Eternity and Reality

Last night I went to bed thinking about blueberries. I have picked so many of them, that I need to freeze them, jam them or bake with them before they rot! What on earth will I do with so many blueberries?......and then I watched a National Geographic undercover story about North Korea, and real life for people there.

BAM! Reality hit me square in the face! Today, in 2012, people actually live in this small country, the size of Mississippi. Many of them suffer from malnutrition and poverty and have absolutely no personal freedoms. The wealthy of the country are under complete and total control of the government; they WORSHIP their leader. The scenes of semi-crazed people thanking and praising a human being for everything they had were unbelievable; chilling, honestly. While I watched, I could literally smell the smells of their homes and hear their soft voices. I just visited an East Asian country this spring, and their way of life - and government - are very similar. While I was there, I actually felt like I was being watched sometimes. I was told not to say certain things. The Korean people live their entire lives that way, and they have to teach their children to do the same, or they will DIE. I can't even begin to comprehend that.

So, as I finally lay down to "sleep", my head spinning with all that I had just watched, I started to wonder how can blueberries and North Korea both be my reality. How can they both be so important, and even eternally relevant, to me? Obviously blueberries are a quickly dissolving problem; they will turn to dirt and mold in about a week. I don't feel bad saying that they are important to me, because they feed my family. I am doing my job as a mom and wife through preparing healthy food and enjoying what God has so abundantly blessed me with.

 But, then what about people and their eternity. That is obviously important on a totally different level. How am I to respond to such a reality as that? I am thankful that God is continuing to open-up my eyes to the truth of how big the world is, and how eternity is real for all people. But goodness, it's overwhelming sometimes! After traveling to East Asia I felt so burdened to go and stay there and share the Gospel. But after being back in the US for only 5 months, the whole trip almost seems not real. As if those people and their souls don't really exist. As if they are about as important as my blueberries and how I will use them all up this week.

I don't really know what the conclusion to all this thinking will be - it's a process that I'm sure God is working through in me. Sometimes I feel a very deep fear when I think about all this eternity and reality, but I also feel a complete sense of awe that there is a God who created, and directs it all.