As I grasp hold of some of these orthodox teachings and customs, I've been trying to pass them on to the children during our morning devotions. Today we were discussing icons. We talked about the flatness of them - like windows - and how we can look through them into truths about the Kingdom. We talked about how the icons show the fellowship of the saints, how the ornate and beautiful things of the orthodox church and liturgy are just dim pictures of the reality of Heaven and from this JT piped up with, "You mean we're going to live forever?" HUH? I wasn't even discussing the eternal aspect of God's Kingdom but I guess the idea that the saints are still up there interceding for us made him consider it. Not to mention that we aren't exactly a family who doesn't discuss these things - I have no idea why this was a new idea to him. But new it seemed to be and he actually seemed to be feeling a bit - well, I don't know, sparked by the idea of it all. "Yes, JT, that's the idea." "Well, what about hell?" "Well, those folks live eternally as well. That's why it's pretty important to get your affairs straightened out ahead of time." He pondered that for a while. He had a couple more questions and then he was done discussing it. I'm hoping the icons will continue to open up windows that face toward Heaven for him. He's been so lost lately and he seems to have turned a bit of a corner - maybe more like come around a bend - toward a deeper faith. So today I am thankful for windows. I am thankful for windows that look an awful lot like the saints of the church pointing us all toward Christ.
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