The Amusement Park

For with you is the fountain of life; 
in your light we see light. — Psalm 36:9

There are many different parables to explain what Judaism calls olam hazeh, this world, and olam haba, the afterlife. The common theme is that this world is a corridor leading to a room. What we do in the corridor affects if we ever make it to the room and what that room will be like.

In one such explanation, the rabbis invite us to imagine that everyone is given an invitation to the king’s palace (heaven) for an elaborate feast. Enclosed with the invitation is a map with directions to the palace (Yeshua and The Bible). We are urged to travel quickly because, at some point, the gates to the palace will close (Noah’s Ark and the  Rapture) and we don’t want to get locked out. Given the map and directions, there seems to be plenty of time to reach our destination (our lifetimes, an average of 70 years).

We wake up early in the morning, excited and with a sense of determination to get to the king’s feast. We start out on our journey and are surprised that in order to get to the king’s palace, we must first walk through an amusement park (the world). We are beckoned by the lights of the carousel. We are tantalized by the smell of funnel cakes and hot pretzels. We are tempted by the games that hold a promise of winning big prizes for just a moment of our time and a few dollars. We are distracted.

Some people will forget all about the king’s feast and become so engrossed in the rides and games that they’ll never make it to the palace. Some individuals will hold on to the promise of the feast and not stray from the map’s directions for even a moment. Most of us will do something in-between. At times we will stray off course, and at times we will stick to the path. (Yeshua’s parable about the seed sower) Hopefully, we make it to the palace in time to enjoy the banquet that the king has prepared for us – one that makes all the thrills of the amusement park pale in comparison.

This world is like being in that amusement park on our way to the next world where everlasting joy awaits us. Will we get distracted and fail to reach the palace, or will we remain focused and stay on our path?

In Psalm 36, King David reminds us that while we will be tempted to stray, we must remember the truth: “For with you is the fountain of life; in your light we see light.” The best things in life stem from God; it’s not the glitzy lights of this world that will enlighten us, but God’s light.

Let this truth guide us today and every day.

The Watchman on the Wall