Last updated on August 29, 2025
Revelation 22:2 (NLT): It flowed down the center of the main street. On each side of the river grew a tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, with a fresh crop each month. The leaves were used for medicine to heal the nations.
I love to anticipate what the Garden of Heaven will be like. The fragrance, the beauty, the diversity–we can only imagine what we will see. I Corinthians 13:12 (NLT) says: “Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely.”
For one day, at least, I enjoyed the beauty of God’s creation in a small corner of God’s universe. Because of this world’s fallenness, we can only see a glimpse of God’s glory, but someday, and I believe it is soon, we will be caught up in all of God’s perfection in a twinkle of the eye. “That is what the Scriptures mean when they say, ‘No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him'” (I Corinthians 2:9).
The Huntington Botanical Gardens in Pasadena, California, established in 1903, gave me a “taste” of what it might be like. I am inspired to work on my garden when I return home.
Here is an interesting fact to ponder: About 380,000 species of plants have been identified.
Looking at the plant kingdom, God’s handiwork is revealed.
His glory is portrayed.
His penchant for beauty is unmatched.
His eye for variety is uncanny.
His creativity is displayed worldwide, especially where humankind has handled God’s labor of love with care and kindness.
God must have a sense of humor. As the photographs show, some plants and trees look a little “odd.” God loves diversity!
God gave humans the responsibility to name all His creations through Adam.
God also gave us a command, a warning in Leviticus 19:19 (NLT): “You must obey all my decrees. “Do not mate two different kinds of animals. Do not plant your field with two different kinds of seed. Do not wear clothing woven from two different kinds of thread.”
I fear that, as scientists edit, splice, and manipulate DNA in labs under the pretense of making creation better, they will violate God’s command. May we respect what God has given us and honor His Biblical teachings.
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Lorilyn, you are a brilliant writer. I love your thoughts as you ponder what God’ s heavenly garden will be like. The unmatched beauty and splendor is beyond our comprehension. I do believe our furry friends will be there to celebrate with us Thank you for this glimpse of our glorious home with our Savior.
Martha, at the next Word Weavers meeting, I’ll give you a copy of my book, Tales and Purrs for the Heart and Soul. I have no doubt we will see our animals in heaven, and I think I make a good case for it in my book. I dream about my childhood pet, Gypsy, waiting for me. She was the dog that found me when I was 8 years old. I know God sent her to me. And I will see her again, as well as all the other dogs and cats I have loved and that have loved me. God is love, and we see His love through our animals. Your dog is waiting,, and as you know, dogs will wait forever for their owners to return for them. The Spirit lives within them, and as it says in Romans 8, they, too, are waiting for God’s redemption.