Dear Family and Friends,

I recently came across an article written by a young woman who, like many of her peers, was pursuing success and prestige. And trying to avoid ‘falling behind her peers’ who were buying homes and having kids.

Her quest for success led to burn out.

To recover from her condition, she came up with an ambitious plan: To take an 18-month break from work and spend $34 thousand traveling the world.

Her goal was to visit 50 countries in 18 months. She planned to wear the number of destinations visited as a badge of honor.

But several months into her travels, she found herself still burnt out and hollow.

The focus of her sabbatical was no different from work – her identity. She was still seeking success but in a new way.

The young woman made a few adjustments and got through her sabbatical. But her peace didn’t last long.

When she returned to work, her anxiety and workaholic tendencies returned as well.

She closed by sharing that she now journals and meditates.

Will she will ever find lasting peace? I pray she does.

Why am I sharing her story?

Because she reminds me of the rich man in one of Jesus’ parables, found in Luke 16:19-31.

This young woman had built her self-worth on accomplishments. Her self esteem and identity heavily depended on portraying success.

The rich man had done the same.

“There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day.”  Luke 16:19 NIV

Purple and fine linen was a sign of royalty, status or wealth. He wore his signs of success.

The life choices of the young woman led her to a life of torment. The job that supported her self-worth burned her out. Her dream life of traveling the world left her feeling empty.

The rich man suffered the same fate. 

“The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side.”  Luke‬ ‭16‬:‭22‬-‭23‬ ‭NIV‬‬

This young woman’s period of torment was a preview of hell.

When she lost the basis of her identity to burnout, she was like the rich man who ended up in torment.

What is scary about this story is that the young woman’s experience is not unique. This can easily be everyone’s story.

We all have struggled at one time or another with our identity.

None of us wanted to be the child on the playground who no one wanted to play with.

And that fear continued into our adult lives. Many of us have lived a portion of our lives tormented, making decisions based on how we want others to think of us.

Getting back to the young woman, can you see that she needs Jesus?

Perhaps if someone could just tell her that hell is real. That her current life without Jesus is actually a preview of what her eternal life could be.

But it needn’t be that way. Not eternally. Not today.

This, my friends, is one way of sharing the topic of hell with our non-believing friends and family.

First explaining that they see glimpses of hell in everyday life.

And then sharing why Jesus spoke of hell more than anyone in the Bible.

Because once one believes there is a hell, they are able to fully grasp how much Jesus loves them.

Jesus went to the cross. The Apostle’s Creed says that after Jesus was buried, “he descended into hell.”

He did that for all for us. All because He loves us.

And He loves that young woman and the many others like her too.

I pray that one day she abandons her attempts to maintain an identity of her own making.

And accepts the identity God graciously gave each of us.

“See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!”  ‭‭1 John‬ ‭3‬:‭1‬ ‭NIV‬‬

In love always,