I asked my son, “Who is God to you?” – expecting a child’s response I sat in silence until he answered. He said, “God is love and he made this world for me to live in.” I was very pleased with this answer, but he quickly added… “and if you are bad you go to HELL!”. Of course he loved to say the word HELL in his most ominous, cartoon character voice. This got my other sons’ attention and now both of them were staring at me expectantly. They weren’t sure if I would rebuke them for using this terrible word, or if I would applaud them for their knowledge, but they both waited curiously for my response. I stayed quiet for the longest time trying to figure out how to respond to this intelligently.
Finally, I decided it was not about intelligence it was about truth.
God is love. Period. There is NO reason for you to worry about HELL (scary face). Even if you make 1000 mistakes, even if you’re drowning in guilt, even if you are plagued with sin and hide in your shame, you are still His. He is love above all other things. He lives above us, among us but also within us. Through His relationship with us (hugs inserted here) he teaches us how to be and live. He has high hopes and expectations of you. He has created a perfect purposeful journey called life for you to enjoy, should you chose to except it (they missed the mission impossible quote). He expects your dedication and obedience. He will even let you carry the weight of your choices. A weight that can become so heavy that eventually you might find yourself doubting if He is there at all. And at the perfect moment when it is becoming just too much to handle, He will be there to catch you and remind you that He has been there the whole time. #Amessageofgrace #helovedmefirst #stopthefear
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