How many of us have any idea the depths of God’s forgiveness? In June of 1983, a young woman named Karla Faye Tucker savagely murdered a couple as they slept.  She was convicted and sentenced to death. While in prison, she stole a Bible and began to read it. Karla cried out to Jesus for forgiveness and received Him as her Lord and Savior. God began a work in her life that was evident to all who knew her.  Many well-known Christian and national leaders petitioned the Texas governor for her sentence to be commuted to life in prison rather than the death sentence.  However, her last appeal was rejected. Crimes have consequences in this world, and she knew she must pay the penalty. She was interviewed by Larry King.  The following is the last part of that interview. TUCKER: … "There are people out there who are in pain because -- I mean, every single day they have to think about the loss I caused. They live it every day with birthdays and holidays, and maybe a smell that triggers a memory, so it's not -- I -- I realize that. I mean, I -- I think about them all the time. And I know that they're going through pain." KING: "But in the face of certain death, you remain up?" TUCKER: "Yes." KING: "You have to explain that to me a little more. It can't just be God?" TUCKER: "Yes, it can. It's called the joy of the Lord. When you have done something that I have done, like what I have done, and you have been forgiven for it, and you're loved, that has a way of changing you. I mean, I have experienced real love. I know what real love is. I know what forgiveness is, even when I did something so horrible. I know that because God forgave me, and I accepted what Jesus did on the cross. When I leave here, I am going to go be with him." Did her story turn out the way many had hoped? Did God come in at the last moment and stay her execution?  No, but Ms. Tucker was given a gift before she went to meet her Lord face to face.  She knew better than most people of how much God had forgiven her and how much He loved her. In confessing her sins, horrible as they were, she discovered the unbelievable depth of God’s love despite the crimes that she had committed before she met Jesus in her prison cell. This is what God promises to us all.  If we confess our sins, He will do far more than just forgive us. He will cleanse us.  He loves His children far too much to let us wallow in the filth and stench of our sin .  He asks us to confess our sins to the God who loves us and know His cleansing. This is in no way intended to minimize the hurt and loss caused by Ms. Tucker’s actions.  It is intended to demonstrate the depth of God’s love, mercy, and grace. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9 ESV

Galatians 5:22 IT’S QUIET. It’s early. My coffee is hot. The sky is still black. The world is still asleep. The day is coming. In a few moments the day will arrive. It will roar down the track with the rising of the sun. The stillness of the dawn will be exchanged for the noise of the day. The calm of solitude will be replaced by the pounding pace of the human race. The refuge of the early morning will be invaded by decisions to be made and deadlines to be met. For the next twelve hours I will be exposed to the day’s demands. It is now that I must make a choice. Because of Calvary, I’m free to choose. And so I choose. I choose love . . . No occasion justifies hatred; no injustice warrants bitterness. I choose love. Today I will love God and what God loves. I choose joy . . . I will invite my God to be the God of circumstance. I will refuse the temptation to be cynical . . . the tool of the lazy thinker. I will refuse to see people as anything less than human beings, created by God. I will refuse to see any problem as anything less than an opportunity to see God. I choose peace . . . I will live forgiven. I will forgive so that I may live. I choose patience . . . I will overlook the inconveniences of the world. Instead of cursing the one who takes my place, I’ll invite him to do so. Rather than complain that the wait is too long, I will thank God for a moment to pray. Instead of clinching my fist at new assignments, I will face them with joy and courage. I choose kindness . . . I will be kind to the poor, for they are alone. Kind to the rich, for they are afraid. And kind to the unkind, for such is how God has treated me. I choose goodness . . . I will go without a dollar before I take a dishonest one. I will be overlooked before I will boast. I will confess before I will accuse. I choose goodness. I choose faithfulness . . . Today I will keep my promises. My debtors will not regret their trust. My associates will not question my word. My wife will not question my love. And my children will never fear that their father will not come home. I choose gentleness . . . Nothing is won by force. I choose to be gentle. If I raise my voice may it be only in praise. If I clench my fist, may it be only in prayer. If I make a demand, may it be only of myself. I choose self-control . . . I am a spiritual being. After this body is dead, my spirit will soar. I refuse to let what will rot, rule the eternal. I choose self-control. I will be drunk only by joy. I will be impassioned only by my faith. I will be influenced only by God. I will be taught only by Christ. I choose self-control. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. To these I commit my day. If I succeed, I will give thanks. If I fail, I will seek his grace. And then, when this day is done, I will place my head on my pillow and rest. From  When God Whispers Your Name Copyright (Thomas Nelson, 1994) Max Lucado

Have you ever wondered exactly what we mean when we invite you to experience hope? A lot of the people tuning in to listen to  Intentional Living  are at that reset point of faith in their lives. They’re going through a crisis … A health crisis A financial crisis An issue in their marriage or family And in our culture today, it’s very easy for a faith reset to cause someone to either strengthen their faith or walk away from it. In part 1 of this blog series, we looked at the first way you can help people experiencing a faith reset – when they are trusting but troubled. You can  click here  to read Part 1 of this series. Now, let’s look the second way. The Jewish believers in the book of Hebrews were not only losing faith, but they were also rejecting faith. They were going to go back to their old ways. Hebrews is about a time of persecution against those who chose to believe Jesus was the Messiah. Christian was not a term of endearment. The Jews saw Christianity as a cult that needed to be eradicated. Back then, you didn’t accidentally fall into Christianity. If you chose to believe in Christ, you were coming out of deep-rooted Judaism. Proclaiming yourself as one who follows Jesus was a dangerous thing to do. The book of Hebrews is written to encourage these Jews, who were believers, not to leave the faith. This brings us to the second way people can respond to a faith crisis. They are: 2. Not only losing faith but rejecting it. Reaching out to minister to someone who’s losing their faith requires a vastly different approach from those who are trusting but troubled. Hebrews 11, the great faith chapter, lists the stories told to these Jewish believers who are starting to lose their faith. By faith … Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice … Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death … Noah built an ark … Abraham obeyed God and went, not knowing where he was going … Sarah received power to conceive … When you’re ministering to a person who is losing faith, tell them stories of great faith, moving from the past to the present. www.theintentionallife.com.

When you set out with intention to fulfill God’s purpose for your life, you are going to face resistance and encounter roadblocks. They are inevitable. Take Nola Ochs, for example. Her husband passed away in 1972, and she figured she would be gone soon after. For five years, she sat around, waiting to die. But then she decided she wasn’t done – and started living with intention. First, it was tennis lessons. Then a few college courses, and soon she was pursuing a bachelor’s degree. At age 95 she became the oldest college graduate. Still not done, she earned her master’s degree at 98 years of age. When you come to a roadblock, do you quit and go home, or find another way to reach your destination? “One thing I do,” the Apostle Paul said, “I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me” (Philippians 3:13-14). Roadblocks may be unexpected, but resistance is a constant from birth to death, and it takes many curious forms: Fear.  Don’t allow fear to overcome your intentions. “All men are afraid in battle,” General George Patton said. “The coward is one who lets his fear overcome his sense of duty.” Criticism.  Parents, teachers, employers and friends can beat you down. But if your goal is God-given, refuse to be derailed. Perfectionism.  The message that you’re never good enough will sabotage your progress if you take your eyes off the prize and focus on your own shortcomings. Success.  Sometimes success comes so early that it acts as a detriment. If you feel like a “one-hit wonder,” remember that with Christ, your future is always brighter than your past (Jeremiah 29:11). Age.  Perhaps the greatest lie of all is that you’re all washed up. Nola didn’t believe it, and neither should you. When you lean into life instead of lying back, you won’t be knocked off your feet by hardship or crisis. Commit your way to God, and press toward the goal He has for you, no matter what. www.theintentionallife.com.

GOD COMMANDS US TO BE FAITHFUL BECAUSE HE VALUES FAITHFULNESS. Bible Reading of the Day: Read Proverbs 3:1-8. Verse of the Day:  “Many will say they are loyal friends, but who can find one who is really faithful?” (Proverbs 20:6). “Man, he makes me so mad!” Corey glared at his former friend, who walked away from the restaurant counter where he worked. “What’s up with you?” Ken asked. Ken was a year older than Corey, but they’d become good friends since Corey had started working at Mama Mia’s Pizza. Corey nodded in the direction of his former friend. “It’s him. He and I used to be friends.” “Used to be?” Ken asked. “Yeah,” Corey answered sulkily. He thought for a moment. “It’s like, he’s your friend when you’ve got something he wants, but if you ever really need him, he’s got something better to do.” Ken nodded. “I think I know what you mean.” “I mean, we used to do all kinds of things together, but once, when Mr. Jacobs, the history teacher, told us after a big test that our answers had been almost identical, he said, ‘Well, Mr. Jacobs, I thought Corey was looking at my paper an awful lot, but I couldn’t very well turn him in, could I? After all, he’s my friend!'” “You copied off his test paper?” Ken asked. “No!” Corey answered angrily. “He copied off of mine!” “So he betrayed you,” Ken said. Corey nodded. “He’s not a very faithful friend,” Ken said. Corey blew a short burst of air out of his mouth. “You got that right!” “And you think faithfulness, or loyalty, or whatever you call it, is pretty important.” “Well, yeah,” Corey said. “Don’t you?” Ken nodded. “Sure,” he said. “But it doesn’t really matter so much what I think. What matters is what God thinks. He commands us to be faithful, because he values faithfulness. That’s why most of us know that faithfulness is a good thing, an important thing—because it’s a godly value.” Corey shook his head and smiled. “You sure do talk a lot about God.” Ken smiled. “Does it bother you?” “No,” Corey said. He smiled back. “I kind of like it.” What does loyalty mean to you? To whom are you loyal? From whom do you expect loyalty? How do you feel when someone you trust isn’t loyal to you? TO PRAY: Take turns praying something like, “God, please help me to value faithfulness. Teach me to be faithful to all my friends.” www.josh.org

It’s God’s pleasure to reconcile people to Himself, but not every human relationship can, will or should be reconciled. Not all friendships will last a lifetime. They can turn sour for varied reasons. It takes real sensitivity, understanding and godliness to understand how to negotiate those times in your life where there needs to be a restriction placed on a relationship. A biblical example of a redefined relationship is in the book of Acts. The apostle Paul went out with Barnabas and conflict occurred between the two of them. If I had edited the Bible, I probably would have taken that story out, but God considered it important for us to know. A dispute occurs and Barnabas goes his own way. Then Paul brings Silas on board, and they continue ministry. They were still two godly men, reaching lost people. But the relationship, their agreement and how they were doing it had changed. So, the relationship had to be redefined. Paul and Barnabas worked, ate, slept and ministered together. They had a certain bond, and then suddenly go in different directions. The relationship changed and a new definition of their relation was forged. Taking time to understand the nature of the relationship when it’s redefined is an important part of having a life that can honor God. Colossians 1:19-20 says, “For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross” (NIV). What that means is to reset all things to Himself.  God was the initiator of the ultimate reset.  He’s saying, “I created you; I love you,” and it pleases Him when we come back into that reconciled relationship with Him. How do you reset a relationship? In Matthew Chapter 5, Jesus said, “Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift” (Matthew 5:23-24 NIV). We have trouble in our relationships because we have unmet expectations. Someone is holding something against you because they feel like you should have done something that you didn’t do. You didn’t meet their expectation, causing a breach in the relationship. Let’s face it, it’s easy to be casual in our relationships in our culture today. Casual as in getting into and out of a relationship, not only in marriage, but even in the world in which we live, we see that we talk about the cancel culture. We generally have a short fuse when it comes to tolerance or in terms of relationships with other people. For example, the mentality can be, if you agree with me and you believe what I believe, I’m OK. But if you believe something different than I believe, I’m going to exclude you. God has called us to be able to go into those places to reach people that we don’t agree with, don’t understand, and live a different lifestyle than we do; and reach them with the gospel. To make it right, or reset there’s three basic things to do: Decide that this is important. Reach out. Refuse to carry a grudge. And remember, the reset of relationship doesn’t always mean the relations will be restored. Your reset is process of forgiveness, a process of letting go process of not continuing to bring up the past, and any number of things. A reset means it isn’t working now, and I need to push the reset button. www.theintentionallife.com.

Be Angry vs Sin not “Be angry but do not sin; do not let the sun set on your anger.”  (Ephesians 4:26) . The “Be angry” part of this verse is easy to achieve.  After having some work done at my house recently and being charged what I thought was an outrageous amount-- much more than the initial quote, I felt myself dealing with anger. The peace that lay within me was shattered, the adrenalin got to flowing, and my mind got to going. The next thing I knew, a full-blown case of anger had arrived.  Now I had to work on the second part of our verse, the part that says to sin not.  The getting angry part of our verse was easy, the don’t sin part was not to be as easily dealt with, and I haven’t even started to worry about the “don’t hold on to it” part. What else does the Bible say about anger?  Psalm 145:8 and Nehemiah 9:17 both say that God is “slow to anger.”  Jesus said that anyone who gets angry at his brother is liable for judgement. (Matt 5:22). In Col 3:8 Paul says that we should put anger away, and Proverbs 16:32 says that if we are slow to anger it is a good thing.  The Bible is full of man dealing with anger and most of it is not good. Once anger arrives it must be fed. I fed my anger words like “gouged,” “taken advantage of,” and “exploited.”  Each time I used one of these words to feed my anger, it got bigger. To keep it from growing I decided to starve it by not feeding it.  This is sort of like holding your breath underwater. I could only do it for so long.  The inflaming words of anger must be replaced.  I then in faith went to the Lord in prayer, bathing my soul in the love and encouragement of God’s Word.   John 16:33 reminded me that trouble was a part of being in this world, but that He had overcome it. I was reminded of Jesus on the cross in more pain that I can imagine saying, “Father forgive them.” My God forgave me so much.  Who am I not to forgive this little thing that was done to me? Had I not allowed God to put out the fire that anger’s inflaming words was causing, the anger could have grown into rage. Then my self-righteous anger would have said, “Vengeance is mine.” However, Deuteronomy 32:35 says that vengeance belongs only to God.  This could have not ended well, but the Lord drew me back to Him.  He restored His peace in me.  The battle with anger is not over.  Anger will raise its ugly head again, but My Lord will never leave me, and I am always His. We can be angry and sin not as our verse says, but the warning in this verse and throughout the Bible is that anger often will lead to sin which will destroy our relationship with God, our families, friends, colleagues, and others. It has caused so much misery, sadness, hurt and loss that it must be treated with all the respect you would give to a very volatile explosive.  Be slow to anger.  The journey from anger to sin is just too short. Entire libraries have been written on the topic of anger, so this is by no means exhaustive.  It is just what I learned dealing with it one day at my home.

I don't think it's any secret that we're living in the last days. In fact, we've been in the last days for 2,000 years. But what is the focus of the last days? Is it the mark of the beast? The European common market? Maybe the Antichrist? No, it's none of those. The focus of the last days is Jesus Christ. In 2 Peter 1, Peter talked about the coming of the Lord based on an experience he already had with Jesus. "For we did not follow cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His majesty. For He received from God the Father honor and glory when such a voice came to Him from the Excellent Glory: 'This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased'" (vv. 16-17). Peter here described the transfiguration of Jesus. When Peter, James, and John saw the glorious vision of the transfigured Christ who also appeared with Elijah and Moses, Peter, not knowing what to say, started talking: "Let us make three tabernacles" (Luke 9:33), essentially placing Jesus, Moses, and Elijah on the same level. God interrupted Peter, saying, "This is My beloved Son. Hear Him!" (v. 35). That's a very important message Peter learned and recounted in 2 Peter 1. God was saying, "I put Jesus, my Son, on center stage when it comes to Bible prophecy. He is the focal point. He is the capstone of the last days." In fact, you could sum up the whole Bible by saying it's about one person and two events: Jesus Christ and His first coming and second coming. That's why we talk about the scarlet thread of redemption throughout the Scriptures. After Jesus rose from the dead, He appeared to two unnamed disciples who were walking from Jerusalem to Emmaus one day (see Luke 24). They didn't know Jesus had risen, and they didn't know this stranger was Jesus. So they started telling Him about the things that had happened. At a certain point, Jesus said, "'O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken'…. And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself" (vv. 25, 27). If there was ever a Bible study I wish we had on MP3, it's that one. We can only imagine what Jesus talked about, but He did expound "all the Scriptures…concerning Himself" (v. 27). It's no wonder the angel said to John in Revelation 19, "The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy" (v. 10). If you have a smartphone, it probably has a code to unlock it. It's the same with biblical prophecy. To unlock Old Testament prophecy, you need the right letters: J-E-S-U-S. When you put Jesus in Old Testament prophecies, now Isaiah 53 makes sense, and Psalm 22, and Genesis 22, and on and on. So just as the planets revolve around the sun, so all the prophecies of Scripture revolve around the Son of God, Jesus. So for believers living in the last days, our focus should be to keep our eye on the sky and our hand to the plow. We must stay engaged because Jesus could come back at any time: today, tomorrow, before this year ends. No one knows when except the Father. Until then, keep serving Him, stay engaged, and stay faithful as you wait for His return.

When people think about the end times, they tend to think about the Antichrist. And when they think about the Antichrist, they usually think he's going to be dark and sinister. But that's far from how he'll come on the scene. He'll enter the world poised, charismatic, and full of himself. He will be the ultimate man. Revelation 13 gives us a sixfold description of the Antichrist: 1. Wickedness (see v. 1). This man is called a beast because that's how God sees him. Paul called him the man of sin and the son of perdition (see 2 Thessalonians 2:3), as well as the lawless one (see 2 Thessalonians 2:8). He'll begin as a peacemaker but end very wickedly. 2. World dominance (see vv. 2, 7). This leader will form a global confederacy, a final, world-governing empire—dominating, rapid, and ferocious, just like Daniel saw (see Daniel 7:23). 3. Wonder (see v. 3). Verse 2 tells us that "the dragon gave him his power"—the dragon being Satan himself. And verse 3 says one of the Antichrist's heads will be mortally wounded and then healed. Some believe he'll receive a fatal head wound and then be able to stage some sort of fake resurrection. The world would certainly wonder at that. 4. Worship (see vv. 4, 8; see also 2 Thessalonians 2:4). This is what Satan has wanted all along (see Isaiah 14:12-14). When we talk about the Antichrist, most people think the little prefix  anti  means  against . But  anti  also means  instead of . He will be the guy who wants to be the Christ instead of the real, authentic Christ. 5. Words (see vv. 5-6). This leader will have the ability to sway people with his "pompous words" (Daniel 7:8, 11, 20, 25). He will be a master politician, exuding self-confidence. But it will all go downhill from there. 6. War (see vv. 7-10; see also Daniel 7:25). Once the Antichrist succeeds in influence and domination, all hell will break loose. He will persecute and kill the tribulation saints—those who come to faith during the tribulation period. After all that, how can this end on an encouraging note? Simple—by comparing the Antichrist to Jesus Christ. The Antichrist is called the man of sin; Jesus Christ was the sinless man. The Antichrist is called the idol shepherd (see Zechariah 11:17, KJV); Jesus is known as the Good Shepherd (see John 10:11). Here in Revelation 13, the Antichrist is pictured as a beast; in this same chapter, Jesus is seen as a lamb (see v. 8). The Antichrist's death will deceive the world; Jesus Christ's death saved the world. Now, the world is already being deceived. What was once wrong is now right, and what was once right is now wrong. Deception is on the move and will increase in epic proportions. But we follow the true Christ—the authentic, real, legit Jesus Christ. And we're not called to look for and identify the Antichrist—we're called to look for Jesus Christ, for "the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ" (Titus 2:13).

When it comes to spiritual gifts, some people—even spiritual leaders and pastors—get a little bit nervous. They'll say, "I'm afraid to open myself up to the gifts of the Spirit, because I just don't know what might happen. If I open myself up to that, I might start talking weird. What if I'm in a bank and all of a sudden I start speaking in tongues?" People worry that they're going to unexpectedly lose control. But being filled with the Spirit is not about losing control. It's about letting Him control you more and more. I really can't say it enough: you should never be afraid of the Holy Spirit. You should never be afraid of anything God wants to give you or do in your life. If it's from the Lord, receive it, enjoy it, and work with it. Everyone who makes the decision to turn from their sin and follow Jesus is baptized by one Spirit into one body the moment they make that decision (see 1 Corinthians 12:13). But I contend you should also be filled with the Spirit. At Pentecost, the early church was both baptized by the Spirit and also filled with the Spirit, and wonderful things happened as a result. You see, the Holy Spirit first comes after us to save us. He then comes inside us to sanctify us. He also comes upon us to empower us. Why? Because He has something He wants us to do, a task He wants us to perform. Jesus said, "He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water" (John 7:38). That outflowing is key. It's the whole reason we are filled with the Spirit: to be a channel through which the Holy Spirit flows into us and then out from us to others. And because God gives abundantly, being filled with the Spirit is not a one-time thing. The Bible records that the early church was filled and then filled again. In fact, Ephesians 5 commands us, "Be filled with the Holy Spirit" (v. 18). In other words, be  constantly  filled with the Holy Spirit. Be filled and re-filled. In Acts 19, Paul asked some disciples in Ephesus, "Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?" They responded, "We have not so much as heard whether there is a Holy Spirit" (v. 2). I think Paul must have noticed there was something lacking in their faith. They were weak. They were unempowered. The same can be said of us if we lack the infilling of the Holy Spirit. So how do we become filled with the Spirit? You just ask Him. Jesus said, "If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him" (Luke 11:13). I ask God to fill me with His Spirit every single day. I ask Him that every time I get up to teach. Why? Because we tend to leak if we don't ask for that re-filling. So don't be afraid to ask God to fill you with the Spirit. And don't be afraid to ask again

If you know your Old Testament, you probably remember the concept of the kinsman redeemer. If you had to forfeit a piece of land, it could eventually be redeemed by someone who is related to you, who is willing to pay the price, and who is able to pay it. That's essentially the story of the book of Ruth. Some land is lost when the owner dies. The widow and her daughter-in-law move back to Bethlehem. The land is up for buyback redemption, and a man named Boaz—who is related, able, and willing—redeems it and gets a bride. How does this relate to Jesus? Because the earth, though it is God's by creation, was lost to a usurper. Adam, in effect, turned over the title deed to the earth to Satan in the garden of Eden. That's why Paul said, "Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned…even so through one Man's righteous act the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life" (Romans 5:12, 18). And this is why Jesus is worthy of our worship. But let's go back to those three requirements: The redeemer must be related, willing, and able. Was Jesus related to us? Of course. He was God, but Scripture says, "And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us" (John 1:14). He became a human to be related to humanity, to be one of us. Was He willing? Yes. Jesus said, "I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep…. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself" (John 10:11, 18). He willingly gave His life. And was He able to do it? Yes, because of what it cost to redeem us: His blood. That's why the anthem in heaven is this: "You are worthy to take the scroll, and to open its seals; for You were slain, and have redeemed us to God by Your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation" (Revelation 5:9). So it doesn't matter who you are or how bad your past sins are. Jesus paid it all. That's why He's called Savior. That's why He's called Redeemer. And that's why we worship Him: because that's the fitting response to Christ redeeming the world at the cross and getting it back from the control of Satan. You know, I hear people say things like "Is worship all we're going to be doing in heaven? Sounds a little boring to me." And the best they can imagine for a departed loved one is "Oh, Fred's up there playing golf" or "Mabel's sitting there knitting with her cats around her." Why do we reduce the glories of heaven to an earthbound activity and think it doesn't get any better than that? As I read in Revelation about the worship going on in heaven, I don't see that anyone is bored. And I think there will be nothing more fascinating than God when you are face to face with Him. The last thing you're going to be thinking is,  Can I play golf now? Jesus took the penalty of death, and He died in your place. The first and fitting response is worship: "Worthy is the Lamb who was slain. You took the debt and You paid it."

How many times have you heard someone say you become an angel when you die, or heaven is really boring because you sit on a cloud and play a harp all day? The only authoritative source we have for life after death is the Bible. And the Bible speaks of heaven about 500 times. There are some things that may surprise you about your eternal home: 1. It will require destruction. "I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away" (Revelation 21:1). God designed our current universe to be temporary. Jesus created all things, and by Him all things consist, or are held tightly together (see Colossians 1:16-17). One day, He's going to let go (see 2 Peter 3:10). 2. It will be a brand-new, fresh design. "I saw a new heaven and a new earth… the holy city, New Jerusalem…. He who sat on the throne said, 'Behold, I make all things new'" (Revelation 21:1-2, 5). The word  new  here doesn't just mean chronologically new—it's new of a different kind or design. God is going to make something entirely different that will last forever. 3. It won't have an ocean (see Revelation 21:1). As a guy from California, I struggled with this for the longest time. But it just means life will be different in this new universe. We will no longer need water to survive. Also, in ancient times, oceans separated people. In heaven, that separation will be gone. 4. It will have a capital city (see Revelation 21:2-3). Revelation talks in great detail about New Jerusalem, the headquarters of our eternal home. This city will be different than any other city ever. It will come out of heaven, and it will be huge—slightly smaller than our moon. It's where God will dwell with mankind for eternity. 5. It will feel unfamiliar. "There shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain" (Revelation 21:4). Our eternal home will be different than anything we've ever known. There won't be Kleenex or funerals. And since there will be no death, there will be no conditions that bring death—no aging, disease, hospitals, or doctors. 6. Not everyone will be there; it's a city of believers only. "He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son" (Revelation 21:7; see also vv. 8, 27). How do you overcome? By putting your faith in Jesus and being cleansed by His blood. I hope you realize that heaven is not going to be boring. Heaven is going to be God continually blowing your mind with His power, majesty, glory, and love. How do I know that? Because Paul said that "in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus" (Ephesians 2:7). In other words, it's going to take God all of eternity to show you the fullness of who He is and how much He loves you. Whatever you're going through in life, good or bad, it can't hold a candle to the glory that will be revealed on the other side (see Romans 8:18).