The Lake of Fire and The Kingdom of Light...Of Hell and Heaven.

 Picture from tardis.wiki.com

Stop me when you've heard this before: "Hell is a place where God sends people, who did not accept Jesus as Lord, to be tortured for all of eternity by a creature called Satan" or "There is no hell, because there is no God or Satan." Unfortunately, no one truly knows if hell exists until we die, right? Now, if you dispute that, please offer me some proof, other than the words of the Bible, that shows that hell is real. OK, so you can't. I understand. It's much like believing in God in that it's mostly about feeling and faith. The major difference being, for me anyways, I see proof of God's existence everyday. The sun, the wind, the crisp autumn air on a football Saturday, the absolute perfection in design that is the Earth and all of it's inhabitants. So, where would be proof that a hell exists? Evil? Sins? The denial of God? I think these things may prove that the is a Satan, but not necessarily a hell. Stay with me here, this is going to get interesting!

When looking at duality and how everything has to have an opposite, it's easy to assume that there is a counter to God. I don't disagree on this point. God created a great and wonderful world for us. He gave us free will and, ultimately, the ability to make decisions based on what we want and feel. Think about this. What would be the challenge if God was the only thing for us to be influenced by? It's easy to make good decisions when no negative outcome is possible right? How could you come to know God on a personal level if you couldn't understand what The Light is all about? God is love. God is Light. God is everything wonderful and graceful. If those things were all that penetrated our minds, then how could we honestly come to know God fully? You have to have options in a free will world. I have to have the choice to be good in order for it to mean anything. See how that works? Let's look at a basic example: I have the choice when I get off work to do many things. I could come straight home and be with my family. I could go to the bar and drink myself into a stupor. I could find another woman to commit adultery with, etc... Obviously, I choose number one, because it's what I want and it's the right thing. Some people don't though. This is what makes us who we are. The decisions WE make on our own accord. I do think that God will intervene in some circumstances, when prayer and communication influences our decisions and actions.

Now, I admit that I believe in Satan. There is so much evil that I feel in my inner core that something is responsible for it, not just humans, but something more insidious and darker. I've seen and been exposed to some paranormal events in my life, with people there to back up my experiences. I believe in a hell, in the sense that there is a place where Satan dwells. I have a difference in opinion, however, in contrast to what most Christians believe about hell: It's not a place of eternal damnation. Look, I know this isn't going to be a popular idea, especially with my family, but it's my thoughts and feelings on the matter. Most Christians, and some other religions, believe that there is a place where people who deny their God are eternally punished. I feel that my God transcends this ideology. My God is the God of flowing grace and mercy, undying love and patience. With the limited resources we have here on Earth, and the abundance of outlets for sin and such, it seems very unlikely that God would have expected us to be able to easily follow him. This is what makes it special when we come to God and have that relationship with him. In contrast, I think the same points make it unlikely that God would punish people to everlasting torture for not putting two and two together. Where my grey area is, people who knowingly and purposely commit atrocities, with pure darkness in heart. Maybe there is a place for those types, but I don't think people who simply do not read or believe the Bible, or live in denial, burn for all of eternity. It just doesn't compute in my head. If you look at most religions, you see that there is always a control mechanism, and it is almost always fear. Fear of punishment. Fear of pain and torture. Why? They cannot keep people living and doing what they say without control, right? This is archaic. This is such a primitive way of thinking, but it's been the way since the dawn of religion.

I've been challenging myself to break the chains of conventional Christian thinking. I've tried to stop listening to what other PEOPLE tell me about God, the Bible, and how and what we are suppose to do in life. I've done my best to elevate my thought to just God alone, not religion and what people have done to the idea of God. Remove religion. Remove preconceived notions. Remove the hate and bitterness for our fellow man that religions creates: Other religions, homosexuals, atheists and etc... Just God. Only God. My relationship with my Maker is the most important thing to me. I know I argue with other Christians a lot, and it's not because I don't love them or respect their opinions. It's because I feel that so many people are apathetic about their relationship with God. Unchain God from the ideas that others have spoon fed us. The ultimate way to defeat Satan is to deny him the opportunity to deceive and confuse others, by showing people the Light our Creator has given us.

If you believe the Bible is correct, in that we are damned if we deny Jesus as the savior, and will be banished to eternal torture, that's fine. Everybody has their own beliefs, these are just mine. Maybe those who deny, do end up in that situation. Maybe they end up nowhere, in a state of permanent darkness. Maybe everyone sees the gates of Heaven and the mighty mercy of God. We truly don't know until we die.

Until then, I hope to see you all in the everlasting light that is God's presence.