• pain
    Spiritual Gifts

    The Unwelcome Gift of Pain

    This post is my first on a series of gifts that we generally don’t want, and I am starting with pain. I don’t suggest that all pain is a gift. In fact, too much pain, whether physical, emotional, or mental, can harm or even kill you. But life without pain would prove dangerous indeed. Pain acts as a warning, an instructor, and even as a chastening, and most humans need all three. Pain as a Warning: If our bodies felt no pain whatsoever, we would be at severe risk. That is how leprosy endangers its victims. Because their nerves are deadened, they cannot feel injuries and infections. In the end,…

  • hell
    healing,  inner healing

    Why Jesus Went to Hell: An Inner Healing Perspective

    The fact that Jesus entered hell is not much preached about. This is understandable since the major emphasis is and should be on the resurrection.  But His invasion of hell can be incredibly meaningful for many of us who have suffered trauma.  And honestly, a good many of us who haven’t. One of the main reasons many sufferers of trauma do not seek help is that they fear to have to re-enter their own personal hell. I get it. No one wants to go to hell. But too many also don’t necessarily want to leave it either. Jesus asked a man if he wanted to get well. This question is…