Journeying to the “Thin Place” Between Life, Death and Life

“Thin place: A place where the veil between Heaven and earth, this world and the eternal world is thin. It is where one can walk in two worlds–the worlds are fused together loosely where the differences can be discerned or tightly where the two worlds become one.” (thinplacestour.com)

“Selah: biblical term in psalms meaning to pause, think and consider.”

Last weekend at this time I was in a place somewhere between everyday living and a step beyond into the eternal hidden spirit realm. On a Saturday, the membrane separating those of us in the here and now from the supernatural radiance of eternal life was especially thin.

I found myself in a room with friends and acquaintances from the past, present and future. We were all there to honor the life of a dear one gone before us. For my husband and me, it was a close friend of nearly 50 years, for whom we gathered to give thanks.

His wife, my best friend, had called me in the wee morning hours of that previous Monday to share that her beloved was gone, flown away to Heaven while he slept. He had been sick for a long time but this event still seemed disjunctive in the scheme of things.

My heart immediately broke for her, even though I had long ago entered into anticipatory grief with her. I wept strong tears into my husband’s chest and was surprised by their intensity. Nausea was an unexpected visitor and I gave into vomiting and wretching. As a nurse, I knew that response can sometimes be a body-soul synchrony to release that loved one’s life.

Everything about my life seemed to go into slow motion as I journeyed to be by my friend’s side. We held each other and took turns crying. I felt my soul linking to hers. It was an honor.

That day I took her to the funeral home to make arrangements and received quite an education myself. We both asked questions. Details and options were spelled out. It was a lot. It was an honor.

All of that brought us to this day of remembrance, loving, military honors, remembering and loving still more. Grandchildren were given the precious gift of learning how to grieve in a healthy way with family. We all were gifted by being together and seeing the faithfulness of a Good and Kind God. The legacy of kindness was real and palpable through this man’s life. He had been one through whom Heaven had reached to touch, inspire and encourage others. He had practiced making a difference in other people’s lives. He had been an example for me of living close to the “Thin Place.”

The following day we remembered, loved and honored once more this dearly departed one, his bride and precious family. My husband and I were privileged to speak and sing at the memorial service. The membrane of the thin place was more transparent than ever as we reached into eternity, touching and being held by the kindness, goodness and very palpable presence of our God.

This reality consumed our “every day-ness” with such renewed perspective and inspiration. I found myself taking an inventory of my life and wanting to run well the remainder of it, fulfilling the dream in God’s heart for me. To love well and to help others be released into their life destinies became the most real thing to me in those moments.

Since that time, I feel like I am living right on the doorstep of the “Thin Place” every day. The compassion of Heaven is swelling up inside me. The desire to cultivate a space for others to encounter the reality of God’s kindness is overpowering in me. It is almost as if my very life itself is becoming a thin place for others to connect with the eternal.

I lean back in the moment and look at this reality, seeing it, letting it sink in. Perhaps this has always been part of the plan, a plan that is uncovered, revealed and celebrated, as its secrets are discovered on the journey of living and stepping through death’s doorway…to life, forever. Selah.