3 Insights to Shift Your Heavenly Perspective

Colossians 3:2 says, “Focus on the things of heaven and not on the things of earth,” but how on earth can you focus on heaven?

Throughout the Bible, God gives you glimpses into the heavenly realm. John uses 22 chapters in the book of Revelation to explain heaven and hell to the best of his ability. It was truly remarkable that he didn’t have modern-day words to describe what he was seeing so clearly. Because of this, it is challenging for you to understand what heaven will be like.

However, it is not impossible to catch a glimpse of what God is planning when we examine other parts of Scripture, such as the book of Esther. When we concentrate on Scripture, we can focus on the things of heaven.

Esther 1:1-8: A Glimpse

“These events happened in the days of King Xerxes, who reigned over 127 provinces stretching from India to Ethiopia. 2 At that time, Xerxes ruled his empire from his royal throne at the fortress of Susa. 3 In the third year of his reign, he gave a banquet for all his nobles and officials. He invited all the military officers of Persia and Media, as well as the princes and nobles of the provinces. 4 The celebration lasted 180 days—a tremendous display of the opulent wealth of his empire and the pomp and splendor of his majesty.

“5 When it was all over, the King gave a banquet for all the people, from the greatest to the least, who were in the fortress of Susa. It lasted for seven days and was held in the courtyard of the palace garden. 6 The courtyard was beautifully decorated with white cotton curtains and blue hangings, which were fastened with white linen cords and purple ribbons to silver rings embedded in marble pillars. Gold and silver couches stood on a mosaic pavement of porphyry, marble, mother-of-pearl, and other costly stones.

“7 Drinks were served in gold goblets of many designs, and there was an abundance of royal wine, reflecting the King’s generosity. 8 By edict of the King, no limits were placed on the drinking, for the King had instructed all his palace officials to serve each man as much as he wanted.

Who Will Be in Heaven: Focusing on Your Place

To better help you focus on heaven, the first thing you want to think about is your place in heaven. The first question to ask is, “Do I have a place?” If you became a Christian by confessing your sin to God and, by faith, believed in the resurrection of Jesus Christ, then you have a place in heaven. If you’re not sure what I’m talking about, please visit

The Roadmap to Jesus for more information about what Jesus did for you.

In the first chapter of the Book of Esther, the author provides extensive detail about the lavish banquet hosted by King Xerxes. He discusses the types of people who attended the banquet. Let’s look at verses 3 and 5:

3 “In the third year of his reign, he gave a banquet for all his nobles and officials. He invited all the military officers of Persia and Media as well as the princes and nobles of the provinces.”

5 “When it was all over, the king gave a banquet for all the people, from the greatest to the least, who were in the fortress of Susa…”

King Xerxes shared his great wealth with princes, nobles, officials, military officials, and all the people from the greatest to the least. He feasted with noblemen, like himself, as well as the commoners from the village. I love how this passage demonstrates his inclusive approach. He rejected no one, and everyone feasted, which showed the King’s generosity.

We have a King much greater than the King in this passage. Our King, Jesus Christ, died on the cross for our sins so that we could have a place at the great banquet of heaven. Without him, and his wealth of grace and mercy, we would never even have a chance to gain access to the throne room (Isaiah 53:6). Our King died first for the Jew (the chosen people), and then for the Gentile (all the rest), but he died for us all.

Whether you are Jew or Gentile, you’ve got a place with the King in heaven. Focus on that.

What Will Heaven Look Like: Focus on Your Home

No one knows what heaven will look like. I mentioned, slightly, at the beginning of this blog, the book of Revelation, and I repeat it, because it seems to be the only book with any specific details to glom on to when you think about your heavenly home. However, I want to draw your attention back to Esther because I believe the author’s description of the King’s palace and his opulent wealth gives us a glimpse into our future home.

Let’s focus on verses 3, 4, 6 – description of the palace, 7 – gold goblets of many designs

Here’s the breakdown:

Verses 3 and 4a: “In the third year of his reign, he gave a banquet for all his nobles and officials. He invited all the military officers of Persia and Media, as well as the princes and nobles of the provinces. The celebration lasted 180 days…” 

First of all, let’s talk numbers. The King invited many people to this banquet. He was the King over 127 provinces stretching from India to Ethiopia. Get out a map and see just how large an area that is. He invited military officials and noblemen from those provinces, as well as other government officials. When men of high stature like that traveled, they never traveled alone. They brought an entire troupe of people with them to care for them, especially for a party that lasted 180 days. Possibly as many as 15,000 people came, stayed, ate, slept, and partied for 6 months at the palace of King Xerxes.

Can you imagine the size of the place? I certainly cannot, but I picture heaven in that way. I see my future home even more immense than the description of this artificial palace. The Bible tells us that God casts our repentant sins as far as the east is from the west (Psalm 103:12). The palace of heaven is just like that; it is so immense that we cannot see its end.

Now that we’ve talked about the size, let’s talk eye-candy.

Verses 6 and 7 are an astounding description of the splendor of King Xerxes’ palace. They say, “6 The courtyard was beautifully decorated with white cotton curtains and blue hangings, which were fastened with white linen cords and purple ribbons to silver rings embedded in marble pillars. Gold and silver couches stood on a mosaic pavement of porphyry, marble, mother-of-pearl, and other costly stones. 7 Drinks were served in gold goblets of many designs…”

It’s not hard for your jaw to drop when you imagine the sight of this palace. First, consider the size – a place that needs to house 15,000 people for 6 months. Now, think about verses 6-7 in the context of that. (You can close your mouth now.) What stuns me is that the beauty described in verse 6 is just the courtyard to the palace! The author of Esther doesn’t even give you a little glimpse into the palace itself. Your heavenly home has streets of gold and gates of solid pearl (Revelation 21:21), which is far better than anything King Xerxes built.

I stand amazed, peering into the possibility of what heaven looks like. When you need to get re-focused on heaven and not on earth, focus on your home.

When Will it End?: Focus on Your Eternal Life

Eternity is a long time. My husband and I jokingly say, “We’ll be together forever, but only that long. Once we get there, we’ll renegotiate the contract.”

Thankfully, there won’t be a need to renegotiate your eternal life. I think verses 4b and 8 give you a peek into what eternal life will be like.

Verse 4b says that the celebration was “a tremendous display of the opulent wealth of his empire and the pomp and splendor of his majesty.” In verse 8, there were “no limits on the drinking,” and “each man could have as much as he wanted.”

This verse is a tremendous description of your eternal life in heaven. The celebration of life with Jesus Christ in all his splendor and majesty will have no limits – you will have as much as you want. It is eternal, everlasting, forever.

When you’re struggling with heavenly attention, focus on your eternal life.

Conclusion

Has the world dragged you down? Are you struggling to shift your focus away from worldly, earthly concerns? It’s time to do what Colossians 3:2 says and focus your attention on things of heaven by focusing on your place, your home, and your eternity.

I hope you’ll come back to this blog from time to time to refresh your memory of what it means to focus your attention on the things of heaven. Once you get that new perspective, the things of this earth don’t seem as significant.