I received this today from a dear freind of mine, I hope you all enjoy it.
Deborah mom of 4

After living a decent life my time on earth came to an end.  The first thing
I remember is sitting on a bench in the waiting room of what I thought to be
a court house.  The doors opened and I was instructed to come in and have a
seat by the defense table.  As I looked around, I saw the "prosecutor," he
was a villainous-looking gent who snarled as he stared at me; he definitely
was the most evil person I have ever seen.

I sat down and looked to my left, and there sat my lawyer, a kind and gentle
looking man whose appearance seemed very familiar to me.  The corner door
flew open and there appeared the judge in full flowing robes.  He commanded
an awesome presence as he moved across the room and I couldn't take my eyes
off of him.  As he took his seat behind the bench, he said, "Let us begin."

The prosecutor rose and said, "My name is Satan and I am here to show you
why
this man belongs in hell."  He proceeded to tell of lies that I told, things
that I stole and in the past when I cheated others.  Satan told of other
terrible perversions that were once in my life and the more he spoke, the
further down in my seat I sank.  I was so embarrassed that I couldn't look
at
anyone, even my own lawyer, as the Devil told of sins that even I had
completely forgotten about.

As upset as I was at Satan for telling all these things about me, I was
equally upset at my representative who sat there silently, not offering any
form of defense at all.  I know I had been guilty of those things, but I had
done some good in my life - couldn't that at least equal out part of the
harm
I've done?  Satan finished with a fury and said, "This man belongs in hell,
he is guilty of all that I have charged and there is not a person who can
prove otherwise."

When it was his turn, my lawyer first asked if he might approach the bench.
The judge allowed this over the strong objection of Satan, and beckoned him
to come forward. As he got up and started walking, I was able to see him now
in his full splendor and majesty.  Now I realized why he seemed so familiar;
this was Jesus representing me, my Lord and my Savior.  He stopped at the
bench and softly said to the judge, "Hi Dad," and then he turned to address
the court.

"Satan was correct in saying that this man had sinned, I won't deny any of
these allegations.  And yes, the wages of sin is death and this man deserves
to be punished".  Jesus took a deep breath and turned to his Father with
outstretched arms and proclaimed "However, I died on the cross so that this
person might have eternal life and he has accepted me as his Savior, so he
is
mine."  My Lord continued with, "His name is written in the book of life and
no one can snatch him from me.  Satan still does not understand yet, this
man
is not to be given justice but rather mercy."

As Jesus sat down, he quietly paused, looked at his Father and said, "There
is nothing else that needs to be done.  I've done it all".  The Judge lifted
his mighty hand and slammed the gavel down, and the following words bellowed
from his lips - "This man is free - the penalty for him has already been
paid
in full. Case dismissed."  As my Lord led me away, I could hear Satan
ranting
and raving, "I won't give up, I'll win the next one."

I asked Jesus as he gave me my instructions where to go next, "Have you ever
lost a case?"  Christ lovingly smiled and said, "Everyone that has come to
me
and asked me to represent them has received the same verdict as you...Paid
in
Full."

In this world of terrible hurt, pain, suffering, and extreme self centered
focus to the exclusion of everyone and everything else, there are times when
logic, thought, discussion, etc., do nothing.  It is in these times I have
learned that I have only one place to turn to ease the pain.

~~~

To laugh is to risk appearing foolish. To weep is to risk appearing
sentimental. To reach out for another is to risk involvement. To expose
feelings is to risk exposing your true self. To hope is to risk despair. to
try is to risk failure. to live is to risk dying.

But risks must be taken because the greatest hazard in life is to risk
nothing. The person who risks nothing, does nothing, has nothing and is
nothing. He may avoid suffering and sorrow but he simply cannot learn, feel,
change, grow, love, or live. Chained by his opinions, he is a slave, he has
forfeited freedom. Only a person who risks is free.

-Anon


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