2019 Is Almost Here ! Are You Ready For What It Might Hold?

I ended 2018 with a big fall and a broken nose and lots of bruising.  Yep.  I go for surgery this coming week and could sure use some prayers that all goes well.   

Actually, I have faith that the good Lord will make sure things go well.   He has been so trustworthy and a true source of comfort to me in times past, as well as now.  

What in the world does 2019 hold?  Not only for me but for you and the world?  I have written extensively on this blog about how we are in the last hour of the last days and that Jesus could return at any time for the Rapture of the true believers to heaven.   Go to the Search Box at the top right hand side of this page and type in "Rapture", or "end times" (and so on) and several posts will pop up for you to view.

It would be wise to read all of Matthew 24, Mark 13, and Luke 21 in your Bible to ponder over the signs of the end times.  We are there now, friends!  We need to be living godly lives, wholly surrendered to the Lord.  Then when Jesus returns He will be able to say, "Well done, good and faithful servant....."   (Matthew 25:23a).  If the Lord can say that of you, you need not fear what the future holds, if you are a born again believer in the Savior, Jesus Christ.  

We should be living lives that bring glory to God.  Trust in God and His care regardless of circumstances.   That is strong faith.  That is the way to please God.

"But without faith it is impossible to please Him: for he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him."  -  Hebrews 11:6

So what do we do while we wait for the Lord's return?  Be busy witnessing to others about Jesus and the Gospel.  Time is short and we want to be active in the Great Commission !

"Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:  Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world."   Jesus speaking at Matthew 28:19-20.

The above empowering words of Jesus are also very reassuring, for He came to earth to be "God with us."

What does 2019 hold for us?  The world is in chaos right now and full of evil and violence and immorality.  We could see more of that and on a much worse level.   But we could also experience our deliverance in the Rapture of the Church.  No, I am not date-setting.  Only God knows when that time is when true believers are taken by Jesus to heaven.   But the Bible gave us signs to watch for so that we would know the time is near........ it is near, folks!

Here are some words of Jesus from Luke 21:25-28:  "(25) "And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; (26)  Men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.  (27)  And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.  (28) And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh."

So do not be depressed and full of fear and dread over all the terrible things that are happening now. Instead, realize we will soon be with the Lord and rejoice over that fact.  Have faith and hope and trust in God;  live for Jesus.   You will be okay.  You will be with the Lord forever, if you have accepted Jesus as your Savior and have been born again.

Be often in prayer and daily read God's Holy Word.  You will then draw closer to the good Lord and He will draw closer to you.  You will find you will build a close, intimate, personal, love relationship with God through Jesus, His Son.  You will find strength to endure and He will give you a purpose and a hope.  

Keep looking up!

"I wait for the LORD, my soul doth wait, and in His Word do I hope."  -  Psalm 130:5

"Only fear the LORD and serve Him in truth with all your heart:  for consider how great things He hath done for you."   -   1 Samuel 12:24

"Passport To Heaven" - Inspirational Weekend

The majority of Americans say that they are Christians and believe that they will go to heaven.   Many of these persons never attend Church, except perhaps on holidays.  And it is true many of them are good people that love their families and are law-abiding citizens.   However, it is sad but true that a good portion of these do not have a personal relationship with the Lord and have never been born again.   So how can we be assured that we will go to heaven, either when we die or when Jesus comes in the Rapture to take us alive to be with Him in glory?

"Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life:  no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me."   -  John 14:6

Jesus is our passport to heaven.   That is, we must by faith believe in Him as the Savior, and that He was resurrected.  (Romans 10:9-13).   We must repent of our sins - turn away from all wrongdoing and do not continue to live a life of sin.  Pray for forgiveness.  So forgiveness from God and Jesus is also part of that passport to heaven.    

"And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.  He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life."  -  1 John 5:11-12

This belief in Jesus is not mere head knowledge.  Many years ago I myself believed in my head (but not deep in my heart) that Jesus was God's Son, yet at the same time I was living a worldly, carnal life and was not putting the Lord first in my life.  I had no relationship with Him.   At 16 years old I was baptized, yet I did not truly and totally understand what that meant, what that required of me.   The devil wasted no time in luring me astray.   Many years later, and in dire circumstances, the Lord really got my attention.  One hardship and catastrophe after another until there was nothing left to hang on to.   But God.   I turned to Him with all my heart and then began a relationship with Him and Jesus that filled the void in my heart and soul and life and He began to transform me and mold me.  Romans 12:1-2 tells us, "(1) I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.  (2) And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God."  The way to transform your mind is by much prayer and reading of the Bible, God's Holy Word.   If you are truly saved and born again, you will become a new creation.  "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are past away, behold, all things are become new."  (1 Corinthians 5:17).  As a new believer, and especially as you mature in your Christian walk, you will seek the things above and put spiritual things first.  (Colossians 3:1-2).  In particular, put the good Lord first in your life and seek His guidance in all of your ways and in your life.  The point is, you must have true repentance and from the very heart of your soul seek the Lord with all you've got and put Him first in your life.   It must be a true conversion.  If you are still living like the ungodly world,  you should not expect to go to heaven.

"Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God?  whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God."  -  James 4:4

Some people believe they are too wicked to approach God, or that they must first "clean up their act" before they can come to Jesus.  

Remember the woman at the well (John 4:1-26) ?  She was living in sin, yet Jesus approached her and offered her salvation.   

Remember the woman caught in adultery, and Jesus told her "Go and sin no more."  (John 8:1-11)

God expects us to leave our sins,  but it is not a prerequisite to being saved.  He will cleanse us and wash us whiter than snow, if we will but come to Him first in true repentance.  And in faith in His Son Jesus.

This reminds me of that old hymn "Just As I Am" which I am sharing here now.   Pay close attention to the words.

"All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out."   -  Jesus at John 6:37

There is hope, my friends !    God is love, and He is a God who gives us hope.   What more could we possibly want than to spend eternity with Jesus!    Did you realize that Jesus spoke more about hell than He did about heaven?  No doubt because it breaks His heart to see people go to hell and so He warned us of the doom and torment that awaits there.   Remember, God does not send people to hell; it is our choice to go there if we do not accept Jesus as our Savior and repent.

To summarize, the way to Heaven is by Jesus Christ, the Savior.  We must come to Him in faith.  We must admit that we are a sinner (Romans 3:23; 6:23).  We must confess our sins and repent of them.  To repent means to change your mind, to turn away from sin, to avoid sin and truly become a new person in Christ. 

"That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.  For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.    ......For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."  -  Romans 10:9,10,13

Jesus loves you.

Jesus is giving you the invitation to eternal life.

Fall on your knees in repentance and pray for forgiveness.

Accept Jesus as your Savior.  

Jesus will return soon to take believers to be with Him at the Rapture of the church.

Don't be left behind !

Our citizenship is in heaven.   Don't forget the Passport to make the journey there!

"And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered......"   -  Joel 2:32a 

"Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD:  though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool."  -  Isaiah 1:18

"If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.  Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth."  -  Colossians 3:1-2

"And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever."           -  1 John 2:17

"Emergency Number For When You Are In Danger" - Inspirational Weekend

About two years ago a young pair of Bulbul birds made a nest in one of the palm trees in front of my patio.  Only problem is, you can see from the photo above that the branch began to die, which means it will fall off the tree eventually.  The nest is barely visible on the brown branch above, and the bulbul is in shadow a bit, but you can still see him from his red rump.  These birds were going about their business of being new parents and were not aware of the danger lurking.  

So it is with many people today.  They are going about their everyday routines, scarcely noticing that the world is falling apart and in grave danger.   For those who are aware that we are living in perilous times and on the brink of World War 3, it can be frightful to ponder the possibility of nuclear war soon.   We are living in the last days, and many Bible prophesies of the end times are coming to pass right before our very eyes.  

When in danger, you need to turn to the good Lord and be fervent in prayer, devouring the Holy Word with an appetite that consumes you for more and more spiritual food.

The emergency "number to call" when in danger is number 4 above:  Psalm 91.   I urge you to please read all 16 verses of that Psalm and I will touch upon some of its verses now.  Psalm 91 has been called the protection prayer.

Psalm 91:1-2 tells us, (1) "He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.  (2) I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: My God; in Him will I trust."    If we have faith in God and trust Him with our whole heart, we shall have courage for any challenge or catastrophe that comes our way.  Even if we face death in a war,  as Christians "to die is gain"  (Philippians 1:21).  We will be with the Lord forever and away from this evil world.   

Verse 4 of Psalm 91 comforts us by saying, "He shall cover thee with His feathers, and under His wings shalt thou trust: His truth shall be thy shield and buckler."    This is such a great illustration ! The Lord loves us tenderly, and will protect us as a hen protects her brood by covering them with her wings from predators or any dangers whatsoever.  

Verses 11 and 12 of Psalm 91 gives us more comfort when it says,  (11)  "For He shall give His angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.  (12) They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone."   Folks, God loves us and wants the best for us.  If we are living godly lives and obeying Him, He will protect us in many ways and from many dangers.  This is brought out in verses 14-16 which follow:

(14) "Because he hath set his love upon Me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known My name.  (15) He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honor him.  (16) With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him My salvation."

So all these promises and assurances of the Lord will be true for the godly who love and trust God.  

Now is the time to have a close, personal, intimate relationship with God through Jesus Christ.   You build such a relationship by prayer and obedience and trust, and by focusing on the Lord and not on the things of this dying world.  Also, you come to know God's attributes and draw closer to Him by reading His Holy Word. But first, if you are not a believer, you must realize that you are a sinner and in need of a Savior. Come to God and ask for forgiveness of your sins, be truly repentant and turn from your wrongdoing, and believe with your whole heart that Jesus bled and died for you at Calvary, if you will just have faith in Him and believe in His resurrection.  (Romans 10:9,10,13).   

Tomorrow may be too late, because Jesus will return at any time soon and you need to come to Him in faith NOW.  

Following is a wonderful sermon by Charles Spurgeon, who has been called "The prince of preachers".   He goes into more detail on Psalm 91 in this insightful sermon.

"Peace I leave with you, My peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you.  Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid."   -  Jesus at John 14:27

"For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain."  -  Philippians 1:21

"The angel of the Lord encampeth round about them that fear Him, and delivereth them."  -  Psalm 34:7

Romans 10:9,10,13 says, "(9)  That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.  (10) For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. (13) For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."

"Are You Salt and Light?" - Inspirational Weekend

Sometimes what I write on this blog may sound all "doom and gloom" to some people since I write about Bible Prophecy and how we are living in the last days....the very end of the end times.  But to born-again believers in Jesus Christ, these are exciting times ! From Bible prophecy we know Christ will rapture believers soon to be in heaven with Him.  That is a glorious and happy hope ! (Titus 2:13)

As followers of Jesus, we need to be living godly lives and witnessing to lost souls about how Jesus can give them eternal life if they surrender to Him and believe in Him.  

A big part of living a holy life is to be "Salt and Light" while we reside on this earth.   Jesus has this to say at Matthew 5:13-16, 

" Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour wherewith shall it be salted?  It is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.  Ye are the light of the world.  A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid.  Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.  Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven."

Not only preachers, but all who profess to follow Jesus should be the salt of the earth and save the world from decay and destruction. Actually, only the Lord can save, of course, but we can do our part to share the Gospel with others.

In Matthew 5:13, Jesus mentions if the salt has lost its savor it is good for nothing.  This was possible in the land of Judea, in particular the Valley of Salt, where some salt exposed to the elements, was good for nothing.... it had lost its savor.  But the inner part which was connected to the rock, kept its savor.  

As Christians, we do not want to be like the exposed salt to the wind and rain and sun - the elements - (the lusts and temptations of this wicked world) and no longer have the life of Christ within us or we have lost our first love for Him and the witness of His Spirit.  Instead we need to stay connected with the Rock; if we are close to Jesus and the Holy Spirit, we can preserve our savor and be of help to others...to do some good in this life.

Let us now consider verse 16 of Matthew 5,  "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven."

In essence, in all you do in your life, let it be seen that you are a real Christian.  This means to manifest light in your wholesome conversation, in your holy life, in all of your actions and where you spend your time.  Let it all be to the glory of God.  

Don't be like the Pharisees of Jesus' day who acted to be seen of men.  Instead, we should seek to glorify our heavenly Father.   Don't concern yourself with what other people may think of you. You just do the will of God, and by your conduct other people may be brought to glorify God.  By observing your godly life and the power and the purity of the Gospel, others may be won to become Christians also.

Keep in mind that if you are a true Christian, then your identity with Christ cannot be concealed.  You will be different from the world, and you will stand out as being in another realm or mindset than ungodly men and women.  

There are some "Christians" that profess religion and Jesus, but they live just like other people (people of the world), and give no evidence that they were truly converted and born-again.   We can only conclude that they are "baby Christians" and have not yet matured, or that they were never truly saved in the first place.  

To genuinely "let your light shine",  you need a close, personal, and intimate relationship with God through Jesus Christ.   This is accomplished by daily and intense prayer, and by daily saturating your mind with the holy Word of God.   Your soul will thrive and be full of light if you follow this advice of the Bible.  And your light will shine and radiate upon those with whom you come in contact with.

Some of you might be very poor and feel as if you can contribute little to improving and guiding lost souls.  Some may feel very weak and unlearned and unknown.   No matter.  If your heart is right with the Lord, He can use you!  If only by living a pure and godly life, by being humble and sincere, our Christian lives are not in vain.   People will take note of your godly life and attitude and realize that you are a child of God.

As a "bonus", your endeavoring to be like Jesus will give you great joy and a peace within your soul....even in chaotic times like we are experiencing right now.


"The greatest joy of a Christian is to give joy to Christ."        -    Charles Spurgeon

Jesus wants His disciples' joy to be complete.

"These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full."   -  John 15:11

"These things I have spoken unto you, that in Me ye might have peace.  In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world."   -  John 16:33

More On Daniel's 70 Weeks (With Teaching Video)

As we approach the end of the end times, we need to consider where we are in the prophetic times and to ask the all important question, "Am I ready for what lies ahead?"   Ready for the Rapture of the Church (true believers); ready spiritually to be assured of Jesus taking me to heaven to be with Him.   

In the Bible book of Daniel, we have prophecies concerning the end times and the antichrist and, specifically, the 70 weeks of years in Daniel 9.   In July of 2016 I wrote in detail about this topic, which you can read here.

Following is an excellent recent teaching video on Daniel's 70 weeks by Amir Tsarfati :

Amir stresses that "God wants His children to know His plans.  He is not hiding them, He is declaring them."

"Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.  For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man:  but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Spirit."   -  2 Peter 1:20-21

Amir tells us that the Daniel 9 prophecy basically says that our days are numbered.   We need to be spiritually ready, born-again, and living godly lives pleasing to the Lord.  You need the Holy Spirit's help to guide you to live a holy life, and the Holy Spirit seals you as God's own when you accept Jesus Christ as your Savior, Lord, and Master.   Repent of your sins, confess them to the Lord, and begin to live for Jesus.

Time is short !  Remember, this tottering and chaotic world is not our home.  We believers are citizens of heaven.   And that is where we will soon make our home (after the Rapture};  of course,  we will also live on earth in a Paradise during the Millennial reign of Christ (this is after the 7 year Tribulation period ends).    

Following is the hymn "This World Is Not My Home":

"I must keep alive in myself the desire for my true country, which I shall not find till after death; I must never let it get snowed under or turned aside; I must make it the main object of life to press on to that country and to help others to do the same."

C. S. Lewis, in "Mere Christianity."

Jesus tells us at John 14:1-3 ,  "Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in Me.  In My Father's house are many mansions:  if it were not so, I would have told you.  I go to prepare a place for you.  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto Myself; that where I am, there ye may be also."

The Future Of America (With Informative Video)

With the new President of the United States, are "Happy Days" here again?  Will the church go back to sleep or relax and not pray for our country anymore?   Just exactly what is the future of America?  Some believe the church has now let her guard down.   Or should I say, "many" believe we will cease to be the watchmen on the wall and will fall into apathy.  This will not be the first time that has happened.  

Regardless of who is President, Bible Prophecy will continue to come to pass, as it is doing almost on a daily basis right now in these end times we are presently living in.   After the soon Rapture of the church,  there will be immediate chaos and it will take time - maybe a few years - before the 7- year Tribulation actually begins..  What no doubt will happen immediately after the Rapture will be the ushering in of the New World Order.  

I have written before about the seven year Tribulation period and included Scriptures and videos.  One post may be found here  and another post here .  Please check them out as Bible scholars expound on prophecy about the tribulation period in them, and in one there is a sermon on the trib. by Dr. Charles Stanley.

Following is a recent video from Prophecy Watchers featuring Tom Hughes, a pastor and the recent author of a book about America in the New World Order.  

We need to keep in mind that no government has ever offered or will it ever offer real hope and peace.  We should not put our hope in a President or government, but instead put our hope and trust in the good Lord to rescue and deliver us from all evil.  As stated, the NWO will not occur until after the Rapture of the true believers.   If you find yourself left behind, you should immediately repent and turn to Jesus for salvation; there will be some saved during the Tribulation period, but they will pay with severe hardship and probably most of them will be martyred for not worshiping the Beast, the antichrist, and for not taking his mark in their hand or in their forehead. (Revelation 13:16-17)  The best time to repent and accept Jesus as your Savior, Lord, and Master is right now !      Before the Rapture of true believers.  You do not want to be here during the Tribulation when God pours out His wrath on the wicked!   

Remember, the NWO is not only a one world government, it is a one world economy and a one world religion (a false religion).  (Revelation 13, 17, and 18).

It is a time to be constantly in prayer, to live a godly life, and to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  He is the only way to heaven.  

"Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me."     -  John 14:6

We need to be no part of this world and should not be craving its lustful desires and pleasures; we need to be a separate people for God, sanctified :

"Wherefore come out from them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you."  -  2 Corinthians 6:17

"Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men.  Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away."   -  Proverbs 4:14-15