I’ve met quite a few people who say they don’t believe in hell. And I, for one, don’t know how they can’t––since we see and experience hell all around us every day.

At its most basic definition, hell is separation from God. Some people don’t mind this concept as they have rejected God already and feel they are doing just fine. But what they don’t realize is that even though they have rejected God, God has not rejected them or the world, and His presence is still very much here.
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Despite all the difficulties in our lives and the evil around us, there are still varying degrees of selflessness, kindness, love, peace, justice, compassion, mercy, grace, forgiveness, truth, and trustworthiness. All actions and emotions that are good come from God.

Take them away and what do you have? Total—Selfishness. Malice. Hatred. Confusion. Anxiety. Injustice. Apathy. Cruelty. Wickedness. Condemnation. Falsehood. Dishonesty. Evil, and every other inhumane action and destructive emotion—with nothing good to counter or offer relief.

I know most people who say they don’t believe in hell are probably talking about a physical place of judgment after death, but I don’t want to or need to argue that point here. If you never accept God and His Son’s sacrifice, then once you die, you are separated from God and all those God qualities for all of eternity, which means it doesn’t matter where you are. You are in hell.

I only knew one of the first three songs. The communion message was a bit rambling  and disjointed. The lead pastor was on vacation and his backup was known for going long even though he spoke in 3x speed—a bad church service in the making. Needless to say, I was not feeling the love this Sunday morning. I was also not feeling the Holy Spirit. All I was feeling was discontent.

And right there ready to take advantage of this discontent was Satan. I could feel myself sliding out of a mood of worship and into my own little pity party because I could be at home watching The Scottish Open on TV.

But I caught myself. Before the fourth song began (of which I was somewhat familiar), the Holy Spirit did get ahold of me, and reminded me that my worship was not the result or responsibility of those in charge of the service, but of the posture of my heart.

I quickly adjusted my heart’s position, zeroed in on the song’s lyrics and focused on the sermon. And guess what? My mind was taught; my spirit filled; and I was blessed.

The morning’s scorecard? Holy Spirit—1. Satan—0.

For those of you who follow golf . . . women’s golf . . . you may have seen the recent final round collapse of one of the USA’s top golfers. Leading by two with only a few holes to go, the golfer missed one short putt after another to fall into second place and miss claiming yet another major championship.

It was hard to watch. It was probably worse to experience.



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This collapse is not unique to this golfer. Many athletes have found themselves within reach of victory only to squander it in the last few minutes. Why? Because when the prize is finally within reach, the pressure not to mess it up is immense.

In the first round, first inning, or first quarter, though the nerves may be playing up, the pressure is minimal. No one is really watching and there are a lot of factors and competitors standing between you and the prize.

But when that victory is in sight and everyone is watching and so much is riding on so little, we often forget what actually got us to this point.

Satan knows this strategy all too well. Right when victory (in whatever life venue we are competing in at that moment) is in sight, he moves our focus off of what got us there (God’s grace, power, strength, and love) and firmly places all the responsibility for success or failure on us, planting in our minds all the ways we can mess it up. And sometimes it doesn’t take much.

Many Biblical characters felt pressure, and some held up while others collapsed. It all depended on whose strength they were relying.

Though saved by God’s grace through his mother and sister’s actions, Moses thought it his responsibility to free his people, so he murdered an Egyptian, was then called out by a fellow Hebrew, and finally ran into hiding . . . for forty years.

Though sold by his own brothers into slavery, Joseph always remembered who was in control. He had plenty of opportunities to collapse under pressure: the seduction by Potiphar’s wife, the unfair prison sentence, the forgotten promise to recommend him. But he didn’t.

The good news is, there is life after collapse. There is always another chance to get it right. Moses did. As did Jonah and Peter, many athletes, and . . . you and me.

It’s not easy to live as a Christian in a very unChristian world. There is tremendous pressure to concede and conform. But remember God’s faithfulness to this point and rely on His strength, and with that renewed perspective watch that pressure begin to disappear.

I know Mothers Day has passed and is not due for another eleven months, but with all the recent talk about abortion, I wanted to take a moment to re-celebrate mothers.

Mothers come in five basic varieties.

First, there are the mothers who want to be mothers . . . and can be. They welcome their pregnancies and look forward to the prospect of motherhood. They either sacrifice their careers forever, or for a time, to take on a job that is 24/7 and no pay, or they learn to juggle the responsibility of having two full time jobs. Either way, motherhood is not for the fainthearted.

Second, there are those women who did not plan on becoming pregnant but are. Now the first of these mothers decides that she will have and keep the child with, but more likely without, the help of the father. It is often a daunting and selfless course she has set herself on, for almost always, plans for her future are put on hold or discarded permanently. Often these mothers have to navigate all the minefields of parenting alone. However, how many times have we seen a successful son or daughter, whether on the national scene or in the neighborhood, credit the sacrifice and support of that single mother for their successes.

The second of these women who find themselves in an unplanned pregnancy realize that they cannot provide (financially, emotionally) adequately for this child, BUT they choose to carry the child to term and then relinquish the right of motherhood to another. Though this scenario seems like the easiest of the paths, I can not imagine how tough and emotional this must be for the mother. It is a selfless and difficult act.

In the fourth group are those women who desire to be a mother but can’t naturally, so they adopt. Mothers who choose to love another’s child and raise him or her as her own. A mother who puts aside all the bitterness of barrenness and embraces the child that God has given her.

Finally, there are those mothers who step up to fill the gap for those mothers who have failed to properly care and protect their children, or who have lost the right to mother their children through their actions. These mothers will foster—raise, encourage—until the birth mother is able to step back in.

No matter which way you look at it, motherhood is not easy. It is sacrificial and selfless. Mothers are to be celebrated and cherished. And when you think about it, a father can’t be a father unless a mother wants to be a mother first.

A friend shared the following song by Anne Wilson on Facebook on Mothers Day. I have been looking for an excuse to share it with you ever since. I think I found it. Enjoy

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you;” Jeremiah 1:5 ESV

“For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. ” Psalm 139:13-14ESV




“Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.”  Psalm 139:16 ESV

These verses, and others, explain the reason many of us are pro-life—because before we were even in the womb, God knew us, and then while we were in the womb, He intricately and uniquely formed each one of us. Even if that life was conceived as a result of violence or lack of planning. Even if that life is imperfect or inconvenient, God already had a plan for him or her.

But these verses won’t matter to those who don’t know Christ, because--“The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit.” 1 Corinthians 2:14 NIV

And these verses won’t matter to those who feel betrayed by their government, anger at those responsible for taking away a “right”, and fearful of what the future now holds.

And these verses won’t matter to those whose world suddenly seems more confusing and painful and uncertain. Verses don't matter one bit. But actions do.

I do not mean to trivialize or minimize the pain, disruption, confusion, or fear that an unplanned or unwanted pregnancy brings with it. All those are very real.

But in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision on Roe v Wade, the actions the world does not need to see are more victory laps or speeches. What the world needs to see is God’s love in action. Hard core action.

We have been called to love those who hate us (Luke 6:35). We are indeed hated now more than ever, so now more than ever we need to love.

We have been commanded not to judge. (Matthew 7:1; Luke 6:36-37) So now more than ever we need to listen, understand, empathize, and help.

Pregnancy Care Centers (which offer women other options) are coming under greater attack (The Washington Times). So now more than ever we need to support and protect these centers as well as offer them as an option to women in crisis.

There are many who believe that the Supreme Court’s decision will throw us into dark ages.  And they could be right because governmental legislation alone has never been the answer. Legislation without the light and love of Christ to accompany it will be a very dark world indeed.