Gone forever

In the mass for grief and hope that took place in the cathedral in Oslo yesterday, our Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg held a sincere and touching speech.

One of his expressions, in particular, seems to be glued to my heart in a special way. It is late at night and it seems that I have to publish this blog text before I can fall asleep.

It was when our Prime Minister referred to the dead human beings and said that they are "borte for alltid" - gone forever. It suddenly became even more real to me than ever before how blessed and grateful I am to have accepted Jesus Christ in my life. How terrible it would have been to think about dead family members, friends or colleagues as being gone forever.

Being a born again Christian, I do not have to mourn like those who have not received Jesus Christ who came to save the world. Death is not the end. Death has no sting over human beings who have said yes to Jesus Christ. Sadness and grief - yes. But not total despair nor hopeless grief. I do not have to keep my hopes up in my own or other people's strength. There is One who has conquered death so that I have Life even if I die.

If you have not (yet) accepted Jesus Christ in your life, I wish that you would do so. Not just so that you can know where you will spend eternity, but also so that you can lean on Him when life comes with death and hopelessness. Seeing so many people cry these days here in Norway, so dearly makes me desire that as many people as possible among those who cry may have Jesus Christ as their foundation in life.

For so much God loved the world that He sent His Son - not to condemn, but to save every human being. Allow yourself to welcome Jesus Christ into your life. Your pain and wet eyes will not disappear, but you will have a foundation that no other human being nor organization can give you. And you will experience even on the sadest and most difficult days, that you deep inside are happy.

How I wish and desire this - in Jesus' name. Amen!