Maybe God Doesn't Hate You After All

In Judges 10 we once again read how unfaithful Israel has once again fallen into the hands of an evil foreign power. In their distress they call out to God they say (and I am paraphrasing) "We have sinned against you, we have turned to worship other Gods, Help us. God replys "time and time again I have saved you and yet you still turn to worship other Gods, Tell you what cry out to your other Gods, Let them save you" Israel persists even throwing out their other Gods then It says remarkably in Judges 10:16

"Then they got rid of the foreign gods among them and served the LORD. And he could bear Israel's misery no longer."

He could bear their misery NO LONGER. No longer? You mean he was having a tough time dealing with it before, you mean he wasn't enjoying Israels misery even after they had betrayed him yet again? What? That doesn't make sense? Could it be that God does not delight in the suffering of people? Thats Crazy!

Crazy but true. The fact of the matter is God does not hate you, when you suffer he suffers, he hates seeing you in distress. There is a lot more we could take about in that verse but for now I just want you to let that thought simmer. God doesn't hate you, talk to him tell him your problems ask for his help, maybe you'll find that God can bear your misery no longer. Live the adventure

Knowing war

I was reading in the Judges 3:1-2

These are the nations the LORD left to test all those Israelites who had not experienced any of the wars in Canaan 2 (he did this only to teach warfare to the descendants of the Israelites who had not had previous battle experience):

Why is it importan that a nation would know war. Ever seen this on a bumper sticker:
"No Jesus, No Peace"
"Know Jesus, Know Peace"
Let me submit to you another expression.
"No War, No Peace"
"Know War, Know Peace".
To establish a Kingdom takes a fight, so does keeping it. Obviously the country that can not war will be easily invaded. In addition a country that does not know war only has one option to keep its self secure, that is diplomacy. While diplomacy is a great tool for keeping the peace it has a great weakness, compromise. The problem with compromise is that you have to give something up, you give up where you stand on a certain issue so that opposing side will give up where they stand and war can be averted. A country that can not defend itself will always compromise the problem with always compromising is you lose what you stand for, you quite being who you are and believing what you believe and become what ever they want you to be. Thats why a country needs to know war, because sometimes we have to fight not because diplomacy hasn't worked because on some issues diplomacy is not an option. The same is true in christianity, we must know war, we must be able to defend our faith, there are some issues on which diplomacy and compromise is not an option. Live the Adventure.

Comparing Apples

An Interesting comparision. As I round the end these two books I am reading 90 minutes in Heaven and 23 Minutes in hell I am coming to an interesting comparison. The man who went to heaven describes his exeperience as unending joy that only got better as time went on, while the man who went to hell described his experience as unending fear,suffering, and hoplessness that only got worse as time went on.

I reminded of a verse ephesians 3:19 and to "know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God." Its paul speaking to church about the love of Christ. What does being to filled to measure of all the fullness of God about. Its about not having want, if you are filled to the "measure of all the fullness of God" the you have the "fullness" of God and what does God want for, nothing he has everything. So when we know this love that surpasses knowledge we have everything we'll ever need.

I say this in my comparsion of hell because the man that went to hell had nothing but want, the man who went to heaven had so much he had want for nothing. All good things Come from God, This can be easily seen in heaven and hell. Where God is abundance, joy is in abundance, where God does not exist, joy does not exist. The bible goes to some lenght to warn us of hell, quite often this is used as a way of scaring people into becoming Christians. Don't get me wrong hell is a real place and if you're not a christian you will find your self in hell, However I don't think Jesus teaches on hell to scare you are force you love and serve him, I think he does it because he loves you and he knows whats best for you, and he knows that when you are with him you will have unending joy. His warning us of hell is completely selfless its based on his desire to see us live the lives more abundant. " I lay before life and death, I beesech you choose Life". Live the adventure.

Toothpaste?

We all get angry, for many of us when we get extermely angery we tense up we clench our fist, were not neccesairly going to hit someone, but their is just so much energy being built up it has to go somewhere. Tensing and clenching fist is a way to release that energy. Keep that in mind.

Now I want to share with you an analogy I once heard.Words are like toothpaste they come out of the tube easy once out its almost impossible to put them back in, when its said its over. So when you get angery I suggest you don't hold any tubs of toothpaste. Live the adventure

Time

Do you have the time?
You know this book on hell is really having a impact on me. I must admit as the reality of hell seeps into my system it is having a greater impact the reality of heaven. Today I was reading on the return of the man. Once the man had returned to earth he would lie awake at night horrified not by his memories of hell but of the people that he could of warned and didn’t.

I want to take this opportunity to remind everyone out there hell is real. It’s a real place people really go there. I wasn’t meant for people, horrors of hell were designed for demons (fallen angels) it was made to punish them. However if we do not accept Christ we are not allowed in heaven, we must go somewhere. I do not wish to scare people into accepting Christ, it typically doesn’t stick. Typically people’s lives will change only as long as they are afraid after the fear wears off they return to old habits. However I would not be a good man if I did not publish a warning. If you ask how can God send good person to hell I must answer that he doesn’t, we choose to go. We choose to not accept his love. By the way it is love that he offers, so many people see Christianity as rules and that’s not the case. His commandments are to protect you, they are to ensure the life more abundant. Everything that you do that is contrary to the will of God, you are persuaded to do by demons. These demons only want your destruction, they want you to join them in hell they want to rob you of your rightful place which is the presence of God. You should read the testimony of the man sent to heaven he speaks of sights, sounds and colors that earthly words can not describe, he describes his first moment in heaven as filled with great joy, joy unequaled on earth, this joy only increased the closer he got to the pearly gates. That is your place, that is where you belong, not hell.

I want to take this moment to tell a story. It is a story that is quite a horrible memory for me. Every time I recall it I cry, I am actually crying right now. It’s a story a man I met in Iraq. His name is Sgt. Walker. Sgt Walker was a good man, he was fun to talk to, he was good to his soldiers, he cared about the troops. The man was in intelligence, he networked with Iraqis to gather information on terrorist cells. He would often be found in the late hours of the night and we hours of the morning, in command center transmitting and desciminating information. When asked why doesn’t get some sleep, he would say “a soldiers life depends on this information, knowing what I know could bring him life and death I have to get it out”. He was truly a good man. I remember having a conversation with Sgt. Walker, I talked to him about Jesus, he made his jokes as many do. He told me that he would accept Christ on his death bed, he said the way he figured it he would continue “Drinking and whoring around” until he was about to die and then accept Christ. I told him it typically doesn’t work that way, many people end up cursing god on their death bed rather than accept him. I let the argument die. I wish I hadn’t. The next morning was horrible I will never forget it. I saw his commanding officer come running out of his barracks he ran to the aids station, then four medics came running out with a stretcher. They came out two minutes later on the stretcher lay Sgt. Walker. The man had died. Not in battle, not because of bullets or bombs, he had died due to heat stroke. He hadn’t drank enough water the day before and he died in his sleep. He never had the chance to repent. I say this story because we never know. As Christians speak with passion at every opportunity, don’t miss them and please don’t let the argument die, you never know when its that persons last chance, had I known that Sgt walker would be dead the next day I would have fought harder, tried more, I didn’t, I was the last Jesus that man ever saw. To those not saved you never how or when, don’t put off tell your death bed, or tell tomorrow, or even when for another hour, you really don’t know. Its not promised. Do you have the time? Live the Adventure.

Reflections from Hell

I a reading two books right now, one is called “90 Minutes in heaven” the other is called “23 Minutes In Hell”. I have read just a few chapters in each book. The accountants of both heaven and hell are already causing me to reconsider my present value system. In reading hell’s horrors and heavens delights I am beginning to take stock of my life and what I consider good. In particular the story of the man sent to hell has really got me thinking. The man sent to hell missed the smallest of things, blue oceans, cool breeze’s, moments of interaction with his wife and others. You should read how this man described water how precious it had become to him, it made me swish the water around in my mouth today just trying to appreciate it more.

I think I take advantage of the little things, things like water, like interactions with my wife and with others. My day gets all huffy when I am stuck in traffic, when I don’t make as much money as I want, when times are just a little hard. This man who was in hell, in the absence of everything good, he longs for human interaction and cool breeze and beautiful view. He didn’t remember the days there was no traffic, nor did he remember how much money he made, or even the times where life was easy. He longed for peace, and rest, a pretty view, his wife, and a glass of water.

I have all these things in abundance yet I don’t always appreciate my life.
The things this man longed for are reflections of the goodness of God, that is why when he was Hell he didn’t have them. I think we should all take a moment and rejoice in the good things of God, really take a moment and enjoy them. You may never find yourself in Hell but it would be a shame to find yourself at the end of your life missing all that would was good in it. Live the Adventure.