Controversial Christian

I would now like to get really controversial and take on some topics that will challenge your thinking. In fact, I would like to challenge you to a dual of the mind, a battle of the wits, and perhaps a battle of who knows the Bible best. This is not me being a "right fighter", somebody who has to be right. Rather, I am challenging you to ask yourself what you really believe. In exchange, I will tell you what I really believe, and you can chose to accept it or reject it. It will not be what you expect, and I guarantee, I will surprise everyone. Let's get started!

First of all, let's take on the big elephant in the room. What happens after we die? Is there an after life? And if so, what is that after life like? Is it happy, or is it scary? Well, I believe that your after life experience depends entirely on you and how you live your life in this present tense. That means that what you do in this life matters immensely. Nothing is a trivial action, and everything you do effects everything, and everyone else around you. I know I am beginning to sound New Ageish, so I will try to clarify. Jesus said that if you give a cup of cold water to the least of these in His name, it was as if you were doing it to Him. But who is the least of these? That's the fun part. We don't have the slightest clue. So go ahead. Give a dollar to that charity feeding the hungry. Help your neighbor move their furniture. Pay for some stranger's meal, and make a new friend. It's all about kindness. And I believe what Jesus is saying is it will effect your eternal soul. But what happens if you want to hoard all your stuff, and not give anything to anyone? Well you can do that, and you may have what most consider is a "rich" lifestyle in this life, but I think you are setting yourself for a very poor and meager, perhaps even destitute after life. You reap what you sow. Ok, that's a big topic I could talk about forever. But on to the next one.

Related, but different, is there a heaven and a hell, and how can you know for sure where you are going when you die? For the answers to these questions, I am of course going to go to the Bible. And the answer of  course is yes, there is a heaven and a hell. The way to know which one you are going to is based on whether you have a true relationship with Jesus in your heart. You have to accept Him into your heart by admitting you are a sinner and that you need His help. Now don't make assumptions. I am not trying to save anyone here. I am just telling you what the Bible says and teaches. If you do have a right relationship with Jesus, the Bible says you get a free ticket to heaven when you die and you can feel secure in that. If you don't know Jesus, then what is thought is that you don't get to heaven, but that you go to hell. I am still pondering how true this is. I will get back to this thought process in a bit, so bear with me. I am sure after all the things you have heard me say, you all hoped I would say that all roads lead to God. I do not believe that. Sorry to disappoint, but at my heart, I am an Evangelical, Bible believing Christian, and I will never stray from that. Jesus IS the only way, the only truth, and they life. No one can get to the Father except through Him.

Ok, I know I am going through this rather quickly, but that is because I want to get controversial and surprise everyone. Next topic.

What is the unpardonable sin that will make it impossible for you to go to heaven? Well, I have thought about this A LOT and really all it is is rejecting Jesus as your Savior. So no, it's not having premarital sex, or murdering someone, or telling lies, although that's not advisable to keeping a clean concscience. Oh, and you have until the day you die to reject Jesus. There isn't like some specific date in time for you and if you don't accept Jesus by then, it's too late for you. So no worries. As long as you are alive, you have hope of salvation.

Now what did the Bible mean when it said that the LOVE of money is the root of all evil? People misquote this Scripture more than any other Scripture I have ever heard. It's not saying that money is evil. It's saying if you LOVE money, it is evil. Well, money is just a tool. So if you love money, you are essentially loving a tool, and you are making money your supreme idol, and that is making money more important than God. Anything more important than God is an idol in your life. So allow me to be a free spirit and say that I believe the spirit of the verse is saying that if you love anything more than God, it is evil in your life.

So what does it mean to love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength? I believe it means to love Him with every fiber of your being, every day, all day. That means that no matter what you say, do, eat, work at, or who you hang out with, you are doing it all for the glory of God. This is why you were created, and your soul purpose in life. I hate to disappoint you, but you were not put on this earth to fulfill your own desires. You were put here to bring God pleasure and joy, and to have human experiences, and to be perfected through them. Anyway, let's move on to the next topic.

Now let me address some of the deep struggles I have had and questions I have asked God, and the answers I feel He has given me, even though they are not self-evident in the Bible. First of all, does everyone who initially goes to hell, do they stay there forever? It is widely believed throughout Christendom, and the whole world that once sentenced to hell, that is your destiny for all eternity, that you cannot repent and show your remorse, and turn to Jesus, even though now you see the light. I have had issue with this and not been ok with this set up, I think my whole life. So I think God has revealed to me that yes, people really do go to hell. That yes, they really are stuck there. But that even they have hope, and that maybe even they get rescued some day. I am not saying this to tell you that there is some other way to get to heaven besides Jesus. There isn't. But you may not end up in hell forever either. But I am just not willing to take that risk. That's why I gave my whole life to Jesus when I was 4. If you don't turn to Jesus, you are playing risk with your eternal destiny. That's scary stuff right there. Next topic.

Can dreams come true? I am talking like the stuff of fairy tales. I don't mean so much like magical stuff, but rather, in my case, will I ever find that golden relationship, that one true guy who is going to treat me right, who is single, who loves me and would never leave me, that I can spend my life loving? Well, I believe it's possible. It doesn't mean it will happen, but  I am pretty optimistic, it's bound to eventually. I just don't know that wishing on a star, or thinking happy thoughts is the way to get there. But maybe praying will help.

Well, I think this post is getting a bit long, and I have kinda run out of steam on topics. I think that is enough for you all to process. I mainly wanted to bring up the hell discussion. I have many more thoughts, but that will have next time. As usual, I love any comments. And you can all always shoot me an email: snoefox3@yahoo.com. Oh, and in case you are all worried about my health, please try not to worry. Know that I am in God's hands and I am doing better and will try to start blogging more often again. God is blessing me immensely, and I love all you guys very much. Just more thoughts from the mind of Crystal.

by: Crystal Nylander