We were leaving Atlanta, Georgia and our plane was hurtling down the runway at over 100 miles per hour and a man a few seats behind us exclaimed, "This is the part I love, taking off for the clouds!"

As I heard him, I immediately thought of Paul's exciting words of comfort about our someday meeting Christ in the clouds that he shared with some new Christians in Thessalonica (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18).

I thought about that great day of meeting Christ in the clouds and wondered, "How many of us are really as excited about the prospect of meeting Jesus as we are about flying in an airplane?"

At one point in my varied career I was part of a gospel quartet. One of our signature songs was titled "Glory Bound Plane." In fact, the song came from an old songbook which had belonged to my grandmother Lawson. The words of the song went something like this, "While sailing above this world of care I'm bound for that glory land so fair, I'm riding upon a glory bound plane."

Are you really looking forward to that day when the final flight takes off?

What about you? As you travel along on this earth, filled with cares, where are you bound? When you take your final flight, what direction will you be going? Are you really looking forward to that day when the final flight takes off?

The apostle Paul wrote words that expressed this while writing from prison to the Christians in Philippi:

"I'm really struggling with my life. I know it's much better for me to stay here on this world and help strengthen God's church, but Oh how I want to go and be with God." (Philippians 1:21-24 Russ Lawson paraphrase)

The Secret Message of Jesus: Uncovering the Truth That Could Change Everything by Brian McLaren Unafraid of controversy or the uncomfortable gray areas of life, McLaren's quest is to find the essential message of Jesus' life - even if it overturns our conventional ideas, priorities, and practices.

Russ Lawson is a former missionary to Africa and minister in Ohio. He now works with World Christian Literature Outreach and writes a weekly email devotional, Messages from the Heart. For more information about Russ, click here.

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