Propitiation

“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

Carry Your Own Cross

Tammy M CardwellLeave a comment

“And if you do not carry your own cross and follow me,
you cannot be my disciple.”

Luke 14:27 NLT

I’m reading through the book of Luke in preparation for Christmas, and after much thought decided I needed to back up to this verse for a bit.

We celebrate Christmas in honor of Jesus, who is the greatest gift. He came, by His own choice, to die so that we could live. It’s important to note that He didn’t come to bring salvation as it is sometimes casually viewed – essentially a get out of jail free card. He came so that we can LIVE. We aren’t only looking forward to eternity in His presence, but to a full and abundant life right here, a life that counts where His Kingdom is concerned.

Foundational to living, truly living, is being His disciple. Those who heard Him that day, in Luke 14, knew exactly what He was saying when He used the word “disciple.” To be someone’s disciple is to follow their example in all things. It is also to accept and act on their instruction and guidance as they strive to help you mature. Jesus was actually making the offer to all who heard Him, but few would accept the invitation. Why?

In verse 28 He commanded them, “But don’t begin until you count the cost.”

This is wisdom, as He warned in Luke 9:62 NLT: “But Jesus told him, ‘Anyone who puts a hand to the plow and then looks back is not fit for the Kingdom of God.'”

Jesus had already let them know in verse 26 that, if they wanted to be His disciples, they had to count Him as more important than everyone else in their lives, including themselves. And then came verse 27: “And if you do not carry your own cross and follow me, you cannot be my disciple.”

This verse is quoted so often than I’m not sure we really see it anymore, that we’re not paying full attention to what He’s saying here. I even remember thinking, during one of the really bad times with my husband, “If he is my cross to bear, then I will bear it,” but this verse means so much more!

“But Christ has rescued us from the curse pronounced by the Law. When he was hung on the cross, he took upon himself the curse of our wrong doing. For it is written in the Scriptures, ‘Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.‘”

Galatians 3:13 NLT

As Christians, we look at this verse and we love it. And why not?! This amazing act of mercy, Christ taking all of our sins on Himself, washing them away with His own blood, changed our lives forever!

But let’s go back to the gathering in Luke 14 and think about where their heads were, where their thoughts must have gone. They couldn’t see what was coming. They were limited by their own knowledge and experience. In their world a cross served one purpose, and Jesus had just told them they would have to take up a cross that would be particularly their own. They wouldn’t be helping Him carry His cross as Simon the Cyrene was forced to do. He was asking each of them to take up their own cross.

This had to set them back, throw them for the proverbial loop. Because they knew.

They knew…
The cross was a sign of being cursed.
The cross was a very public tool of death.
The cross was a clear mark that you were a criminal.
The cross was intentionally demoralizing.
The cross was a cause of shame for the criminal’s family.
The cross was physically backbreaking before you were even put on it.
The cross was an incredibly slow and agonizing death.

If anyone wanted to be His disciple, they had to accept the reality that the cross, at least figuratively, could very well be in their future. Far from offering them the life of comfort many were currently enjoying, the life His abundant miracles might have implied, the life of sunshine and roses that Christians sometimes foolishly promise to potential converts today, He was laying out a heavy truth.

And here it is.

As Christians, genuine disciples of Jesus, while we look forward to the mountaintop experiences, it’s best to be prepared for the hard seasons that will inevitably come, to consider the cost ahead of time and be ready so that we won’t be tempted to look back. Like Jesus, we can expect to be hated, vilified, attacked unmercifully, laughed at, and more.

So… are you ready?

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C

Can You Imagine?

Tammy M CardwellLeave a comment

In February, I posted “I Can’t Imagine,” in which I shared my recent revelation that I have aphantasia and the rest of you don’t. Quick explanation: I have zero visual imagination. When I learned that most of you can not only see pictures but also movies in your heads I was floored.

This revelation has led to many conversations in various forums, and one thing has been consistent. Those who can see and experience everything that I’ve never known are genuinely sorry for me that I’m missing out on so much. Now, in reality, I don’t know what I’m missing. Do I kind of wish I could get in on the game? Sometimes, yeah, but I know it’s impossible and I tend to not waste my time on impossibilities.

There is one thing. If I do have a vision while in prayer or worship, if I find myself seeing something in my mind in similar fashion to what I’m guessing you all see, I know without a doubt that it’s from God because my imagination can’t create it. I don’t get these visions often, but now that I know what’s what I can have no doubts whatsoever about their origin, and that’s seriously cool.

Which brings me to a thought. If you’re a Christian, when I talk about my walk with God you can relate on at least some level. We both have the capability, as it were, to “see.”

If, on the other hand, you’ve never had a relationship with God, you’re like me in a sense. You can’t imagine the wonder and joy of having a relationship with Him because, like me with aphantasia, you’re blind to the possibility. And let me tell you, as much as those who have visual imaginations feel sorry for those of us who don’t, their feelings can’t touch what I feel for those who don’t have a relationship with God.

Listen, please. Unlike me, you don’t have to stay in the dark. You can reach out and accept the salvation that Jesus offers and enter into God’s very presence, learning how to walk closely with Him and know what it’s like to live inside His love and grace. I literally would not trade my relationship with God for anything – ANYTHING. I cannot express strongly enough what you are missing if you’re not walking with Him. Nothing compares, and knowing that this life is just the beginning, that I have eternity in His presence to look forward to… It’s wonderfully overwhelming just to think about.

So I encourage you to step out. Come to Jesus and accept what He did for you. He came and lived a sinless life specifically so that He would qualify as the perfect and final sacrifice. The blood of the lambs the Jews sacrificed covered their sins temporarily. When you accept the blood of Jesus that was shed on the cross, that blood washes your sin away completely, and God never thinks about it again. This, the removal of that sin, opens the door for you to enter into a relationship like none you’ve ever known. Honestly, you cannot imagine what will happen when you take that step; it’s beyond human ability to predict.

If you’re ready to accept Jesus as your Savior and Lord, it’s easy. Primarily, it’s about what’s in your heart, that you’ve decided to repent of your sins (meaning to turn your back on them and walk away) and accept His sacrifice, trusting His work on the cross to save you. Open your mouth and pray, talk to Him. There is no official “Sinner’s Prayer” that you have to seek out. It’s as simple as saying something like, “Lord, I know I’m a sinner, and I know that I cannot pay the price for my own sins. I need a Savior. I need You, the One who lived without sin and then let Himself be crucified for me. I accept Your sacrifice on the cross as payment for my sins, and I invite you to come live in my heart, to fill me with Your love and be the Lord of my life. I choose to spend the rest of my days, the rest of eternity, living for You, and I ask You to lead me, to help me become who You want me to be. Amen.”

And then do what you’ve promised; learn to become more like Him. In Luke 6:46, Jesus says, “And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?” You’ve asked Him to be your Savior and Lord, so get into the Word of God (the Bible) and find out what He wants you to do. Get in a Bible-believing church, one where the minister actually preaches from the Bible (Sad, that I have to say that, but many ministers today don’t.), and learn from the man of God. Pray! That may sound intimidating, but think of it as talking to God on the phone without a phone. Seriously, when I’m praying, I’m real with my Creator…and He is real with me. Yes, He talks to me too! I spend most of my prayer time listening…or try to.

I promise you: While accepting Jesus in no way guarantees an easy life (On the contrary, the devil doesn’t like losing!), having Him by your side makes all the difference in the world…and more. I don’t have to imagine it; I live it daily. I hope you will choose to as well.

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C

If you want some help getting into the Bible, you may want to check out my book, Experiencing the Bible. It’s available in paperback, ebook, and audiobook, and it’s a practical answer to the question, “What do you mean, ‘Get into the Bible’?” It’s available in all formats on Amazon. The ebook can also be found at various retailers including Smashwords.com (where you can literally set your own price – even free).