Life After Death?

Would you consider yourself a religious person? Quite simply- what do you believe happens when you die? Have you always believed this? Do your current beliefs align with what you were taught as a child? And if not, what was the turning point? This week, talk about your religion or spiritual beliefs (or perhaps your lack of), and try to sum up, if you can, what you believe happens "next."

~Sometimes Sweet Blog (find out what she has to say about life after death)

I believe, without a doubt, that there is life after death.  I can't imagine going through life day after day with uncertainty about what would happen when I die. I think I would be an anxious wreck. Death is a guarantee in life, and there is no way around it. I think it's foolish for people to not question or ponder life and death at some point in their life because death has major impact on our lives. Life is fleeting and uncertain. I could die today. Despite human's mortality, we are not like a tree or a bug. There's more to us. Science alone cannot explain the human race. We are too complex for science. Science can explain the life of a flower, but there is no way that atoms and "natural" happenings and LOTS of time created billions of diverse, brilliant, and creative humans. No possible chance. There had to be a mastermind out there orchestrating it all. Because I can't depend on Science for the answers to life's deeper questions-- specifically human life-- I have to turn to something more than the study of biology. 
Those who know me, know that I am a Christian. I have a feeling that most of my readers are also Christians and probably believe the same thing that I do about life and death. If you aren't a Christian or are unfamiliar with Christian beliefs and the gospel, these verses summarize the gospel and attaining eternal life well:
 "9This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. 10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 11 Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us." 1 John 4:9-12

Jesus died for us. We believe. We follow. We live eternally with Him. 

I believe those who have the covering of Jesus in their hearts will live eternally in Heaven with God. This means they have accepted Jesus' forgiveness for their sins. We cannot possibly do enough good things to be welcomed into Heaven-- good works will not get us to Heaven. No one on earth could possibly measure up to God's standard of perfection. Jesus was perfect and he came to be the perfect sacrifice for us so that when we accept that he died and forgave us, we can be confident that we belong to God and will live with him forever when we die. Check out Hebrews 10! Because of this, death does not scare me. I can actually be excited for the day that I die because I will live with my Creator and be completely redeemed and made new. 

Read more:
This article, written by John Piper, explains why Christians should look forward to death:  It is a great gain to die: five reasons why. It's filled with scripture. 

I would love to hear what you have to say. Throw out questions or tell me a bit about your beliefs about death. If you don't have beliefs, you should!