46th Star

AWE
(also called Fear of the Lord – one of the
seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit)

I magine heaven. Think of the most joyful moment that has

graced your life, and magnify that by one billion. Still, that
precious flash in time cannot compare to the smallest touches
of paradise. Once there, you feel so blessedly peaceful and
happy that all you can do is smile, all you can do is laugh.
Imagine your every sadness erased, your every expectation
exceeded, your every request answered, your every wish
happening.
Jesus, Mary, and all of the saints who have gone before you are there—those you studied in
life and others you are encountering for the very first time. Surrounding you in rapture are myriads
of souls you have loved and who have loved you. Together with them and a cloud of angels and
archangels, you fly through the eternal Kingdom admiring God’s wonders, and you come to
understand the jubilation of the Father in His work of creation.
Envision every good thing you’ve ever treasured available at your fingertips. Fancy every man,
woman, child, and animal loving you dearly. Contemplate living healthy and happy for a million
years. Imagine everything you taste dazzling your palate, everything you touch delighting your
skin, everything you see leaving you intoxicated with awe. Ponder knowing everything and nothing
but love. Disharmony with self, others, the world, is gone.
Picture life like that . . . then a million times greater than that, and you still cannot conceive
of the magnitude of eternal glory. Visualize a never-ending multiplication of that, and you still
cannot see the joys of paradise.
Each soul in heaven mirrors God’s immeasurable love, and so when you and an inhabitant of
heaven look upon each other, you are ravished by the Holy Spirit and lifted up in ecstasy even
more. Just when you believe you have attained all the joy your soul could desire, the Father fills
you with more. You become a dazzling light burning ever more brightly. You come to understand
that this will never end. It will only grow, as the Father has an endless supply of love that He
delights in sharing.
As you take hands with your companion saints and gaze upon the splendor of the Almighty,
your spirit explodes like a firework of ecstasy. As the light from your spirit is caressed by those
around you, every soul and spirit unite to become one with God, and then you feel what you never
thought possible.
United within the beatific vision, one with the glorious Trinity, you feel all the love in eternity
entering into you. You feel and see all the good things that have transpired since time began. You
become part of it all and one with every loving thought or action shared across mankind and among
angels. You melt into every breath of love there ever was, is, or will be. And then you understand
what heaven truly is.1

1
Adapted from the book Messages to Carver Alan Ames by C. Alan Ames.