Once Upon a Time

 

The artist formerly known as Aldrich Design…

Once upon a time I was a graphic designer. I worked over 30 years in advertising and later 10 years as a freelance book designer. I am retired from that and now focus living wherever the Lord leads.

I truly believe that this world is in the end of the end times and that Jesus Christ will soon return. As of the writing of this edited post (May 2, 2022) the world is enduring much hardship related to a global pandemic. This along with economies around the world on the brink of collapsing, wars on the rise and governments desperate for solutions shows that we are in what Jesus Christ in the Bible referred to as the birth pains…

❝And as he sat on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew asked him privately, “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign when all these things are about to be accomplished?” And Jesus began to say to them, “See that no one leads you astray. Many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am he!’ and they will lead many astray. And when you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. This must take place, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. These are but the beginning of the birth pains. —MARK 13:3-8

And we are well into these pains.

The only hope for mankind is this same as it’s been for centuries, in Jesus Christ. 2000 years ago He gave His life on a cross to pay the penalty for your sins and mine. He died, was buried and three days later rose from the grave. Death could not keep its stranglehold on Him. He, the Son of God, now sits at the right hand of His Father waiting for the time when He is called to rescue His Bride, the Church. That time I believe is fast approaching. As the the birth pains will lead to God’s judgement and wrath upon an unbelieving, evil world so also will they lead to the harpazo, the snatching away, otherwise know as the rapture of the Church.

❝For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. Therefore encourage one another with these words. —1 Thessalonians 4:15-18

If you haven’t given your life to Christ for your salvation I implore you to get right with God now! Salvation is the free gift of God. You cannot work for it. It’s by grace that you have been saved…

❝For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. —Ephesians 2:8-10

Getting saved is as easy as A, B, C. That’s because God through His cross did all the work for us.

How to be SAVED — THE SIMPLE ABC’s OF SALVATION

Salvation is a gift and it is a choice. God freely gives, but we must receive it, take it as our own. Salvation is as simple as ABC…

(A) Admit that you are a sinner. Romans 3:10 says: “There is none righteous, not even one.” And Romans 3:23 says: “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”

(B) Believe Jesus is Lord. Romans 10:9-10 says: “If you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. One believes with the heart, resulting in righteousness, and one confesses with the mouth, resulting in salvation.”

(C) Call upon His name. Romans 10:13 says: “For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

That’s it. That’s how to be saved. Thanks for stopping by and God bless.

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. —John 3:16-18.

ALL THE WORLD’S A STAGE

 

There’s much truth to this quote from William Shakespeare. The world (the “producers” and “directors” that control the “script”) tells us what to think, what to buy, how to act. They pull the strings of humanity like a puppeteer does with a marionette. They distort and replace God’s perfect and holy ways for their debased ones while guiding mankind wherever they desire. None other than Satan is the master puppeteer. And most go along ignorantly even blissfully while caught up in his grand deceptions.

At one time people knew the difference between right and wrong, good and evil. We knew that 2+2=4 and the difference between men and women. Even if we didn’t know God we we had an inner understanding of His precepts. We understood the sacredness of marriage and the sanctity of all human life—born and yet to be born.

Those sacred, God given precepts still stand, but today mankind has slipped into the peak of debauchery. Man has basically given God the finger and said, “Screw you! I’ll live my life as I want!” Sorry for the intense language, but we need to wake up and admit this world is decaying rapidly—morally and spiritually. Stop thinking that some next election with getting in the right political leaders is going to make a difference. How’s that been working for us the last several years?

We are at the end, folks. And the answer remains to be not in some futile hope of this world and those in it, but in Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, and that whosoever believes on Him will be saved and have life eternal. We are saved, not by our works or our goodness, but only through Jesus and His blood that He shed on the cross. Period.

Stop holding on to this world and pretending that things are normal! The evidence is clear for those willing to see. Get right with God! Turn to Jesus!

 

There is a longing (or there should be) in the heart of the Christian that nothing from this world can fully satisfy. The things of this life, as wonderful as many are, are like vapor, a fleeting mist. One day they’re here and the next they’re gone.

We know the only true and lasting satisfaction is found in our relationship with Jesus our Savior. Yet even at this late hour the world continues to tempt us with all its attractions and distractions. It’s a battle to stay focused on who and Whose we really are. Our Savior, our Bridegroom, longingly awaits to call us Home, to our true home. We’ve always been just sojourners here... just passing through.

May the Lord help us to keep up the good fight and to stay focused on Him as we continue proclaiming His Good News.

“He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it.”

And remember... the more you look forward to the next world the less you’ll need from this one.

Maranatha!!

Jesus warned us that there would be days like these…

 

 

Dear friend,

All the above, the “birth pangs,” as they are known, are happening now and increasingly so. These prophetic, biblical signs are what Jesus spoke of two thousand years ago. You'd have to have been living under a rock the past several years not to see that the world, as we knew it, is not what it once was. “Normal” has gone bye-bye.

I truly believe, what Jesus promised through the Apostle Paul, that the Church, His Bride, will soon be “caught up” to be with the Lord forever.

Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. —1 Thessalonians 4:17

And those who don’t know the Lord will tragically be left to face seven years of God’s wrath upon the earth.

For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be. And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days will be shortened. —Matthew 24:21-22

Now is the time to get right with God. Now is the time to turn to Jesus Christ and be saved. He is the only way, truth and life. No one comes to the Father except through Him. No one will get to Heaven except through Jesus. He suffered greatly, shed His blood on Calvary’s cross and created the way for you and me to be reconciled to God, to be forgiven and justified. And it is by faith in Him and what He did that saves us.

For by grace you are saved through faith, and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God; it is not from works, so that no one can boast. —Ephesians 2:8-9

God made salvation unto eternal life so easy for us... because it cost Him so much. It is by and through His grace. It’s a gift, so it must be received by faith. Think of it like winning the lottery. There's a check for a million bucks waiting for you, but you need to accept the check.

Everyone will experience eternal life. Death and the grave are not the final stage. The question is where you will spend eternity? Heaven or Hell? God honors your choice. Please choose Him. Believe in Jesus and all He did for you.

I'll be praying for you.