Tony...

Thursday night I was back home and in the evening I was outside praying. I usually have a time set aside where I pray for all my unsaved friends and pray that they come to faith in Jesus. I'll be honest, there are times when my mind wanders and I kinda skim the names and treat it almost like a list. (I try not to, though. *sheepish grin*) On Thursday I was about to do the same, but then I got to Tony's name... and I started crying. Tony...

I cried with convulsions. I soaked the ground. My nose was running. I begged God to choose him and to save him. I couldn't stop crying. Before the foundations of the world, did you choose Tony? Lord, I want to send a prayer back in time to the time before you created the world. Please add Tony to the list! I don't want Tony to go to hell. Please Lord, I'll do anything. I'm willing to be tortured for the rest of my life if that could save Tony! I'm willing to trade a life of meaning, joy, and personal fulfillment for Tony. You can lock me up and have me tortured for the rest of my life, I'd gladly do it, if Tony were saved and won't have to go to that horrible place!

Tony...

First of all, to anyone who does not believe in Jesus Christ and has not accepted his free pardon and gift of salvation, I feel the same way for you! When I see an unbeliever and if I really think about it, I would cry every time; if I really think about what's going to happen to you if you reject Jesus. Even if you don't believe and don't care about Jesus, will you care for my sake? If I know you and you're not a believer, chances are, I've prayed for you regularly. There's no greater source of sadness in my life. Personal failures, physical pains, romantic disappointments- they all pale in comparison to the pain of knowing you will be in hell.

And to all believers, has the reality of hell really gripped you? Without it we have no hope! There's no meaning to life without heaven. There's no heaven without the cross and the resurrection. There's no pardon without the cross. If there's a pardon, then there must be guilt. And if there's guilt, there's no pardon without admittance of guilt. So without repentance there's no forgiveness, and without forgiveness there's certain punishment!

Have you really wept about those who are lost? You do believe Jesus when he says they will go to a place of weeping and gnashing of teeth, right? You do believe in God's uncompromisable holiness, right? Let it grip your heart! They're lost! What pain...

Aaron once told a story (and Dre 2000 miles away told me the same one, so I know it's circulating somewhere) about a man on death row. He was being escorted to his execution, and the priest was reading about going to hell. The convict turned to him and said, "Do you actually believe all those things you're reading?" The priest gave a very pious, "yes, of course". The prisoner said, "If I believed that, I would crawl across broken glass for miles to tell people about that!!"

I wasn't gonna go here, but at one time in my life I didn't quite see the justice of hell, how God is shown to be good through hell. Back in Fall 2006 I met a guy in Fresno at a church event. (The singles group went to play mini-golf at Boomers). He told me how his life had changed since he came to faith in Jesus. He told me about his lifestyle of gang banging and how he got saved and gave up his old life after being shot. (He's a great father, by the way, a loving, responsible Dad.) He showed me where he had been shot. He had a shot graze his temple (I forget exactly where it was, but it was somewhere on his head, I'll ask him next time I see him). "Man, if that shot had even been an inch further over, I woulda died! I woulda gone to hell!!! I would have gone to hell, man!" Who could argue with that? I saw the hope that Jesus gave him and the joy he had because God gave him a new life and saved him from hell. Yes, for the first time, I could see the awesome goodness of God in hell. The fact that hell is real is now a source of comfort to him and a source of thankfulness, a source of joy. Who can take that away from him?




Last night while I was driving back to SoCal I got a call from Tony. All we talked about were the Lakers and the NBA. After all that, that's all I managed to say?? *groan*
Obviously I need a lot of help! I know you probably do too. I was just thinking, "so I'd be willing to be tortured for Tony, but I won't even risk telling him to his face??" Ridiculous.
Lord, please help!

Tony...