It is very easy to become trapped in our own little world with all of its problems. Things can seem to be very dark indeed. The newspapers and the TV do not help for they can continue to paint the world as a very sad and miserable place - full of fear, violence, and injustice. But the vision from Revelation gives us the 'big picture' - all of humanity standing in God's presence. God loves humanity so much that God embraces people from every nation, tribe, and language. This is what God intends for humanity - not misery and suffering.

God is making us His children. This means that we have been born again with the Spirit of God within us. God need not be distant; we can know and love God in this life. But more importantly, we can truly be an uncommon type of person - one through whom God shines. But we must be willing to let the past go and step into the new life God has prepared for us.

The path to this new life is described very well by Jesus in the Beatitudes. These are the laws by which God's kingdom is governed: non-violence, mercy, compassion, hunger for justice, peacemaking, purity of heart, and patience. When we start living by these principles we have crossed the threshold into God's kingdom and truly become God's child.