How's your week been?

How's your week been?

I've been complaining about the heat and that my pool is too warm to go in.

Meanwhile calamities abound around this country and the world while thousands die and millions are displaced from their homes.

Does it bother us? "There's nothing I can do anyways, so let's just enjoy the life we have." Eat, drink, be merry, for tomorrow we die. I can be so callous at times, so caught up in my own issues.

One thing I do see is that we are so ever close to the "tipping point." The point of no return. This is reality not pessimism. Pessimism offers no hope. I have hope. I have hope in Jesus Christ.

You know the story… God sent His only Son to show us who God is and to offer Himself a willing sacrifice for our sins. He died on a cross, was buried and three days later rose from the dead. He lives and reigns in Heaven and continues to beckon mankind to repent, to turn from their sinful lives and turn to Him for forgiveness and restoration and a hope of eternal life now and in the world to come.

People will fail us all the time. Friends come and go and change like the weather. We have no greater friend than in Jesus. No greater one who loves us so incredibly.

"Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends." —John 15:13

There is nothing more important in this world than believing in Him, accepting Him, knowing Him. If you don't know Him He continues to stand at the door of your heart and knock. Will you let Him in?

"Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me." —Revelation 3:20

File under: Jesus remains our only hope.

When You See These Things Happen, Look UP!

Borrowed from and written by L.A. Marzulli
[Link to original article here.]

When You See These Things Happen, LOOK UP!

Take a look at the stories below (see this link).  Is this really business as usual?  Do we really think everything is “normal.”  We are warned by Jesus of what to look for before His return. He gives us a list of events to watch; wars and rumors of wars, famines, pestilence, earthquakes in diverse places and troublesome times.

With that in mind, let’s take a look at some of the stories breaking today.

The Middle East is ready to blow, the weather is bizarre, 15 year olds can take the morning after pill, the nanny state in Europe isn’t working and people are protesting, volcanos are rumbling, UFOs are being discussed, Chicago is a war zone and on and on it goes.

I believe these are the birth pains that Jesus warned us would come right before his second coming.  Many will scoff at this and say, where is the promise of His coming? Some folks will insist that these signs are cyclical and at some point everything will become rosy again.

I called this out in a Blog right at the close of 2010.  I said that something had shifted in the heavenlies and it wasn’t good.

The beginning of 2011 began what I would consider the birth pains.  I was on a radio show with four other Watchman.  There was no collusion between us and we did not talk to each other before the show.  Our host asked us what we thought of the recent rise of earthquakes and one by one we all agreed that this was the beginning of the birth pains.

It’s not getting better is it?

In closing todays post.  I only know that I’ve never seen this planet seething like it is now.  the world-scene is complex and getting more so by the day.  In short, we are living on a very sick planet, and we are the cause of its sickness.   Here’s the good news though.  Jesus admonishes us that we see these things begin to happen — see the list below — we are to look up, because our redemption is coming!  He warned us in advance!

Are We Listing?

Are we listening?
Are we awake?
Or are we lost in illusion
   for goodness sake?

Can’t you hear it?
Can’t you see?
Have you learned the lesson
   from the fig tree?

Signs are everywhere.
Momentum’s rising.
The world’s in turmoil
   but who is crying?

Where are those
   in Him they hope?
Are many watching?
Nope.

“Where is this Jesus?
You say He’s coming?
Well please excuse me
   while I keep humming.”

“All is well here,
   now move along.
Nothing to see here.”
Keep singing that song.

Like a thief in the night
   coming all of sudden.
He’ll snatch those away
   because they’re His beloved.

And those that are left
   will mourn and weep.
Calamity will come
   then no one will sleep.

But while there’s still time
   take action, my friend.
And turn to Lord
   In Him to depend.

Politicians won’t save you
   neither silver nor gold.
Only the Cross of Jesus
   will save your soul.

Because of God’s love
   He wants no one to perish.
Not you, nor your loved ones.
All those that we cherish.

So He sent His Son
   to die in your place.
He took sin to the Cross
   and endured such disgrace.

But it didn’t end there.
He lives, that’s Good News.
Eternal life for you
   if you choose.

Death or Life?
It’s yours to choose.
Come to Him today.
Please,
   don’t refuse.

Time is short.
Please, don’t refuse.

—Dave A.

Falling Plates

A short film about life, death & love of a savior.

This it is well worth the 4 minutes to watch.
A really beautiful reminder of what Jesus has done for us and a powerful video to share with others.

If you liked the video or found it useful, please share it with others.

It makes a difference.

John 3:16 - The Greatest Prize

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”

- - -
It's true. God gave His only begotten Son for us, as an atonement for our sins. Jesus paid the price, once for all.

It's true. We are indeed forgiven. A broken relationship with God has been restored and we are offered eternal life through the Son.

It's true. He did it because He so loves us and desires for us to come to Him to be forgiven and to be brought into fellowship and union with Him.

But as good as this Good News is there is one catch. One can't be passive about what Christ has done. One must receive His gift by faith. We can refuse His gracious offer.

What if you won the lottery and a prize of a hundred million dollars? That would make you quite wealthy indeed, but only if you claimed the prize as your own. If you did nothing about it you'd never be a millionaire. A weak analogy perhaps, but the point remains. We must accept God's offer of forgiveness personally. And to do so we must see the need to be forgiven in the first place. We have opportunity to that only in this lifetime – to receive God's most precious gift to us in His Son. If you haven't accepted Him as your own "prize," His gift of salvation to you, then today is the day of salvation. Won't you receive Him now?

Much love,

Dave

- - -

Serving Two Masters

"No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be loyal to the one and have contempt for the other. You cannot serve God and wealth." –Matthew 6:24

I believe this verse goes beyond the aspect of serving God versus money. The Amplified Bible translates it as, "deceitful riches, money, possessions, or whatever is trusted in."

We're all guilty at times of attempting to serve God while serving our own desires apart from Him. And yet we know the outcome is always negative. Any time we place something or someone on our altar, so to speak, and elevate it above the Lord Jesus, we attempt to take away the power and total sufficiency of the Cross!

We can't serve both. It's like mixing oil and water, there will always be division and a settling for one over the other.

Serving Him comes when we choose to accept Him as our Savior and Lord. It comes when we realize that living this life apart from knowing Him and His wonder, grace and love, is a futile and lonely existence. It comes when we acknowledge that Jesus alone is the way, the truth and the life and that no one comes to the Father except through Him. (John 14:6) Serving Him is the outpouring of our love for Him in response to all He has done and continues to do for us. And we have a say in the matter of who or what we will serve.

Commingling Jesus with anything or anyone else will thankfully, never bring one fulfillment. So in the words of Joshua…

"And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell; but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." –Joshua 24:15

Much love to you.

—Dave

- - -

Reflecting on the horrific tragedy in Connecticut

Dear Friend,

How much more evil do we need to see demonstrated throughout the world to convince us that things are not getting better here? We can think all the positive thoughts we want and continue on our merry way in the pursuit of life, liberty and happiness, but reality is shouting at us something very different.

If you think that with enough human goodness and reform we can turn this world around than you are deaf, dumb and blind. Is it any surprise that we as a nation, as a world, after a generation of walking away from God and His moral absolutes, have sunk this low? We can blame handguns and demand for more control, but never come to the root cause of this disease. Quite simply it’s sin in the heart of man. And the enemy of mankind, the devil himself, is laughing all the way to Hell.

If you’re not a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ then your blindness seems understandable. But if you are a believer and deny these things then please wake up. This “age of grace” is coming to a close quickly. God is incredibly patient and long suffering, but a time is coming when He will judge evil.

We can't say He hasn’t warned us with signs and wonders lately. Just look at the calamities around the world these past few years. Are you still going to say, “Oh, these things have always happened.”?! I'm not saying that God Himself is the author of all these disasters. Man can claim much responsibility himself. But I believe He has been shaking things up to get our attention off of our happy-go-lucky, independent selves and on to our dire need for Him.

It’s going to get a lot worse before it gets better. And Jesus remains our only hope. Do you know Him? I mean more than head knowing. Do you know Him as your Lord and Savior? He made it so incredibly difficult for Himself to give you eternal life, with His willingness to die on a cross for our sins, but so incredibly easy for you to receive it. Please receive Him now. He loves you more than you’ll ever realize.

As the apostle Paul wrote:

“In an acceptable time I have heard you, And in the day of salvation I have helped you.” Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation." — 2 Corinthians 6:2

And again:

“if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” —Romans 10:9

The Good News (aka: the Gospel) is just that, good news to a world corrupted by sin: God  Himself became a man like one of us. He lived a sinless life and became the perfect, righteous sacrifice for our sins. He died, but death couldn’t hold him in the ground. He arose and now lives in hearts of those who know Him, who call Him Lord. The Good News is that He invites us to know Him and to be known by Him. He invites us into a relationship that is wonderful, eternal, true, fulfilling life now and forever.

I pray you consider this message and seek Him today while the light is still shining. It’s getting darker by the moment.

Much love and hope for you,

—Dave