Through the Ages of Time!

 Our world is upside down it seems.  We have a global pandemic, countries battling countries, countries battling within themselves. We are wondering who we can trust. Or who we should trust.  We are seeing our loved ones die too early from a deadly virus.  And now the virus is mutating into another strain. We place hope in a vaccine.  

Think about it, does this seem familiar?  Do you remember your grandparents talking about plagues, recession, wars? They thought for sure the world was coming to an end.  Now jump to the next generation., that of our parents.  They recall WWII, and the Korean War.  They recall the Great Depression, having to wear hand-me-downs, shoes that the soles wore off, rationing foods when they were school aged.  And the presence of Polio, Smallpox, Tuberculosis, and other illnesses.  Even losing young siblings to diseases like pneumonia.  What was happening to their world? 

Now we come to our generation. We remember the Vietnam War. Gas rationing. But through the use of vaccines, smallpox and polio was mostly gone. We still had measles and mumps, and chicken pox.  As for plagues or pandemics, I remember the Hong Kong flu.  My own father was so very ill from that. But as time moved on, the vaccines for those proved effective also.  

I also recall the racism and racial wars taking place in our own country.  We thought once again, what is our world coming to, our own country? Then things calmed down a bit. 

And the next generation comes along. Our own children. We are faced with terrorism attacking our own homeland.  Our children were going to war.  Some never to return home. Some never the same.  We began to see illnesses return. The Swine flu, some evidence of smallpox returning. Even tuberculosis.  And now we have this new pandemic, the COVID 19 virus.  Here we go again. And there is political unrest. There is fighting happening within.  Not to mention still threats from others.  

After all of these generations, have we not learned? Do you see the pattern?  There is a greater enemy involved here.  A spiritual enemy that does not want us to see success, and definitely not unity.  

But I have the best news ever! We have a power that is mightier than all others. The power of our loving God, our Lord Jesus Christ. 

8.   “Who is this King of glory? The Lord, strong and mighty, the Lord, mighty in battle. 

9.  Lift up your heads, you gates! Rise up, ancient doors! Then the King of glory will come in. 

10. Who is He, this King of glory? The Lord of Hosts, He is the King of glory. 

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭24:8-10‬ ‭HCSB

He is the King of glory. He will reign forever. He was, and is, and forever will be victorious. No matter how bleak things seem, there is always hope. Our Lord Jesus will not leave us helpless or hopeless.  

Call out to Him.  Reach for Him.  No matter what you face, grab ahold of Him, and never let go.   

Every generation will face their battles.  They will have viruses, plagues, wars, and on and on.  Until the day Lord Jesus comes back, we will face battles.  Why? Because the enemy, the devil, does not want us to thrive, and have victory.  These battles are as much spiritual as they are physical.  But we have the upper hand.  We have Jesus! 

A Loss For Words! Grief!

 These past several weeks our world has been rocked.  Actually the past year has.  For many of us it seems like it will never end.  We have experienced one hardship after another on a personal basis.  Our country has been rocked on a national basis.  Our world has been rocked on a global basis.  It seems none of us can escape this turmoil.  We may face different individual types of turmoil, but it still is turmoil.  

For so many it has shaken their faith. For others it has shaken their family, and others their jobs.  There is not a written handbook that gives you an exact roadmap of how to escape these hardships.  But there are many that give us suggestions.  

For me, the Word of God is my blueprint for life.  Through the help of the Holy Spirit, I can read and understand what the Bible is teaching me.  And through those teachings I can learn how to deal with the things in life that want to bring me down. 

As I have written before, I battle significant health issues along with 2 types of cancer.  My body feels the fatigue every day.  But it is the Word of God and the Holy Spirit that empower me. I can fight, I will fight with my all.  I will not give up.  Now throw into the mix the COVID pandemic.  Oh my, I have to stay on my toes and be diligent about protecting myself.  I have to stay away from others.  I won’t mind telling you, I’m just plain tired of this.  I want to socialize. I want to be in church. I want to travel to see our son and daughter-in-law.  I’m done with it.  

But then yesterday I am reminded of how deadly this virus is.  Even to a strong and healthy man.  A wonderful man we know lost his battle with COVID.  

I was left with no words. I didn’t know what to say or how to respond.  Then I look at my circumstances and think, what do I say or how do I respond Lord?  I’ve run out of words to pray. And we grieve.  Is it ok to grieve? Yes! I believe God gave us the ability to grieve.  It helps to mend the aching of our hearts. And it reminds us we cannot go through this life without Him.  We need our Lord Jesus to guide us, strengthen us, encourage us, and heal us.  And when our time here on earth is done, we can move into eternity in heaven with Jesus.  Where the streets are lined with gold.  Where there is glorious singing to our Lord.  Where there is no more pain or grieving.  

Faithful readers, wherever you are in this world, it has been rocked. I pray you can find that help from our Lord Jesus. He will give you that peace and comfort you need. 

I pray for my country. That once again we can be united as a nation following God’s commandments.  

I pray for all of you grieving, the our Lord Jesus will comfort you and heal your broken hearts.  

We will prevail.  We will be victorious.  Stay strong my friends. Our Lord is always near you.  

“The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears, and delivers them from all their troubles. The Lord is near the brokenhearted; He saves those crushed in spirit.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭34:17-18‬ ‭HCSB‬‬

Still Merry Christmas

 Most everyone is wishing others Happy New Year.  And believe me, I am ready to say goodbye and good ridden to 2020.  Oh my, what a year that was.  An awful year in so many ways.  But a beautiful year in other ways.  As much as I want to move on into the new year with a freshness and new beginnings, I’m not quite ready to say goodbye to Christmas.  When you think about it, it still is the Christmas season until January 5th.  

The twelve days of Christmas is also known as twelvetide , celebrating the Nativity of Jesus. You can look it up and read about the meaning and explanation of this celebration.  

Even today many remember this and choose to keep their Christmas decorations and tree up until then. Growing up, my Mom always waited until the 5th. 

With today’s lifestyles, usually both husband and wife work full time.  Therefore most are eager to get everything put away before returning to work for the new year.  But think about it, are the decorations what define Christmas? Absolutely not! Jesus Christ is who we celebrate and is the reason we celebrate. And Jesus is with us always. So we do not need a Christmas tree to know He is near.  Even though it is a pretty reminder.  

My point is, we can celebrate the birth of Jesus everyday.  He is always near, always with us.  Tree or no tree.  If you so choose to put away the decorations, or keep them up, Jesus Christ is alive in our hearts. His Holy Spirit lives in us. 

I pray that you all can look ahead to this new year of 2021 with great expectations, a renewed hope, a new vibrancy in your walk, and new promises from our Lord Jesus. 

“See, the virgin will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and they will name Him Immanuel, which is translated “God is with us.””

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭1:23‬ ‭HCSB‬‬

“May our Lord Jesus Christ Himself and God our Father, who has loved us and given us eternal encouragement and good hope by grace, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good work and word.”

‭‭2 Thessalonians‬ ‭2:16-17‬ ‭HCSB‬‬

I pray for you faithful readers, the this new year of 2021 brings you a life full of the love of Jesus.  I pray your walk with Him is deeper and more meaningful than ever before. Remember, He is always with you. You never walk alone.