Heaven began to giggle, with a snicker and a snort.
Earth turned round to inquire what could possibly be so funny.
“You and I are both so broken;
torn from years of abuse and death and decay.
Pray, tell me, old friend, why do you laugh?
What has tickled you so?
“Oh, Earth, it is only that I’ve just caught a whisper –
a secret about to be made known:
He is coming!
Heaven’s giggle grew more hearty,
Until it rippled through her galaxies,
Tossing her planets and rattling her moons,
Flinging shooting stars and asteroids around like fireworks
Resounding loudly in happy laughter
As gladness overtook her.
He is coming!
And Earth, overtaken with the sound of Heaven’s glee,
Could not help but smile;
Could not help but giggle;
But oh, so much more broken was she,
Having housed the source of this universal death,
Nurturing it as it beat her down
Her whole life – she was tired.
She was worn.
She could not laugh anymore.
So she rejoiced.
He is coming!
Earth gave a shout of joy, of relief, of hope –
A holler that echoed through space,
Oh come, Lord, COME!
She could not stop shouting.
From the pit of her pain, her praises shot forth
Like rockets, and exploded into every corner of the galaxy.
He is coming!
Earth’s jubilant rejoicing met Heaven’s happy laughter,
And the sound of their voices mingled together,
Ringing out into the darkness,
Filling every void and every place of despairing.
An overwhelming concert of sheer joy and yearning,
Deafening, demanding, desirous,
He is coming!
Earth’s broken skin began to tingle with joy,
Her waters began to bubble with excitement,
As wave after wave began to roar in response.
Sea creatures began to dart to and fro, jump in and out,
Dancing about these new currents and tides,
Earth’s jubilation was intoxicating,
And they joined in her cry,
He is coming!
And in the places where her dusty ground lay,
Worn, hot, abused,
This tingle of joy began to resonate through.
Dust rose in response as the rocks began to dance,
The grasses waved their arms, beckoning this new joy,
And adding a rush to the throng of happy sounds.
The horizon quivered as the animals took notice,
And they joined in the dance, jumping and running,
Racing and roaring, exulting in this most joyous secret:
He is coming!
Earth’s forests felt it too,
As the ripple of rejoicing rushed through her numerous boughs,
The trees took up the dance that the sea and the field began,
And they added to the movement a song,
They sang with all their might, with arms outstretched,
Anxiously awaiting to embrace this longed-for moment,
Every tree singing and dancing wildly and as loudly as it possibly could,
A deafening roar – a wild song;
For He comes!
Heaven and Earth resounded with sound,
Quivering with anticipation, dancing for joy,
And all of creation made music in reply,
Twirling and jumping, shouting and rejoicing,
A sound and a motion like never before,
To welcome His coming,
To ask for His judgment,
To beg for renewal.
He comes!
He comes!
He comes to judge the earth.
“Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice,
Let the sea roar, and all that fills it,
Let the field exult, and everything in it!
Then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy
Before the Lord, for He comes,
For He comes to judge the earth.
He will judge the world in righteousness,
And the peoples in His faithfulness.”
-Psalm 96:11-13
Grace & Peace,
-SF
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