When Eternity Feels Too Big to Understand
Why I’m Following Jesus Anyway
I’ve been sitting with a thought lately that I can’t quite shake:
If we are promised eternal life by following Jesus… why aren’t more people running to Him like they are on fire?
Why don’t we all just drop everything and follow Him?
I mean, we’re not talking about a short vacation or a reward that fades after a few years—we’re talking about eternity. Endless joy, peace, belonging, and love in the presence of the One who created us.
And yet, the world is full of distractions, doubt, and people walking the other way.
Sometimes, even as believers, we wander off course. We get caught up in temporary things. We get busy. We get bored. We lose sight of the bigger picture.
So I started wondering: Why?
And I think one reason is this: our minds just can’t fully grasp the idea of eternity.
Our Brains Are Finite. God Is Not.
As humans, we’re wired for now. We wake up and think about today. Tomorrow, maybe next week. Retirement, if we’re planners. But forever? That’s something we can barely visualize, let alone build our lives around.
Eternity is so far outside our daily reality that it can feel vague—even unreal. And that makes faith feel like a stretch sometimes. Like we’re following something we can’t hold in our hands or wrap our minds around.
But here’s the thing: just because we can’t fully comprehend it doesn’t mean it isn’t true.
“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts.”
— Isaiah 55:8–9 (NIV)
This verse reminds us that God is not limited by what we can understand. He doesn’t fit inside a mental checklist or theological box. He’s bigger—and that’s a good thing.
We Crave the Eternal… Even if We Don’t Understand It
Have you ever had one of those moments where time seemed to pause—where beauty, peace, or love overwhelmed you in such a deep way that you thought, “I never want this to end”?
Maybe, that's a tiny glimpse of eternity.
I think our souls long for forever, even when our minds can’t grasp it.
Ecclesiastes 3:11 puts it:
“He has set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.”
We were made for more than this world. That longing for something beyond, something eternal—it’s not foolish or imaginary. It’s God’s fingerprint on our hearts.
Following Jesus Is Worth It—Even When It’s Hard to Picture Eternity
So maybe we can’t fully comprehend what eternity with God will be like. Maybe our minds simply can’t handle it when we try to imagine forever. That’s okay.
Because what we can know is this:
Jesus is real.
His words are trustworthy.
He came to rescue us, not to confuse us.
And when He says:
“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”
— John 14:6
That’s not a riddle or a metaphor. That’s a lifeline.
If You’re Struggling to Grasp It Too…
If you’re like me and sometimes feel overwhelmed by the bigness of eternity… or unsure how to keep faith strong when you can’t see or understand everything—take heart.
Let’s keep walking by faith, not by sight—
Even when eternity feels too big.
Even when questions linger.
Because the One we follow, He’s already there.
And He’s worth it.