hell

hell.

i've been there.

growing up in the bible belt 

a person hears a lot 

about hell.

(like i've said in the past...

i grew up on the back side of the 

bible belt near the crack 

of the back pocket!)

hell

we were told was that place 

represented by cheesy paintings 

of smarmy looking folks 

wailing and gnashing their teeth

in scenes of fire and more fire.

hell 

a place of eternal punishment

banishment.

the land of no second chances

because it's too late...
too late to love
too late to be loved. 

hell

separation from GOD

no more, no way

dead end

forever.

hell

i don't believe in the hell 

concocted by those whose

egos and bank accounts benefit 

when people live into their fears 

rather than their faith.  

hell

i do not accept that hell is an eternal reality 

where GOD's grace cannot break through...

for the scriptures clearly state 

"nothing can separate us from GOD"

that includes hell in my believing heart. 

hell

it does exist

but it exists within the confines and power 

of GOD'S reality....

of GOD'S unending and eternal grace...

of GOD'S sovereign power to redeem. 

hell 

the occasion when you come to terms with brokenness

in every molecule of your being

and finally let go of all notions of control

and see and hear  and sense

without any pretense

without any denial.

hell 

that moment when you feel utterly alone,

empty, and have lost everything.

hell

i've been there.

the bottom of the pit for me 

was that moment in the hallway 
on the floor 
in the little 

house where i used to live

rolled up in the fetal position 

dry heave crying

as if it were my end.

but it was not.

for the gospel...

the good news i've read and heard all my life

is that hell 

does not have the last word.

GOD

has the last word

and all the stories of the good news 

point to grace. 

grace was all around me 

in that moment of 

hell 

and i would lift my head to a new day...

and breathe in new life...

because i learned 

that hell is 

not the first word nor
will it be the last. 

and that is a story 

for another day.