Tag: god

The Lord is trustworthy, even in the storm.

Sometimes life hurts. There are days that it gets overwhelming and I sit at my desk and just cry. It seems like there are so many battles, so many things to pray about, so few answers. The other day I sat here, doing a puzzle, and I just started crying. Why, Lord? Why do we pray and pray, and wait and wait, and you do not answer our prayers? I know that you hear me. I know that you have not turned your face from me. I know you listen to every prayer I pray. Why do you not answer? Then I hear His still small voice, “do you trust Me, child?” Yes, Lord, I do. I choose to trust you, even though it makes no sense. Even though I do not understand. 

But even as I heard Him say this, I realized something. If I did not hear Him so clearly, know Him so well, I would have lost my faith in the past two years. The Lord tells us that He tests our hearts. (1Thessalonians 2:4) He has tested me, indeed. Should I share my trials with you? Are they any harder than yours? Everyone has trials in this life. It’s not a competition. We all suffer pain, grief, rejection, persecution, loss, heartache. And we all must wait for answers. And it is in the waiting, that He tests us. It is in the loss, the grief so powerful, one can hardly breath, that we make our choices. Do I get angry and offended with the Creator of the Universe or do I choose to trust Him.

I think of John the Baptist, who sends his disciples to Jesus in Matthew 11:2-10, and has them ask Jesus, “Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?” The question is rather profound when you consider that this man, John, recognized Jesus when they were both in the womb of their mothers. This same man told the world that Jesus was the Coming One! What happened? Jesus tells us in verse 6, “And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me.” 

And there it is! Perhaps you’ve never had someone tell you that God loves to offend us. I wish I was kidding, but I’m not. How else do you test someone’s heart? It is in the offense, in the trial that makes no sense, the outcome that comes out of left field, the phone call that sends you reeling, the rejection you didn’t see coming, that what is hidden deep in our hearts, truly comes out. 

I remember years ago, during another season of trial, where it seemed like everything that could go wrong, every thing that could fall apart, did, that I finally lost it one night. I let God have it. Yes, I yelled at Him, I probably used cuss words, I told Him what I thought of Him. We’ve all done it, if we are honest. But His response shocked me: “I knew that was in your heart, and now, so do you!” Wow. He was right. I had no idea because I tried so hard to be good, to be faithful through the trials. I wanted to be a good Christian, to suffer well. But my flesh failed, as it always will. I repented. Malachi 3:2-3 tells us “For He is like a refiner’s fire and like launderers’ soap. He will sit as a refiner and a purifier of silver”.  When the refiner’s fire is in your life, it will bring up the dross in your heart. And it’s never pretty. But it is only when we see the dross of our own hearts, that we can truly repent. 

And all that brings me to answer the question in the title. How do you build your house on the rock? (Matthew7:24-27) How do you get oil in your vessels? (Matthew 25:1-13).

Both of these parables were a little confusing to me, I must admit. But as I sat here at my desk, talking to Him about my pain, hearing His voice so clearly, asking me if I trust Him, that suddenly I began to understand. 

Paul compares the Christian life with a race. In 2 Timothy 4:7 he tells us “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” What was the end goal? To keep the faith. Faith is not a feeling. Faith is in fact, a choice. And it is in fighting the good fight, in continuing and not giving up, that we keep the faith. When life sucker punches you, and it will, do you keep fighting, or do you give up? Giving up means walking away from God, giving in to my flesh and indulging it with distractions, and, blaming God. It is so easy to blame Him, isn’t it? If you believe He’s in control, then you know He could have stopped it. He could have fixed it. He could have changed it. But He chose not to. Ah, and right there, my friend, is the offense! What do you do with that? 

Yes, right there is where the test begins. Now all that gunk in my heart comes to the surface. And I choose. I choose to look back at my life and see how He came through. Not necessarily in the way I had hoped or even prayed, but nonetheless, He came through. He was faithful to me and things worked out for my good. So, do I choose to once again trust Him, because I know He is good or do I get offended? Sometimes the test is so bad, that it is hard not to be offended. I’m sure you have your own examples, as I do! But I choose to build my house on that Rock, because His name is Jesus, and He is faithful. I choose to have oil in my vessel, because the Holy Spirit loves me and is right here. He has never left me or abandoned me. 

And I do something else with that trial, that you might not have thought about. I will search for hidden treasures in that darkness. (Isaiah 45:3) It is in the secret places, in those dark times of the soul, that we can hear His voice ever so clearly. It is in the pain and suffering, that I hear His voice the loudest. And He shows me things, things I never understood, until I chose to trust Him, when all I saw and felt was pain. And that my friend, is how my faith has grown through these dark days. That is how I have chosen to overcome my fear. The fear that nothing will ever change or be good again. I have learned that trials are for a season. They do not last forever. But what I choose to do during that trial will either draw me closer to Him, or pull me further away. Knowing Him, learning to know His heart, is the most important gift that He can give me and I choose to receive that gift, even in the pain. I admonish you to choose that gift as well.

Look up, your redemption draws near!

Do you believe in dreams? The Bible is full of stories where people had dreams and visions. Usually God gives us dreams for a variety of reasons. Some dreams warn us, others show the future. Sometimes dreams guide us in what to do or what is coming. I think God likes to give us dreams because He likes stories and dreams are a type of story, are they not? Jesus spoke in parables all the time, and are those not stories to help us understand? 

So the other night I had a dream. It made no sense at first but I asked Him what He was showing me because I could tell from the way that I remembered all the details, that it was from Him. I dream all the time, but most of my dreams are not from the Lord. This one was. 

In my dream, I was living in an apartment/condo and I knew that my lease was almost up. 

I was frustrated however, because the new tenant was already moving in. He was setting up his stuff in various rooms and acting like he already lived there. So I went to the landlord and asked him why he had rented my place to someone else. I told him I would gladly have renewed my lease, if given a chance. The landlord just stared at me. I woke up.

So I went to the Lord and asked Him what it could mean. What I heard was this: “Time is almost up, whether you like it or not!” Oh my, now it suddenly made sense to me. 

If you think about it, does this dream not describe what is happening in our world today? Does it not feel like the devil has already moved in, and is taking over like he owns the place? Never mind the theology of all that, lets just cut to the chase. The world has gone mad. Or has it?

The truth of the matter is that Jesus warned us about these last days. He talks about it in Matthew 24 and in Luke 21. Daniel tells us about the time of the end in chapters 9-12. Paul warns us about the end times. I could go on because 30% of the Bible is about prophecy; much is about the first coming of Christ, obviously in what is commonly called the Old Testament. But the majority of Bible prophecy is about the last days, the return of Jesus to this earth, before He sets up His kingdom during the millennium. 30% is a lot in my opinion.

So why are people so afraid of it? Why do so few teach on it? Why are the pulpits mostly silent on this topic? The reasons are many, and sadly, there is no valid excuse. I am no scholar, but if I can talk to you about the fact that Jesus is coming back, so should the preachers. And for that reason, I believe that Jesus is taking ordinary people, like me, to warn you that time is short. Jesus likes to take ordinary people and use them. The 12 disciples were all fisherman and tax collectors. Not a religious leader among them. What I’m trying to say is that if your pastor won’t talk about it, that doesn’t mean it’s not important. 

So what is my dream really saying to you and me? Is Jesus trying to scare us? Well, that would depend on several things. If you are a born again believer, filled with the Holy Spirit, then no, He’s not scaring you. As a matter of fact, He’s repeating Himself with my dream. In Luke 21:28 Jesus tells us the following: “Now when these things begin to take place, straighten up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.” Jesus is encouraging you! Yes, He’s telling you that even though these are difficult and scary days we are living in, when you see all the signs, which we are, then look up, be encouraged, He’s about to call you home! He’s about to rapture His church. 

Paul describes the rapture like this: “For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words.” 

1 Thessalonians 4:15-18

 I want you to notice something here. Those of us who are alive when the rapture happens, will meet Jesus in the clouds in the air. Jesus does not touch down on the earth in this scene. This is not the second coming, where Jesus sets His feet on Mount Zion at the end of the tribulation, as described in Acts 1:9-11. “Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, who also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.” 

I want to point out something else that Paul says in the verse I quoted above in Thessalonians 4:18. “Therefore comfort one another with these words.” And that my friend is exactly what my dream is about! Jesus wants to comfort those of us who are looking for his appearing. Are you looking forward to seeing Him face to face? Are you searching the clouds, looking up and waiting for Him? Then you are being comforted because that day is near, very near.

Now if you are reading this and that day strikes fear into your heart, and you don’t know how you feel about all this nonsense, may I please implore you to not take my word for it. Read your Bible. Read the scriptures for yourself. And if you need to, repent. Jesus is not interested in scaring you. No, He loves you and fear is not part of of His language. If you’re afraid, it is the devil scaring you. So go to the Lord, read the Word, ask Him to confirm all this to you and repent! Time is almost up. Our heavenly bridegroom is coming soon!

Why keep watch, why be ready?

If you had to come up with one Bible verse or story that sticks out the most to you, one that you cannot forget or that unsettles you, what would it be? Maybe it convicts you, or maybe it confuses you because you wish you understood it better. I’ve had one for several years now, and it just keeps coming back to me. In Matthew 25:11-12, Jesus shares a parable about 10 virgins. Five are called wise, five are called foolish. The parable seems to be talking about the rapture of the church. The five foolish virgins have been left behind. These virgins are upset and they are calling out to Jesus, saying “Lord, Lord, open the door and let us in. His response to them is chilling. At least it is to me. “But he answered and said, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.”

What?! He doesn’t know them? Then why are they called virgins? Why do they know He’s coming? Why are they finally awake and aware, just like the 5 wise virgins? It is a puzzling parable to say the least. I’m no scholar, but I don’t think it takes a scholar to realize that there are people who think they are Christians, who go to church, but who will be left behind when the rapture finally happens. Can I explain what is really going on here? No. I’m not sure anyone totally understands, although I’ve heard a couple of pastors who have tried. Most don’t even bother. When was the last time you heard a sermon on this parable? I bet never! But even if I don’t fully understand, that doesn’t mean I cannot take this parable as a warning. And what would that warning be? Make sure that He knows me. Let me repeat that. Does Jesus know me? 

I cannot tell you how many times I have heard the phrase from some Christian leader, “Do you know Jesus?” Every time I hear it, I cringe. Maybe the better question would be, “Does Jesus know YOU?” Realistically, even the devil knows Jesus.

With that phrase in mind, allow me to share some of the thoughts that I’ve had, as I have pondered this strange parable. Let’s address the elephant in the room first. It’s obviously a prophetic parable, dealing with what can only, in my opinion, be about the rapture of the church. After all, why would some be “left behind”?

I am saddened by the number of people I know who do not want to talk about Bible prophecy. Did you know that almost 30% of the Bible is about prophecy. Much of that prophecy is about Jesus’ first coming 2000 years ago. However, the majority of it is about His second coming, the tribulation, the rapture and the millennium. So why do so few want to hear about it or even talk about it? 

I would venture to guess that it might be because of fear. They are not really sure about their relationship with Jesus and the thought of eternity, dying, or being raptured, is frightening. The majority of churches do not touch the topic, so there is much ignorance in the church. The message of course is that if my pastor doesn’t talk about it, it must not be important. After all, doesn’t the pastor have my best interests at heart? 

I would guess that there is also a lot of false teaching about end time prophecy and therefore there is a lot of confusion in the church. Who does one believe? One pastor says this, another one, says that! And with that confusion is also the idea that prophecy doesn’t really matter. Let’s talk about important things, like the Gospel. We are told from the pulpit, if the topic even comes up, that prophecy is confusing and hard to understand and therefore, not important. But is that really true?

So what does the Bible say about this? 

I became a Christian in the 70’s. I was taught the idea that Jesus was coming back soon. But then I fell asleep like most Christians, and I lived my life. I got married, raised kids, went to church, read my Bible when I had time and didn’t think much about it. Why would I? Life was fairly easy. In the 90’s The Left Behind series of books came out and were very popular. But I think most of us read them like they were fiction, or entertainment, certainly not a warning. If you read them, did you consider them a warning? I bet not.

So what changed? The world! I think many of us woke up after our lockdowns and fear of dying of covid. Too many pastors and friends, family and neighbors died. Everyone knew at least one person who died unexpectedly. Suddenly, we didn’t trust things anymore. Suspicions grew about what we were being told by the media. Some of us woke up. The world began to wake up for sure. There are more unbelievers than you can count, who know something is wrong with the world. They know something big is happening and they don’t understand it. But it frightens them. The church, not so much. We love our naps, don’t we. Coming home from Sunday service and falling asleep in front of the TV is greatly loved. Some of us are too scared to look at what is happening in the world. Some of us just believe that it doesn’t matter, it will happen the way it’s supposed to. Whatever. Don’t talk to me about scary stuff. I’m a Christian and that’s all that matters. 

But if it doesn’t really matter, then why does Jesus tell us repeatedly in the gospels, to “keep watch”? What are we supposed to watch for? And why are 5 foolish virgins left behind? Yes, that verse again. Why are they called foolish? Why does He not know them? Let me share a scripture with you that gives some insight, I think:

“But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only. But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. Then two men will be in the field: one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and the other left. Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming. But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” Matthew 24:36-44

I want to point out some things that Jesus tells us in this passage.  Life will be normal, business as usual when he comes to rapture His church. Eating, drinking, marrying and giving in marriage are normal activities. Two people will be together. One will be taken, one will be left. There’s that 50% again. (5 wise, 5 foolish virgins)

We must keep watch, so we can be ready. He is coming at an hour we do not expect and if we are not ready, if we are not keeping watch, we will be left behind. 

Let me leave you with a final thought to ponder on. If you were engaged to be married, and your bride or bridegroom didn’t care, would you want to marry that person? If they never talked about the upcoming wedding, never helped make any wedding plans, scoffed at the idea of setting a wedding date, and spent as little time with you as possible, would you still marry that person? Why not? Because it would become  more and more obvious, if you are wise, that this person doesn’t love you. They don’t care about spending their life with you. Actually, you would realize you hardly know them. They might have looked good at first, but in the end, they were shallow and uncaring. They wanted to be married because of what it could do for them, but they didn’t love you. 

Now, are we not called the bride of Christ? How do you feel about the wedding day? Are you looking forward to it, searching the scriptures to understand it more, talking to Him about it? Are you, as Paul says in 2 Tim 4:8, loving his appearing? If not, then you might want to examine your heart and see if you really love Jesus. Because if you don’t, then He probably doesn’t know you. And that would be a shocking and terrible thing to find out after it’s too late. Wake up my friends. Be a wise virgin! He’s coming soon. Be ready.

Where is the fear of the Lord?

The other day as I was reading my Bible, I came across a story in the book of Acts, that really made me stop and think. It’s not that I haven’t read the story before. I have. Many times, actually. And that is the point here. I have read the story and never thought much of it. But this time as I read the story of Ananias and Sapphira in Act 5, I had a strange thought. What if today’s church leaders did what Peter did that day? Would Christianity look different than it does now? Would we be able to turn the world upside down, the way they did back in the early days of the Church? So I decided to look at other stories in the Bible, and say “what if”? I kept it to the book of Acts in this article, for brevity’s sake. Allow me take you on my journey of discovery and you decide if I’m right. Would the modern church look different today, if leaders acted the way Peter and Paul did.

Let’s start with Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5:1-11. They were an ordinary couple who were known for their generosity in the church. We would no doubt call them generous donors and perhaps even honor them. Certainly the pastor would. They had offered to sell their estate and give the entire amount to the church building fund. What an example they were! There was only one problem. They lied. They sold it for a certain amount, kept back some of the proceeds, and gave the rest to the church. You might be asking, so what? But that’s not what Peter said. Peter received a word of knowledge from the Holy Spirit the day Ananias came and gave him the money. “But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back part of the price of the land for yourself? While it remained, was it not your own? And after it was sold, was it not in your own control? Why have you conceived this thing in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God.” (Acts 5:3-4) Ouch. Good grief. What does it even matter? I mean, he was generous. So what if he lied! So what if he kept some of it? Exactly. And that is no doubt what many of today’s church leaders would say. Even if they knew Ananias had lied, they would say nothing but “thank you”. 

But look at what happened next. In verse 5 we are told: “Then Ananias, hearing these words, fell down and breathed his last.” The Lord killed him! For lying, no less. And it gets worse. When his wife showed up a few hours later, Peter, who is now emboldened by what the Lord did, confronts her and when she also lies, pronounces the same doom on her. “Then Peter said to her, “How is it that you have agreed together to test the Spirit of the Lord? Look, the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out.” Then immediately she fell down at his feet and breathed her last.” (Verse 9) What really struck me about this whole story however, is what happened afterwards in the church. We are told, “So great fear came upon all the church and upon all who heard these things.” The fear of the Lord came down upon the body of Christ. The message: “Don’t lie to the Holy Spirit!” Do you think it possible that the church would look very different today, if people actually feared the Lord so much, that they thought twice about sinning?

The next story, also in Acts, comes from a slightly different angle, that might be hard to see at first. In Acts 19:11-20, we are told a story about some Jewish religious leaders who had watched Paul and the miracles he did, and decided to copy him. Unfortunately, they were not believers in the Messiah, Jesus Christ, so they went at it a different way. They thought they could just use the Lord’s name, to get what they wanted.

“Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists took it upon themselves to call the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, “We exorcise you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches.” Also there were seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, who did so. And the evil spirit answered and said, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?”

It’s almost funny, when you think about it. Imagine their faces as the evil spirit said this to them!

But what that spirit did next was anything but funny: “Then the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, overpowered them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.” 

In order to really understand what happened here, we have to look at the context. Right before we are told this story, we are told something about the ministry of Paul. “Now God worked unusual miracles by the hands of Paul, so that even handkerchiefs or aprons were brought from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out of them.” In other words, Paul, a leader in the church, walked in the power of the Holy Spirit and God was able to use him to deliver His sheep, the church. That’s why the Jewish religious leaders tried to copy him. They were hoping that they could somehow harness this same power and use it to their own advantage, but, without having to give up their false religious beliefs. And what were the consequences? The Fear of the Lord came upon them! And that takes me right back to my original question, would today’s church look different if leaders acted like Paul. 

Let’s look at the effect this had on both the church and the world, which was watching the church in action. Here’s what happened next: 

“This became known both to all Jews and Greeks dwelling in Ephesus; and fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified. And many who had believed came confessing and telling their deeds. Also, many of those who had practiced magic brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted up the value of them, and it totaled fifty thousand pieces of silver. So the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed.”

Both the church AND the world repented because they recognized the power of the supernatural and realized that the evil spirits which they had previously not been afraid of, (they had been practicing magic) actually had great power and there was only one name, the Name of Jesus, that could deliver them from that power. 

I have one more. In Acts 24:25 Paul, who is now a prisoner, is defending himself in front of Governor Felix and his wife Drusilla. Felix apparently enjoyed listening to Paul preach, although there is no evidence that he ever believed. On this particular day, it tells us, “he sent for Paul and heard him concerning the faith in Christ. Now as he reasoned about righteousness, self-control, and the judgment to come…” I want to stop right here for a moment. Look at the words that Paul uses to present faith in Christ to Felix. Righteousness. Self-control. Judgment to come. When is the last time you heard those words in church? I would venture to say that they are, what Paul calls the “whole counsel of God” in Acts 20:27. I want to point out the effect this sermon had on Felix. “Felix was afraid and answered, “Go away for now; when I have a convenient time I will call for you.” 

Even though Felix was afraid, he did not repent. But, and this is important, he heard the truth, the whole truth, from the mouth of Paul. Not a washed down version of the gospel, not what most churches and ministries teach in this day and age, but the whole truth and nothing but the truth. A truth that scared him. And well it should. Seriously, when was the last time you heard a sermon that scared you? 

When I look at just these three examples of what went on in the early church, I see a common denominator: the fear of the Lord. Because the leaders, the apostles, feared the Lord, they obeyed Him and therefore the Lord was able to use them to turn the world upside down. Imagine a world, where the church once again fears the Lord and obeys Him. I think things would look different than they do right now. What do you think?

7 prayers you can pray over yourself for protection.

Many years ago, not long after I became a born again Christian, I remember praying a prayer for myself, that looking back on my life, God has answered many times. I don’t think I fully understood how much I was in fact protecting myself from deception when I prayed it. It was a very simple little prayer, but it was heartfelt. I simply prayed, “Lord, help me to never let go of you”! Although I do not believe that the enemy can snatch us out of His hand, I do believe we have the power to walk away. It’s called free will.

Jesus tells us in John 10:27-30, “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand. I and My Father are one.” 

As I have looked back at my life, I see how often the Lord has helped me to not let go of Him, especially during difficult times. With that thought in mind, I was thinking about how Jesus prayed for both His disciples and for us, those that follow in their footsteps. I thought it would be interesting and helpful to create a list of prayers, some of them straight from the mouth of Jesus, that we can pray over ourselves and even our loved ones that know Him, for protection. I have compiled a short list of seven prayers that I would like to share with you here.

We live in the age of deception. It is difficult to know if what we are hearing both on the internet, and sadly, even from the pulpits, is truth. Deception is often carefully wrapped in a blanket of truth, and therefore difficult to discern without help from the Holy Spirit. 

With that in mind, I think my first prayer would be from John 16:13, “However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth”.

1) Lord, I pray that the Spirit of Truth, the Holy Spirit, would guide me into all truth. 

The enemy is on a rampage these days. He knows his time is short and he is angry. We know from 1 Peter 5:8 that he is looking for prey: “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.” James 4:7 tells us: “Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.” And in John 17:15, Jesus prays this over His disciples, “I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one.”

2) Lord, protect me from the evil one and help me to resist the devil, so he will flee from me. 

As mentioned above, if we are His sheep, Jesus promises us that we will hear His voice. We will not follow the voice of strangers. In the book of  Revelation, the Lord tells us 7 times, “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” (Revelation 2:7, 11, 17, 29, Revelation 3:6, 13, 22) For Him to say it that often, means that it’s important. 

3) Lord, I pray that I would have an ear to hear what You are saying to the churches. 

With persecution on the rise around the world, it is easy to be afraid to share the Gospel. But in Acts, the disciples specifically prayed about this by asking for boldness. “Now, Lord, look on their threats, and grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word, by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus.” (Acts 4:29-30)

4) Lord, I pray that you would give me boldness to speak your word. Help me to not be afraid and shrink back when the opportunity presents itself.

Sadly, we live in a world filled with debauchery, filth and sin. It is everywhere these days and it is not hard to become immune to it or even tainted by it. One of the prayers that Jesus prayed for His disciples was about holiness. “Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth”. Sanctify means to purify. His word purifies us! 

5) Lord, purify me by your truth, for your word is truth.

We live in dark days. The early church did as well. In John 15:1-8 the Lord tells His disciples the following:

“Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.”

6) Lord, help me to abide in you, so that I can bear much fruit to bring you glory.

Finally, as this present age comes to a close and we are watching prophecy unfolding at breakneck speed before our very eyes, I cannot help but remember Jesus’ warning to His disciples in Luke 21:34-36, right after He answered their questions about the signs of the end. 

“But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly. For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.”

7) Lord, I pray that I and my family would keep watch and pray, that we would be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before You on that glorious day!

These 7 prayers are by no means a complete list. But I thought it prudent to write down what I consider some of the most important ones to help us navigate these difficult days. I hope that they encourage you and help you as well. Until He comes. 

What are you thirsty for?

Have you ever driven through the desert? Many years ago when my oldest was just a baby, we drove from San Diego, California to Yuma, Arizona. That road takes you through some incredible wilderness. I saw enormous vultures, the like I have not seen since. But what really stuck in my mind from that road trip so many years ago, was the dry heat. It was so powerful that it felt like it sucked the moisture right out of your body. We could not drink enough throughout those hours of driving, and at that time, there were almost no places to stop and get water. The thirst that I felt was unquenchable. 

As I look back on that time, I am reminded that there is also another kind of thirst, a thirst that few talk about, but most if not all of us struggle with. It is the spiritual thirst that God put in us, that causes us to never feel satisfied. God created within us a vacuum, an inner void or empty place that only He Himself could fill. Even though this thirst, or void, is spiritual, it manifests itself in physical ways. And just like the dry California desert heat, this thirst cannot be quenched by physical or emotional things. It often expresses itself through addictions, but the fix is always temporary. 

What are you thirsty for? What do you crave above all else on earth? Is it love, acceptance, food, sex or perhaps something else that is so deep and so hidden inside of your soul, that you can hardly find the words to express it? You just know that you have a deep longing for something, and nothing will satisfy that craving, no matter how hard you try. The Bible calls that intense desire, thirst.  The gospel of John tells us in John 7:37 that Jesus literally addressed this issue: “On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink.“ What is it that Jesus offered them to drink? He tells us in the next sentence. “He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” John 7:38

We are told a story in John 4 about Jesus coming across a woman who was getting water from the town well at noon. He had an interesting conversation with her. Clearly, she was thirsty, which is why she was getting water. But He started the conversation with an odd request. Jesus asked the woman for a drink! This startled her and here’s what happened next: “Then the woman of Samaria said to Him, “How is it that You, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?” For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.” (John 4:9) He then tells her that if she knew who she was talking to, she would have asked Him for a drink and He would have given her living water. Not fully understanding what living water was, she thought it meant she would never have to walk back to the well and get water again. Jesus cut to the chase and addressed her thirst. He told her to go get her husband. If you know the story, she responds by telling him she has no husband. And that is when it gets interesting because Jesus tells her that she’s actually had 5 husbands and the one she has now is not her husband. This woman was indeed thirsty and it appears from her life that no man had ever been able to quench that thirst. 

But why would Jesus ask her to get her husband? Because it is not until we identify the cause of our thirst, that we can begin to recognize that no one, not any man or woman, not money or power, nor food or sex, or anything else on this earth can ever quench our thirst for the living God. It is not until we admit this to ourselves that we can come to Him and ask for this living water, the water that only Jesus the Rock can give us.

We are given a foreshadow of this living water in the book of Exodus when we are told about the children of Israel who had been wandering about in the wilderness with Moses. The thrill of leaving Egypt was gone and now they were left wandering around in a dry and barren land for many days. How often do our lives feel like this? We feel like we have been wandering around in a wilderness, alone, hot and without any satisfaction, looking for a promised land that never seems to get any closer than our distant horizon or dreams. They were thirsty! They were literally dying of thirst and they blamed Moses. In Exodus 17:1-6 we are told their story. They believed it was his fault that they were in this situation and he was responsible for why they didn’t have anything to drink. So Moses went to the Lord and told Him the situation. (As if He didn’t know) The Lord told Moses to go to the rock in Horeb, and the Lord Himself would stand before Moses, and Moses should strike the rock and water would come out. Moses did exactly what he was told, and miraculously, water came gushing out of the rock.

How does this relate to being spiritually thirsty? The prophet Isaiah tells us in Isaiah 53:4.

In this chapter Isaiah describes the crucifixion, and says that God would “reckon Him stricken, struck down by God and afflicted”. The Father struck Jesus, the Rock, so that living waters would come out of Him. Paul confirms this in 1 Corinthians 10:1-13 when he tells us that the children of Israel “all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank of the Spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ”.

So I ask again, what are you really thirsty for? Identify your craving, not the physical symptom that you use to momentarily satisfy it, but the deeper one, the one that you can’t face because it is too painful. When you have found it, come to the One who has the living water and ask Him for a drink. He has promised that He will grant your request. His love for you is so great, that He laid down His life for you, so you could spend eternity with Him. He died on that cross, so you could live. And He is calling you, yes you, and telling you that He desires to give you living water. His name is Jesus. In Isaiah 55:1, Isaiah, like Jesus in the temple, cries out: “Ho! Everyone who thirsts, Come to the waters!” Cry out to Him and He will answer you.