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Prophetic Endurance

Thief In The Night

"At midnight the cry rang out:'Here's the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!' "  Matthew 25:6 (NIV)

"Look, I come like a thief! Blessed is the one who stays awake and remains clothed, so as not to go naked and be shamefully exposed."  Revelation 16:15 (NIV)


When we do not notice the day or the hour, disaster can come upon us like a thief in the night. Numerous events over the past year have come upon us as a nation unsuspecting. We were sitting ducks for a pandemic for a number of both health and administrative reasons. We were not aware that we were in a precarious time in history, when everything we had invested in in life, might lose its meaning if the health of the world was in jeopardy. 

Jesus claimed that at the End of Time, He would come like a thief in the night. What a dark and stirring analogy. He is literally going door to door to warn us, and give us the good news, but in the middle of the night when we are sleeping. The nation is sleeping so to speak. We are without awareness that we might miss the Saviour at the eleventh hour. Wake up, says the Bible. Strengthen what we have and is about to die . . .  Are we awake? Are we wearing our clothing of salvation (like white linen)? Or are we wearing "rags of no grace" (see prophetic books, such as Hours From A Convent)?

"Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have found your deeds unfinished in the sight of my God. . . But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I come to you.

Yet you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes. They will walk with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy. The one who is victorious will, like them, be dressed in white.

Rev 3:2-5 (NIV)

                         

 

   

How do we prepare for what lies ahead? Without a sound-minded prophet how could we know anything or predict our own future. How could we adequately prepare? Although the Apostle John who wrote the Book of Revelation sounds overly dramatic, using loads of symbolism and metaphor, not to mention the invisible supernatural realm  . . . (he sounds like he is staging a world-wide play) and could actually be ranting and raving with fever on the Isle of Patmos.  Alternately, Jesus (an accepted both teacher and prophet), when speaking of the disturbing times ahead is perfectly sane and practical. You won't even be able to leave the house, he says. If you are in the field (the mission field) you won't be able to come home. If you are at home, you won't be able to travel abroad, he suggests in depth. The nature of our interactions will change, there will be limitations that we could not in our freedom perceive. But a world-wide health crisis that is like a sickle to a sheave in the barley field to over 12 million people? How do we react? Is our health under His protection? 

What remarkable events could precede such a financial occurrence as global economic disaster? We haven't seen this since the Great Depression. We can't even go to The Bay to buy a sweater (it is closed). We are next buying clothes online. And if they look good and fit, why it's a modern day miracle! How did you do that? Our friends and enemies would marvel with awe if our hair was not disheveled.

What do we do in a time when we have little control over our situation, and may even be delaying our bills? How can we feel we are people of integrity when money is scarce, and we cannot take pride in what we once prided ourselves on. From paying our bills on time, to feeding our children nutritious meals, to going to work, to looking decent, even spiritually decent . . . all we do seems dependent on the Father providing us with funds. We can do little but gain strength in our own weakness. Meaning we must draw on from the Bible to feed us from within. The Bible has an inspiration and revelation power like never before. It is an event in history when everyone, even non-Christians are interested in what the Bible says about this time. Let's give them the goods, folks. 


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Prophetic Moments

Waiting for Jesus.

Listening to the Holy Spirit.

Urged to act by power not our own.

Worshipful Postures

Hold your hands out.

Keep your candle lit.  

Worship every day.

Pray for others. 

 

 

 

Quiet Time With Sea