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Sunday, October 6, 2013

Heaven or Hell?

The last time I posted about loss was about four years ago when I lost an uncle and a very good friend.  It was unexpected in one case and expected in another.  But no matter how much we prepare for death, it is still unexpected when it happens.  It is unexpected because no matter how much we plan: buying the plot, choosing a coffin or a casket, designing the fliers, letting friends and family know, and the list goes on; that person is still gone.  There is no more reaching for the phone to tell a joke, in fact, the phone number might as well be deleted.  In the place of the phone number, the Face Book page, lunch dates, or going to the movies with a group of friends, is memories and emptiness where that person once existed.

The only consolation, the most important consolation, is to know the person went to Heaven.  In most cases we know by the type of life that person lived, exactly where their soul went after death.  That is one of the reasons Christians refer to human beings as souls.  If we know the person did not live a God kind of life, we are left to wonder if they were able to make their heart right with God in their final moments.      

Many people refuse to believe there is a Hell.  Some believe there is a Heaven but no Hell, and some believe there is neither. Many of us are aware of the beliefs of most major religions.  I am not here to bash religion, any religion.  I want to tell about my beliefs which are based on the word of God.  "And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation." --Hebrews 9:27-28.  When we die, whether we believe or not, we will be judged.  Proverbs 15:24 says "The way of life winds upward for the wise, That he may turn away from hell below."  Heaven and Hell exist.

Death is a fact of life.  No one can avoid it, so we might as well talk about it, plan for it, be ready for it.  We must include in our planning where we would like to end up when we die.  I, like many of you, miss some people who have 'passed on'.  We can still hear their voices in our heads.  We remember encouraging words, we remember when they made us mad or we made them mad! We remember how their opposite personality brought out the best in us.  But they are gone.  The only way we will see them again is if we plan to go where we know they went.  

People like to tell jokes about how 'hell was full so the devil sent me back', or 'I want to go to hell so I can play pool and hang out with my friends forever.'  Trust me, there will be no time to play pool and hang out in Hell.  Read the book of Revelations in The Holy Bible for all the details.  

Yes, we are all missing someone right now, but the fact is they are gone.  Nothing we do can bring them back.  The best thing we can do is to be prepared when it is our time to go.