“How can a loving God send someone to hell?”[1]

The last thing God wants is for anyone to end up in hell. The Bible says that God is “not willing that any should perish” (2 Peter 3:9) and that He “desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:4). God did more than simply proclaim His desire that none should perish. He actually proved His desire to save people when He left the glories of heaven in the person of Jesus and came to earth to die on the cross for our sins (John 3:16; Romans 5:8). Having paid the penalty for mankind’s rebellion, God now graciously offers forgiveness and everlasting life as a gift (Romans 6:23) to all who will put their trust in Jesus.

If people reject God’s grace, turn away from the testimony of their own conscience (Romans 2:15), the testimony of creation (Psalm 19:1-6; Acts 14:16-17), and the wooing of the Holy Spirit (John 16:8), and say, “I will have nothing to do with God,” God will, in the end, allow them to have their own wish (2 Thessalonians 1:9). As C.S. Lewis said, “The damned are, in one sense, successful, rebels to the end…the doors of hell are locked on the inside.” In the end, those people who end up in hell will have only themselves to blame. Hell is the end of a path that is chosen to some degree in this life, here and now, day by day.

Thy Will Be Done:

“There are only two kinds of people in the end: those who say to God, ‘Thy will be done,’ and those to whom God says in the end, ‘Thy will be done.’” C.S. Lewis (1898-1963), professor and author.

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I’ve discovered the answer for how to succeed in life, relationships, leadership, and ministry.

However, before you write me off as either delusional or presumptuous, let me quickly say that I didn’t originate the answer—I just heard it and wrote it down. I was in a pastors’ training seminar with Pastor Jack Hayford (an esteemed author, teacher, and pastor to pastors) when I heard it. Jack was coaching a roomful of pastors on how to succeed in life and ministry, when he made a statement that has forever lodged in my heart. He said, “Leadership that succeeds walks softly, like a barefoot Moses in Sinai.”

I loved that statement!  And it resonated with me on multiple levels. As a student of the Bible, I’ve always loved the imagery of Moses slipping off his sandals and kneeling on holy ground, and it’s always inspired me to pursue my own moments of barefooted worship and surrender. As a church leader, that statement reminded me that the safest place in the world is the place of reverential devotion and the fear of the Lord.

I think Pastor Jack nailed the essence of successful leadership. Leaders who succeed for the long haul never lose their dependence on the power and presence of God. They never walk in self-sufficient arrogance, and they are quick to discern when common ground turns holy.

A barefoot Moses in Sinai—I hope that’s descriptive of you and me. And I hope it always continues to be.

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In the middle of this crazy, fast-paced world of ours, I seldom hear people expressing gratitude and respect for the gift of time. More often than not, time seems to represent something that we are fighting against or that we have too little of. We’re stressed because we’re out of time, or we’re fighting to make the most of our time.

I get all of that—I am huge in to time-management principles, and, having lost a loved one in her childhood, I am all too aware of how fleeting our time here on earth really is. Even so, I sometimes think that we approach the concept of time all wrong.

Time is our friend.

• It allows our failures to fade in to the sunset, and it gives us the hope of redeeming things that have been lost.
• If we squander it today, a fresh twenty-four hours will greet us tomorrow, and we’ll have a chance to spend it more carefully than we did the day before.
• If we use it wisely today, it will compound and pay great dividends in the future (in MANY more areas than just finances).

When Bill Philips, author of Body for Life, is urging people to take his twelve-week physical fitness challenge, he says: “At the end of twelve weeks will you say, ‘I wish I would have’ or ‘I’m glad I did’?”

What will we say at the end of our life? Right now, time is our friend. Let’s treat it as such so that when it’s over we won’t be wishing we “would have,” but instead will hear the words “well done” coming down to us from heaven (Matthew 25:21).

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Whether it is Chuck Norris sliding up and down on his Total Gym, Duane Johnson (The Rock) pumping iron, or everyday Joe’s struggling in the gym, everyone knows that there is seldom growth without resistance—at least not the good kind of growth.

Expanding waistlines might develop naturally enough; however, increasing muscle mass, flexibility, and strength only comes through pushing against resistance.

It’s a terrible metaphor—not because it’s inaccurate or untrue—but because it’s just so painful.

No one likes resistance. No one likes to be challenged and stretched and pushed to the breaking point. And yet wise personal trainers know that the breaking point is actually the starting point for personal growth and development.

It is in carrying burdens too heavy for us that we learn to develop what the Bible calls endurance. The Greek word for endurance is hupomone, and it refers to the quality of character that refuses to collapse under heavy burdens.

• It’s what Joseph had when he was unjustly thrown in to Potiphar’s dungeon.
• It’s what Moses had when Pharaoh’s chariots were bearing down on him.
• It’s what David had when he spent years on the run from King Saul.
• It’s what YOU will need to fulfill God’s destiny for your life.

In Isaiah 43 God promises that floods and fires won’t drown or consume us. I wish the promise was that we could bypass those things altogether, but the reality is that sometimes resistance needs to be faced—even when we are walking in obedient fellowship with God.

God is not trying to squish you under your heavy burdens—He’s giving you strength, character, and a spiritual six-pack. He’s training you today for where He’s taking you tomorrow.

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Have you discovered that there are some questions that God never seems to answer?

Despite His amazing promise to always be with us, and to continually guide us in to His will, it seems that God can get a little finicky at times when we ask Him certain questions. In fact, I’ve identified several questions in my own life that He never seems to acknowledge.

“What’s the use?”

“Why don’t you do something?”

“Why me?”

“When will it ever end?”

And, “Oh, Lord, how long?”

If you’ve asked Him these questions, then you too have probably run in to the same silent treatment from heaven that I have. However, even though God won’t answer these questions directly, I’ve discovered that if you slightly alter the questions you can sometimes ask it in a way that He likes to answer.

You can’t ask, “What’s the use?” But you can ask, “Father, what is your purpose?”

Don’t ask Him, “Why don’t you do something?” He’ll never answer that question. But if you ask, “Father, what’s being done?” you’ll very possibly get a reply.

Instead of asking “Why me?” try asking, “Why not me?” Ask, “Do you need somebody for this task? Why not me?” He’ll respond well to that line of questioning.

How about “When will it ever end?” Sorry, that’s another pointless question. I’ve asked Him that one more times than I can count and He’s never even hinted at an answer. However, when I’ve changed that question slightly to “Father, what would you like me to learn?” I’ve often received a swift reply.

For the last question, we need to remember God’s interaction with the prophet Habakkuk because he asked the million-dollar question amid great anguish of soul. He cried out, “How long, Lord?  How long until you do something?”

Habakkuk never received a direct answer to his question but he did learn something very critical for his spiritual success. He learned that the vision speaks of the end. God said to him, “The revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay.” (Habakkuk 2:3)

Did you catch that? The revelation from God speaks of the end. What it does not speak of is the process we have to go through to get to the end. Vision is dangerous if we don’t understand that it speaks of the end and not of the means of getting there. Without this understanding, we’ll get in trouble, we’ll get disillusioned and we’ll be tempted to lose heart. If you and I don’t understand the ways of God during the waiting seasons, we will be tempted to give up before the end ever occurs. There is an appointed time for every word of the Lord.

There is an appointed time for you.