“And he said, ‘Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.’ And He said to hime, ‘Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.'”(Luke 23:42-43)

In Wild at Heart, John Eldridge tells the story of a little girl who loved to play hide-and-seek. She was an only child, so this was a difficult game to have as a favorite. She played most often with her parents. One day, she decided to start the game without letting her parents know she’d be hiding. She found her place and waited… and waited… and waited. She stayed in her hiding place for over an hour. No one came to look for her. She wandered downstairs wondering how long it might have been till someone remembered her.

Hope is the answer to the heart’s desperate question: Will God remember me? We live in a time between God’s promise made and God’s promise kept, a time and place C.S. Lewis called “the Shadowlands” because of its dimness and uncertainty. Of course, God keeps innumerable promises each day as He sends the blessings of life, health, and daily bread. He offers plenty of reassurance that He keeps promises… if I have eyes to see them.

What about beyond this life? When I take my last breath, will God remember His promise to bring me into eternal life through Jesus Christ? This seems to be the concern of the good criminal on the cross whose words to Jesus are quoted above. He knows death is coming. I doubt he’s thinking Jesus is about to set up an earthly kingdom by climbing down from the cross. He’s looking beyond this life and makes a desperate cry for assurance. Jesus gives that assurance. He gave it to the thief and he gives it to you and me. When you’re taking in that last breath, don’t despair in no time at all, you’ll be walking together with Him in the garden (paradeisos) of God.