Are These The "Last Days?"

Well, the rapture didn't occur last Saturday but it is still coming. It won't come on October 21st either, (the newly revised date from the same man). Yes, it will happen, eventually. Right now we need to focus on praying for those poor souls that have gone through the floods, tornados and what have you lately.
 All these weather events this year, starting with the earthquake & tsunami in Japan, have been greatly enhanced over what we have experienced in previous years. & Don't forget the various wars going on around the globe!
Remember, it tells us in the Bible that, these types of signs that are occurring are just the beginning. Still, all of these events work together for the good of believers!
"For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestiliences, and earthquakes in divers places." All these are just the BEGINNING of sorrows." Matthew 24: 7-8.
"And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose." Romans 8:28.
Keep the faith brothers and sisters!!

The World Won't end Tomorrow!

 
                                              

 Every so often, someone goes out on a limb to proclaim "special knowledge" of the end of  the world, or the "Rapture", which is really not the same thing. The rapture is when Jesus Christ returns for we believers still on earth and we will be caught up to meet Him in the air. "At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and  great glory. And He will send His angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather His elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other." Matthew 24:30 & 31. That won't happen tomorrow either, for "No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father." Matthew 24:36
  When it does happen all souls on earth will know at the same time. "For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man." Matthew 24:27. In other words when lightning strikes, everything is visible all around to everyone! No one will have to be told a thing.
  As believers we all look forward tom our Lords' return, but there is no soul alive on earth with this advance knowledge of the event!! It is our duty to remain vigilant though, in order to be prepared for His coming because
"But understand this: If the owner of the house had know at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect Him." Matthew 24: 43 & 44.
 In fact this same gentleman made a similar prediction in 1994, what happened then? At least they are fellow Christians, they are simply wrong about the date & time.
Well, enough said.

   May God bless you all in Christ Jesus!

National Day Of Prayer!!

On May 5, the National Day Of Prayer will be celebrated. Our prayers are so many, there are tons of people in need in a host of situations all around the world...we can't be dis-heartened though.
 "I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone: for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth." 
1st Timothy 2:1-4

We serve a Mighty God look towards Him!!
 In Christ Jesus

He is Risen!

As we enter into Good Friday and the Easter weekend, let us be thankful that God loved us enough to send His Son, Jesus Christ of Nazareth to be sacrificed for our individual sin, as well as the sins of all mankind. The rejoicing and grateful celebrations on Easter morning most certainly out weighed the sorrow of the crucifixion as Christs' disciples realized he had indeed risen. " On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, "Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; He has risen! Remember how He told you, while He was still with you in Galilee: 'The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.' "
Luke 24:1-7.  Our world needs so much help. Praise God for the One He sent!!!!
 Our deliverer Jesus Christ of Nazareth!!!

Blessed Is He Who Comes In The Name Of The Lord!

  

   Most of us don't know when we're going to die, barring those tortured souls who commit suicide. If we did,
odds are, we would do all we could to prevent it. Jesus not only knew He was days away from being crucified as He entered Jerusalem, but allowed the crowd of followers to put Him upon a donkey and parade Him into town throwing palm branches and cloaks in the path in His honor!

   " When He came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples

began joyfully praising God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen: 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in Heaven and glory in the highest! Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, Teacher, rebuke your disciples! I tell you, He replied, if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.' "

 Luke 19: 37-40.

    As we celebrate Palm Sunday, let us contemplate on the courage Christ had to go directly into the face of His tremendous suffering that was to come later that week. and, to think He did it all for you and I!

   "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting Life." John 3:16.

Significant Archeological Find For Chritianity!

The news recently about the un-earthing of 70 small metal books purportedly originally from Jordan, is being described as possibly as important to Christianity as the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls! Some are saying this may be the sealed book referred to in Revelations 5, which Christ alone is worthy to open. "And one of the elders said unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof." Revelations 5:5. Now do all of these booklets comprise separate chapters of 1 volume, or is one of these 70 booklets 'the' book itself?
The number seventy is significant in that it is the number of years the Israelites were held in captivity in Babylon.
At any rate as a believer in Jesus Christ, it is important that a find like this points towards what we already know is the truth, but it isn't necessary to our faith that these books be proven out as Christian. It will be interesting to see what further research yields on this!

Teenageritis -- Jekyl And Hyde?

 
Anyone who has raised kids will tell you that it's not easy(understatement of the year!). Just the other evening my wife and I were reminiscing and trying to convince ourselves that the early days of child rearing seemed a lot less stressful than handling the mood swings of a teenager. In reality, I remember being overwhelmed after the birth of our daughter, she was so sweet and helpless, having to make sure everything we did was conducive to her well being. Trying not to make mistakes in feeding, bathing, and the like. It seems like forever before a child can walk, talk and use the bathroom on their own.
   Even given all the diligence it takes to see them through those years safely, that part now seems like a walk in the park compared to the hormonal roller-coaster we go through presently! I think it's all a matter of perspective. The human brain has a way of processing information and over time changing it so that we tend to remember the good quite a bit more than the bad. All said and done I'm extremely proud of our daughter in all respects. She's a good kid, makes good grades and seems to give a rip about her future, unlike me when I was her age! " But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven." Matthew 19:14.

Earthquakes In Divers Places!

 


   "For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. All these are the beginning of sorrows." Matthew 24: 7 & 8. Please pray for the people all across the Pacific region, from Japan to Hawaii & the west coast of the U.S. as they are dealing with the largest earthquake to hit Japan in 140 years, and the resulting tsunami as it moves eastward!
   We definitely are quite a ways further into the last days than anyone actually realizes. We should expect more devastation, of varying types, coming closer together in time. It seems like in this new year God has allowed the pace to pick up for occurrences of these incidences.
   Keep those in Libya & that entire region in prayer as they try to throw off the weight of a dictator mad with power, who is intent on slaughtering as many as it takes to remain in power!
   We must get ready for anything to happen, stock up on food, water, ammo and medical supplies. The United States is not immune and we will experience our share of this possibly sooner rather than later!
    Do not fear, just be ready for a rough ride."Let not your heart be troubled: you believe in God, believe also in me." John 14:1.

Massive Food Shortages On The Way!!

                                                  

   In accordance with Biblical scripture and prophecies, it seems inevitable that massive food shortages are on the way. Inflation on most food products was up around 29% last year, fuel is ready to jump way up as well, and in just the last few days has jumped 13 cents per gallon in the area I live in!
   What else should we expect as we get further and further into the "last days"? The revolutions that took place in Tunisia and in Egypt have begun to spread to other Middle Eastern countries, and now Yemen, Algeria, Libya, Bahrain, and even Iran are seeing great unrest coming from their populations as well. These various peoples are saying that they want freedom, when it actually appears that they are most likely going to end up being controlled by Islamic extremists.
    Yes, they may actually have a democratic type of election in the near future, but if they vote in these Islamic extremists, they will only have that one election in a democratic fashion and that will be it.
    The only possible exception to that may be Iran, where they are already controlled by these Muslims of a terrorist mind-set, and the population seems to be rebelling against their rule. In fact the Iranian government has ordered these protesters executed! A far cry from what has happened so far in Egypt for example, where the military has shown great restraint allowing the demonstrators to have their say.
     These dictatorial Middle Eastern governments are all running scared. If the majority of theses revolutions are successful, the overall disruption they will bring to the area will further aggravate food and fuel shortages, especially in those areas where the day to day commerce gets disrupted, and eventually over here in the U.S., we will feel the impact. If you think that a 29% increase last year was bad wait until we see the 50% jump for the present year, which may very well be just around the corner.
    "And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine." Revelation 6:6.
Adjusted for inflation over a couple of thousand years means we could be paying $15.00 for a loaf of bread as well as $5--$6 dollars for a gallon of gas in the next few years!
 

Here We Go, Watch Out Israel!

  

                                                            
   This new year is just chock full of surprises. Now, after the fall of the government in Tunisia, Egypt is under siege, with Jordan also exhibiting extreme stress! All around the Middle East any government that has been friendly to the U.S. or Israel, seems to be under great attack and the results most likely will be that Muslim extremists will instill new forms of government that will no longer tolerate Israel or the U.S.!  Relationship with these new governments will be tenuous at best! Christians and Jews are already pretty much hated and persecuted throughout the region and will be more so now.
    Quite a few of these Muslim organizations that are vying for power want to instill Sharia Law, which treats women like property, and punishes homosexuals with the death penalty, in addition to the killing of Christians and Jews who do not renounce their faith!
    "And He said unto them, When I sent you without purse, and scrip, and shoes, did you lack anything? And they said, Nothing. Then He said unto them, But now, he that has a purse, let him take it, and likewise his scrip: and he that has no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one!" Luke 22: 35& 36.
    Adhering to the tenets of Christianity calls for us to try the way of peace FIRST! However, here Christ clearly is telling us that, if necessary, the taking of life in self defense or in defense of those that are weak and defenseless may be necessary at times. Please keep this in mind as we watch what is happening over there. We could be getting a glimpse of what will be happening in the streets of America in 20 or 30 years, if our government continues to ignore the will of the people!

    "Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee." Psalm 122:6.

National Religious Freedom Day!

  Sunday, Jan.16th is National Religious Freedom Day. That is one of the main pillars our country was founded upon. The Pilgrims were tired of being persecuted for not following the rules of the Church of England that basically did what the king told them to. They gathered together what they could and began to find ways to get to the "New World".
   It is vital to us to protect this freedom! We all have the freedom to worship or not as WE choose, not as the government chooses. We don't have to worry about being forced to join one group or abandon another. There are not a lot of countries where this is possible outside of Western Europe, Japan, S. Korea, Australia & New Zealand!
   We do not need the Muslims sharia law, or any other tenets from any religion including Christianity, forced upon us. That is what makes us a great country in spite of the various problems we wrestle with from day to day.
    Exercise your prayerful spirit.Please remember to pray for our continued religious freedom. As we get further into the "last days", Christians will be persecuted more & more in the West as they already are in quite a few places around the world. There are a great many martyrs in Christiandom, that we may be unaware of here in our somewhat  insulated lifestyles!
    In conclusion PRAY....pray for our continued freedom, pray for those who do not enjoy our level of freedom, pray for those suffering around he world from hunger, disease, persecution, Some of these people could be your close neighbors or friends. "Pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. Quench not the Spirit." 1st Thessalonians 5:17-19.

What A Start! -- We Need To Pray!

 

   What a start to the New Year! Just prior to the anniversary of the earthquake in  Haiti, we have the news of the Tucson, AZ shootings! Not to ignore tensions all across the globe, wars and rumors of wars, pestilence, mass bird and fish kills, you name it. Oh & don't forget genetic manipulation of the food supply .... I believe we are a bit further into the "end times" than most people realize. It is vital that we pray for the people and situations  around us in Christ Jesus' name! God has brought us victory in Jesus Christ of Nazareth!!
  Why does the world look so dark? That is the way it is supposed to get as the "end of days" nears.
However, we are reminded in Mark 13:32 "No man knows the day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father."  It is trust in the true and living God, Yahweh through His Son Jesus, and prayer in the Holy Spirit that will bring us through. " Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your path." Proverbs 3:5-6.