I was finally able to catch up to her and embrace her and share my love for her. That was another glimpse of heaven, there will be those special friends waiting with all the love in their hearts to embrace us again. The excitement I had in my heart for seeing a dear friend in a beautiful and sacred place was a powerful glance into heaven. I am so grateful for the moments we have that show us a bit more than what we see in our regular lives. I am grateful for a Father in Heaven who opens those views to us, giving our spirits opportunities to be strengthened and to grow. And I love that it can happen from something as simple as watching a marathon.
