destination

“Go to Hell”

Tammy M CardwellLeave a comment

I’ll bet you never expected to see those words on this page. At least, I hope not. They are words I literally cannot imagine saying to a single soul, no matter how evil they might be.

Flashback Time

It was late on a starlit evening, so many years ago that I’ve no idea how long ago it was. I was standing outside after a meeting, talking to a dear, sweet friend who was also my pastor’s wife. We were discussing the Rapture and I told her how very much I wished it would happen right then. Her response surprised me.

I can’t remember exactly what she said, but it was something along the lines of, “Tammy, I know you don’t really mean that. There are too many people going to Hell, and you want them to get saved first.”

I learned a few things about myself that night.

  1. I’d not even been considering those people. All I knew was that my life was hard and I wanted the hard parts to be over ASAP. Yes, I was married to a narcissist and daily paid the price for that relationship, but that was some pretty narcissistic thinking on my part too!
  2. The Rapture, in that moment, was an escape plan more than anything else, and that is not what the Rapture is all about! The Rapture is about the Bride going to be with her Husband!
  3. The fact that I wasn’t thinking about those people meant two huge things.
          a. I didn’t have a genuine revelation of Hell.
          b. I didn’t truly have the love of God in my heart if I wanted anyone to go there.

It’s amazing how God can completely humble you with a few, well-chosen words from a friend! (The book of Proverbs talks about that!)

My heart started changing that night.
I got on my knees before God and begged Him to do some things in me.

I asked Him to teach me to love like He loves; I knew this was my greatest weakness. It’s taken years for me to get where I am today, and I have definitely not arrived. Walking in love is a continual choice, and I do fail. When I fail to share Jesus with someone God urges me to talk to, whether out of hurry or even fear, it’s because I don’t have enough love. If I want someone to suffer, it’s definitely because I don’t have enough love.

Love is a choice that requires action. It is also extremely powerful. It was love for God, and choosing to love my husband, that empowered me to stay married to him and take care of him when he’d have died if I’d walked away. Had God not empowered me to love him, I couldn’t have done it. People say they admire me for how I spent those last 12 years of his life, but it wasn’t me; it was God’s love working through me – because I let it, because I begged for it.

The other thing I asked God to do was give me a revelation of eternity so that I could really understand what it means when someone goes to Hell. Just sitting here thinking about the large numbers of people who are already there, and those who will be, has me in tears. Hell was not created for man, but for the fallen angels. Man chooses to go there when he refuses to accept Jesus’ work on the cross – and he has no idea what he’s doing.

Deception is the order of the day, and man has fallen for it so completely.

The world we live in is off the rails. In Matthew 24:37-39, Jesus talks about the last days and what this world will be like. “But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.” Take a look at Noah’s story in Genesis and you’ll see how depraved that world had become, and just how much our world today resembles it.

The bottom line is that God essentially decided to destroy everything and start over.

So He had Noah build the boat, got Noah’s family and a bunch of animals in the boat, and shut the door. Yes, God shut the door; once the decision was made no one was permitted to change their minds. And right up until the rain started to fall, the people ignored Noah and his God, carrying on with their own, sinful lives. Yeah, much like today.

And much like those people, by their own choice, were left outside in the flood, a great multitude of people will be left here on Earth when the Church is called away. This event will be just as unexpected as the other, as Jesus said in verse 39, they “knew not until the flood came, and took them all away.”

Here’s the reality, after the Rapture of the Church those who are left behind will see hell on earth. The devil will have his opportunity to set up his kingdom just like he wants it, and he’ll subjugate everyone. He’ll only have seven years to do his evil work, but he’ll make the most of the time he’s given, and pretty much everyone on Earth will end up worshipping him.

Yes, most of those who remain here, according to prophecy, will end up in Hell. And if they do get saved, their lives, until they are martyred, will be hell on earth.

So yes, getting back to that original flashback, while I do pray, “Maranatha!,” which can be translated as, “Come quickly, Lord Jesus!,” I also pray, “But God, please, save every soul you can possibly save before calling us home.”

Because I don’t want anyone, ANYONE, to go to Hell. It’s not just a limited prison sentence. They won’t do time for a while and then get released to Heaven. It’s FOREVER. And while forever is my favorite word because it’s holds so much promise, it is a painful word when I think of Hell and those who will go there. 

My husband spent many years not right with God. I’m sure that comes as no surprise to those who follow me. No matter how much he hurt me, I did not want him going to Hell, and I rejoice that he got right with God before the end. I have relatives and friends who have lost family members who were murdered. I don’t want those murderers going to Hell; I want them to get saved before they die!

Anything else would be ungodly, because God makes it clear in His Word that He wants the same.

Don’t go to Hell!

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C

Tiny House Part 10: The Bathroom Tour

Tammy M CardwellLeave a comment

I’ll say up front that this will come to you in more than one post. As small as my bath is, this room is a vitally important part of any successful tiny home, so there are several details I’ll go into.

Oddly enough, I feel the bathroom gives the most complete picture of me and my aesthetic. Eclectic is the word for my “style,” and my color palette is all about summer in the Caribbean. I fell in love with the vibrant, alive colors while cruising and visiting various ports with my sister, and the bath very much represents those cruises.

So, let’s enter. Moving forward, we sweep aside the curtain that we’ll pretend I keep shut. (Nope. I only shut that curtain when I actually need privacy, which is almost never) The first thing that catches our attention is a mirror mounted on the wall. I don’t have a picture of it; just trust me that it’s there. We placed that mirror carefully so I could step back and see myself from across the kitchen. This is also my makeup mirror, though I’ve recently begun to wonder if I want to move my makeup activities elsewhere. More on that later.

To the left of that mirror, over the toilet, is a set of three photos. All three were taken on the cruise that made me fall in love with that part of the world. The top is a beautiful butterfly we saw in Puerto Rico. That visit to the butterfly habitat was one of our favorite excursions, especially when one butterfly mistook my sister’s tattoo for a real flower and not only landed on her arm but stayed there long enough for several people to take photos. There are probably pictures of her wrist stored digitally all over the world – just not here since she was the photographer and couldn’t capture it herself.

The second picture is one of bliss. We were virtually alone on that beach, with our ship in the distance and the sound of the waves. Unlike what you experience here in my neck of the woods (Galveston is not one of my preferred destinations), those beaches are magnificent. And yeah, that’s me. 

And last, but far from least, sunsets on the ocean… Let me tell you, if you’ve never been on a cruise, you should seriously consider it. From discovering the reality of the color ultramarine blue to seeing flying fish to watching dolphins, to simply enjoying private time on a ship’s balcony… And that’s only touching parts of it. Life on board can be so enjoyable that I’ve at times considered not even going out on excursions when we made port.

But I do! Go on excursions, I mean. One of my favorite stops… Ok, one of many… was on an island owned by the cruise company. We began by wandering around, seeing a variety of fascinating and beautiful things, including a lovely little chapel and one of my personal favorites – peacocks! (They are represented in my bathroom too.) The best, though, was something my sister absolutely insisted on, and I’m so glad she did!

We started out on a traditional trail ride; yes, horses. I’m sure most trail rides are similar in one thing. There are a few people like my sister who actually know how to ride, and then there are others ranging in skill all the way to those like me who have been on a horse but really don’t know what we’re doing. The trail ride was ok. Even when a horse two riders up got antsy, my horse kept plodding along as calmly as you please. I knew he was the one really in control, but it was ok.

But then we were sent to change into our swimsuits while they swapped saddles. The water saddles were, as best as I recall, like a waterproof blanket, so you had no trouble staying mounted and the horse was protected. Once back on the horses, we headed into the water. Just getting into the water on a horse was great, but once we hit the deeper water things went way beyond “great.” I can honestly say I’ve only had one other vacation experience that was as exhilarating. That moment when I felt the horse’s hooves leave the seabed, when we started swimming, was gold! The rest of the ride was an absolute blast, and the experience is definitely something I’d like to repeat. I have aphantasia, so I don’t have any visual memories to refer to, but just typing about it right now triggered a shadow of those amazing feelings. 15 out of 10, I highly recommend!

Well, this took a sideways jaunt. I’m glad I warned you ahead of time that there would be multiple posts. See you next week!

Here’s your link to the curtain I use as a door. I only use one panel, but it comes in a set of two.

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C