Kids and Hell

A compelling title?  Two different subjects today.


A mother of two teenage daughters gave me a napkin that cracked me up.  It says, "I'll have a caffe mocha vodka valium latte to go, please."  Cracked me up.

Rob Bell has come out with a new book titled "Love Wins" and it seems he touches on the topic of hell and whether it is a literal place and the book seems to have started a firestorm of it's own.  I've heard from friends things being said online and read some stuff on Facebook and can't help but wonder what difference it all makes.

I've heard people in the past rationalize their faith by saying something to this affect, "I rather follow God and find out there is no God than not follow God and find out hell is real."  I guess my thoughts today revolve around the knowledge that God is love (says so in the good book!) and I have become compelled to follow God and love him back because he LOVES me and gave his son for me.  I can't imagine loving my children simply because they are afraid of me and I can't imagine God loving me if I was "loving" him just so I wouldn't have to go to hell.  I understand the consequences of bad actions because I got my fair share of spankings when I was a kid but I love my parents because they loved me, not because they had me cowering in fear.

All that to say, it's sad to me when Satan wins a skirmish by getting Christ-followers up in arms about a book someone wrote debating something that isn't completely spelled out in God's word, at least not to my level of understanding.  On the other hand, I do believe heaven is real, it's the place where God exists and heaven is the place he has prepared for me and that's where I want my focus (but it doesn't mean I know what heaven is all about either).

I hope the arguments soon cease, that God is praised and glorified and that people who don't know God will know that he loves them so much, he sent his only son to die that whoever believes in him will be saved.

Grace and peace to you.