Heaven On Earth

We often say that if life is going really well that it is heaven on earth. Similarly, if life is going very poorly we might describe it as hell on earth. These aren't simple, trite expressions but actually some of the most real and practical reasons for choosing to live a righteous life. If there were no such thing as an afterlife, no heaven, no hell, we just cease to exist, then it would still make sense to live righteously. Some of the motivation for choosing the right comes from the hope that in the future after this life we will end up in heaven, or the fear that in the future after this life we will end up in hell if we choose the wrong. But let's go back to the idea of it being possible to experience heaven or hell on earth. Our choices shape our future lives, and that's just as true of our time in this life and our time in the eternities. We should choose the right not just because it might allow us to get into heaven but also because choosing the right invites heaven to come to us. Right now our lives might not seem particularly heavenly or hellish, but the more right decisions we make, the closer our mortal lives will be to heaven, just like the more wrong decisions we make, the closer our lives will be to hell. We don't have to wait for our mortal lives to be over to experience heaven or hell. With each choice we make we are slowly transforming the world around us into either a heaven or a hell.