“And the instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to build and to plant it, if it does evil in My sight so that it does not obey My voice, then I will relent concerning the good with which I said I would benefit it."
Jeremiah 18:9-10

Our nation has been truly blessed by God. Unfortunately, the people did not continue to honor God, and have become the enemy of God. Jeremiah was a prophet called to share a message with Judah and Israel about the same issue. They left the God who brought them into the Promised Land to worship idols.

While the United States has been blessed over many years, we have reached a point where people are looking for human answers to spiritual problems. Abandoning our God for the pleasures of this world has caused our country to suffer from the unexpected results of crime waves and wanton violence. In addition to this, we have increases in homelessness, drug addiction and death from overdoses, along with a justice system willing to overlook heinous crimes, allowing the criminals to be set free to commit further crimes.

We can’t pin the blame on God for making these things happen, instead we should recognize the result can be directly attributed to the removal of God from public life, and the support of all things the Bible calls sinful behavior. These things should not cause believers in the Lord Jesus Christ to fear, but instead to be watching and waiting for the blessed hope of His glorious appearing! (Titus 2:13)

Be encouraged, the Lord will fulfill His promises just as He said he would in His word.

So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. Romans 10:17

Scripture prepares us for the work of God.  Not an intellectual knowledge of Scripture, but the application of the Scripture in our lives.  But how can we apply Scripture if we haven’t applied ourselves by reading the Scripture?

There are many verses in the Bible that warns us of what the world will look like in the last days.  But how will we know what to look for if we don’t know what the Bible says?  That’s like taking a road trip, and knowing the destination, but not knowing which roads will get you to your destination. 

Even if you don’t believe we are living in the last days, we still need to be prepared for whatever age we are living in.  The only way to be spiritually prepared is knowing and applying the word of God to our lives.  You can start by finding a good Bible teaching church, and be in fellowship with other Christians who want to grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ.  Then just as iron sharpens iron, you will sharpen each other.

A little leaven leavens the whole lump.
Galatians 5:9

Leaven, or yeast, is used as a common biblical illustration for sin. When yeast is added to dough, it works its way throughout the dough causing it to rise. That same yeast can be used over and over again.

When Paul was writing to the Galatians, he was warning them how sin can find a way into the life of a believer, and have a negative impact where you don’t expect it.

You can’t expect sin to be in one area of your life, and not impact your whole life. That’s like saying you can have an intimate relationship with a member of the opposite sex and not have it affect your spouse. But that relationship will not only affect your spouse, but also everyone you’re close to; family, friends, co-workers, etc.

In Psalm 51:4 King David said “Against You, You only, have I sinned, and done what is evil in Your sight”. When we sin, it is truly against God only…He is the one who defines what sin is. But the impact sin has on others can not only be detrimental to our testimony, but debilitating to the ministry God wants to use us in.

So how do we keep ourselves from allowing sin to gain a foothold in our lives? Paul gives us the answer in Galatians 5:16: “I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.” When we give the Holy Spirit full control of our lives, He keeps us from falling, and if we do fall, He lifts us up again.

We also read in Psalm 119:11, “Your word have I hidden in my heart that I might not sin against You.” When we continue to read the word of God, even when we don’t feel like it, we can be strengthened by it. Finally, James writes in James 4:7 “resist the devil, and he will flee from you”. When we go to the Lord in prayer, asking for help, He is faithful to help us, and forgive us even when we fail.

For I was envious of the boastful, when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. Psalm 73:3

It would appear that the wealthy and powerful get a pass from God.  They have the freedom to oppress people without any repercussions.  They manipulate the fearful, and hold them hostage with lies and persuasion. 

It may appear that these people are successful, but God is fully aware of their deceit.  They will eventually have to make an accounting of what they have done to others.

But our eyes shouldn’t be on the rich and powerful, or those who appear to have it all together and are prospering.  Our eyes should be on the Lord, the One who will judge the living and the dead.  He will bring justice to those who were faithful to Him.

Asaph ends this Psalm saying: “But it is good for me to draw near to God; I have put my trust in the Lord GOD, that I may declare all Your works.”

In the end, God wins…and so do His children.

It shouldn’t come as a surprise that I believe the Scriptures support the concept of a Pre-Tribulation Rapture of the church. This is well documented by many theologians, and I have also taught on this topic numerous times.

I also believe in the Trinity, God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit. Each of these Persons make up the Trinity.

Why am I making these statements? Recently a few different people have friend requested me on Facebook, and I accepted their request. I guess they didn’t expect me to actually read their posts, but I did, and responded to one person who asked “anyone” to provide Scriptural evidence for the rapture and, and the Trinity. I gladly replied with Scriptural support for both. The next thing I know, I am being ridiculed as a fool being deceived by lies. They never refuted my position, they only restated their own understanding of Scripture, which contradicts other Scripture.

One thing my Facebook friends should know about me, I will share the good new of Jesus Christ without apology, and I will also share various Scriptures, including OT and NT prophecy. I don’t do this to encourage a debate, but to merely share my Biblical worldview with my Facebook friends, and here on my blog.

I don’t share Scripture with the desire to win everyone over to my eschatological views. I share Scripture to encourage believers in their faith, and to share with those who may not know what Scripture actually teaches. Either way, my end goal is to either introduce people to a relationship with Jesus, or to build them up and encourage them in their relationship with Him. That should be our end goal when sharing Scripture…not to be “right” about everything!

I have concerns about the COVID-19 vaccine.  I’m not anti-vaccine. I just had the shingles vaccine recently and it paid off when I had an outbreak. Primarily, I just don’t trust the people promoting the COVID-19 vaccine. 

These are the same people promoting population control.  These are the same ones promoting evolution as a fact. They don’t listen to any of the studies that contradict what they believe. 

These are the same ones promoting gender fluidity; allowing children to “choose” their gender before they reach puberty. These are the same people telling us that an unborn fetus is not a life.  

These are the same people promoting the idea of climate change, but won’t listen to the MANY scientists who disagree with them and have scientific studies that counter their claims. How many times do these climate change supporters get away with causing fear?

These are the same people hiding all information that contradicts their agenda. They remove posts from social media, and even ban people who promote anything that makes them look bad. They accuse others of the very things that they themselves are guilty of.

I believe this is the work of the enemy who wants to force everyone to trust in the science of mankind over the teaching of the Word of God. Christians should be suspect of any “science” that hasn’t been fully tested and proven.

Do I believe it is a compromise of our faith to take the vaccine?  I’m not sure.  But they ensured the vaccine includes aborted stem cells, but it doesn’t contain the dead virus itself as vaccines normally do.

I believe the more people submit to what they tell us is “good for us”, the more people will be apathetic to the other issues they promote without questioning the “science”.

It is obvious the vaccine doesn’t prevent people from getting COVID-19, or even dying from it. I believe their attention would best be focused on treating the virus, instead of denying the results of successful treatments currently being practiced today.

For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables. 2 Timothy 4:3 – 4

You don’t have to look too deep to see that these are the days we are living in. Many in the United States have abandoned reason and logic for their feelings and agendas. People want to hear that they are good, and that their beliefs are accepted. The truth isn’t as important as validation of their beliefs.

I lived with those same beliefs for many years until God got a hold of my heart. He showed me that it wasn’t about what I believed, but about His truth. That truth led me to seek Him more and follow His ways instead of my own. There were times I didn’t care for what I heard from the Scriptures, but I realized that as I applied those truths, my life changed for the better. Years later I learned that it wasn’t about applying doctrine to my life, but about building a relationship with the One who died for me. As that relationship grew, I became less concerned with my own beliefs and more interested in the truth.

Those who don’t have a relationship with Jesus have to make up their own beliefs as they go along. They find others who agree with them, and are validated by those people. Unfortunately, those people are not finding the truth, but are being deceived by a lie. I pray for those who have found the truth, that they will keep seeking God’s will for their lives by being in fellowship with other like-minded believers who have a personal relationship with Jesus. It’s the one relationship that matters the most when we leave this world!

Now godliness with contentment is great gain.  
1 Timothy 6:6

We will find it hard to be content if we are constantly waiting for something better to come along. We are currently waiting for our home to be rebuilt and we look forward to moving back in once it is complete. We also know that any imperfections in that home were burned in the fire, along with all of the wonderful things we loved about our home, and the things we accumulated over the years.

In the meantime, we live in a rental home with rented furniture. We are grateful that the insurance company pays for these things. Even so, I struggle with being content with our current living quarters. There is nothing wrong with this house, it just isn’t ours. We know it is temporary. We long for the day we can return to our rebuilt home, and to be back with our neighbors we miss and love.

While we wait, we find contentment in the things God has blessed us with. Loving family, friends and neighbors. A comfortable home close to where we need to be. He provides our clothing, food, and essentials. And He keeps us comforted by the power of His Holy Spirit.

I have a much looser grip on the things of the earth. I look at them the same way I look at this rental house, a temporary dwelling while I wait for the dwelling that is to come. Jesus said that He was going to prepare a place for us. I believe Him, and I look forward to the day when we will be moving there! In the meantime, as we cling to Him, and are grateful for the things He has provided for us, we find contentment and peace.

It has been almost 4 months since Thanksgiving. My wife Cheryl and I had a wonderful dinner together, followed by a Hallmark movie and cozy fire in our fireplace. It was the perfect day, and Cheryl even expressed how wonderful the day was. She also reminded me how blessed we were to have the beautiful home God had blessed us with.

I was awakened at 2:00 a.m. when Cheryl told me, “I smell smoke”. My sense of smell isn’t very good, as a matter of fact, I didn’t smell a thing. When she opened the bedroom door I was able to see what she was smelling…the house was filled with smoke. I immediately ran to the fireplace, but there was nothing but cold black ash inside of it. It was a moment later I noticed the paint on the walls next to the fireplace was bubbling. When I opened the linen closet I saw embers falling on the sheets and towels, and it only took a second before they burst into flames.

Cheryl ran outside and called 911, while I grabbed the car keys to get the cars as far away from the house as possible. After moving our cars I realized our daughters car was in front of the house. She left it with us while she was visiting family in San Diego. I ran back into the house to find her keys and move her car so the fire trucks had access to the front yard. Once I found the keys I ran back through the house past the wall that was fully engulfed in flames.

It didn’t take long for the house to be fully engulfed, and the roof caved in shortly after. Cheryl and I were standing in the middle of the street in our pajamas with our car keys and 1 cell phone, thanking God, but in disbelief. Our world had changed in a moment.

It was just 2 days earlier that I posted the blog “Center Yourself”, with the Scripture being Jeremiah 29:11. “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.”

Since the day of the fire we have been working to get our lives back in order. The outpouring of love from our church family, and the community we live in, even from people we haven’t seen in years, has blessed us greatly. God is continuing to comfort and strengthen us through this trial, and we have found peace even in the midst of it.  

The rebuilding should begin soon.

For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. ~Jeremiah 29:11

People are looking for the answer to what their purpose is in life, and what they can do to find contentment. Quite often we limit ourselves when we look for the answer among the things we are aware of, or comfortable with. But God doesn’t always call us to the familiar or comfortable, but challenges us to expand our horizons.

When we center ourselves in the things we find pleasing, enjoyable and comfortable, we may not find peace. That’s because we aren’t in the center of God’s will, we are in the center of our own will. There are things we believe will bring peace to our lives, but in the end bring us more unhappiness than when we began our mission to find happiness. That’s why God calls us to trust Him.

When we place our trust in God, and put our hope in the promises He has given us, we will begin to find peace and contentment in our lives. We don’t need to center ourselves on what WE think is best for us, or what someone else thinks is best for us, unless it is fully in the center of the will of God. We may take the advice of others in the world who seem to have found answers that work for them, but if it isn’t centered in the will of God for our lives, we won’t find the peace that surpasses all understanding. When we center ourselves in the will of God, everything else will fall into place.