The End Of The World

February 6, 2018 Gracie

End Of The World

Have you ever thought about the end of the world?

As Bible-believing Christians, we know what’s eventually coming.

Increased persecution, chaos, and a one world demonic cult ruling earth’s inhabitants in the guise of world peace – to name just a few of the realities.

For some people, the final events are too scary to even consider.

If that describes you, trust me, I get it.

End Of Days

the end times

When I first became a Christian, I purposely avoided reading the Book of Revelation.

I tried to read through it on my own and got lost.

What did all that symbolism mean?

I was so overwhelmed that I gave up and spent my time in other books of the Bible for many years.

Frankly, I had no idea at the time what I was missing.

Of course, we’re not supposed to “dwell” on the end time events, but we do need to be aware of them.

Fast forward to a few years ago, when an opportunity arose that I couldn’t pass up.

The Book Of Revelation

Like an answer to a prayer, my church offered a Revelation Bible study, also known as Eschatology.

Simply put, Eschatology is a long word meaning the study of the end times.

I jumped at the chance to learn more.

It was a 3-part course which, in totality, would last several months.

I’m so glad I took the course. Let me encourage you to not be afraid to jump into Revelation if an Eschatology study is offered at your church.

It is so worth it!

After completing the course, the symbolism that scared me off so long ago, finally made a lot more sense.

If you’re interested in a quick overview of end time events, you can find a briefing here: https://www.gotquestions.org/end-times-timeline.html

However, I recommend a more in-depth Bible study rather than a flyby through one article on the Got Questions website 🙂

Through the entire Book of Revelation, we have a blessed reminder that God is Sovereign, and Jesus is coming back.

Our Righteous Judge

Sadly, what some people fail to accept is that Jesus will return as our righteous judge.

My heart breaks for those who, for the remainder of their lives, refuse to put their personal faith and trust in Him.

I have nothing but great pity for those people.

If Jesus’ return happens within our lifetime, that means that all remaining unbelievers, including those we personally know, are headed for everlasting suffering – an eternity of torment, no saving grace offered, beyond any complete human description.

Jesus’ words are clear, as presented here in Mark 8, among other passages.

³⁸For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.” – Mark 8:38, (ESV).

want to pray for someone

Every night, my husband and I pray by name for someone we know who is lost. We pray specifically that his/her heart will open up to the gospel of Jesus Christ.

The thought of a non-believing friend going to hell is tragic.

But, despite the limitations of my and your human understanding, we must trust our Sovereign God and know that He alone will judge righteously.

The End Of Days

Keep your eyes on the news.

I should clarify: keep your discerning eyes on the news and on Jerusalem. There’s a lot of significant events underway.

A word of caution: your red flags should go up if you hear of anyone setting an “exact date” the rapture will occur.

Date-setting is just doomsday, hysteria-promoting, nonsense.

Here’s What We Can Delight In

We can delight in knowing that everything is in God’s timing, not man’s.

We can delight in knowing that only the Creator orchestrates the future, and that prophetic events are falling into place according to what God has appointed.

The good news is that, for true-believers, Jesus has provided us the way to spend Eternity with Him.

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Our Exceptional God

The Gift Of Our Savior

January 29, 2018 Gracie

God’s Gift Of Our Savior

An unexpected present

“Thank you. You shouldn’t have!”

“You didn’t have to do that!!!”

Have you ever said that to someone who gave you an unexpected present?

As humans, we appreciate a surprise gift, but it’s also in our nature to feel a little confused.

Uh oh, was I supposed to get something for him/her?

What’s today’s date again?

Similiarly, it’s hard for people to accept the truth that our salvation, as Bible-believing Christians, is a gift.

“Free,” as in we can’t earn it, even if we try.

We are well-intentioned people, but our good deeds could never equal what Christ did for us on the cross.

There is no comparison.

We are not “little gods” here on earth as atheists (who trust only in themselves) would have you believe.

But, what about that helpful thing I did for my neighbor yesterday?

What about that flat tire I changed for a stranded motorist?

Those are good and admirable things, yes!

Because you are a Christian, you want to and will do good things, but the very act of helping someone is not the hope of your salvation.

The Golden Rule

I’m sure we all remember hearing the adage, “Do unto others…” when we were growing up. There are also a few different rewordings of that proverb, depending on the source.

What does the Bible say?

Matthew 7:12 reveals these words of Jesus from His Sermon on the Mount,

¹²So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets. – Matthew 7:12, (ESV).

We are to love and bless others – a reality of our Christianity.

What The Golden Rule Is Not

The Golden Rule, however, is not the foundation of God’s plan of salvation.

What is the foundation?

Not “what,” but Who?

Jesus Christ, our Lord, and Savior.

We are sinners in need of a Savior.

The gift of our Savior

Mere words cannot adequately describe just how marvelous!

There’s nothing you nor I can do that is worthy of what our Savior did for us.

Despite our unworthiness, our prayers to Him, in His will, reach all the way up to Heaven.

¹⁴And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. – 1 John 5:14, (ESV).

Life’s Purpose

Love Him, pray to Him, thank Him, delight in Him.

And love your neighbors.

Bless them with friendship, kindness, and compassion, and spread the transforming news of the Gospel.

You’ll get some rejections, but don’t ever give up talking about your faith.

Please hit the “share” button below if you think this post will encourage someone.

God bless!

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**Begg, Alistair. “The Great Marvels of Our God.” 26 January 2018. Web Access 29 January 2018. Used with permission. Copyright Truth For Life. Used with Permission.

Our Exceptional God

Let It Snow! Let It Snow!

January 22, 2018 Gracie

Like A Little Glimpse Of Heaven

I don’t know about you but come winter, I long to see snow.

We’re talking about a deep longing, like when I see a chocolate chip ice cream cone.

Texas had some winter precipitation recently, but it just wasn’t the same.

I’m talking about finding some bundle-up, go-outside, throw-some-snowballs, kind of snow.

What to do, what to do.

And then it hit me.

“Eureka!”

Eureka Springs, Arkansas

If you’ve never been to Eureka Springs, Arkansas please check it out.

You may want to consider it for your travel plans sometime.

It’s a fun destination, about an hour north of Fayetteville.

The downtown area is charming, and the food is delicious.

Eureka Springs

Best time to go?

Opinions on that vary, but for us, we prefer the winter months.

Let it snow

This trip would be our third time for a visit – that’s how much we like it there.

Some of the town’s attractions shut down for winter, but there’s so much more to see and do.

variety of wildlife

We also like to go there to see the variety of wildlife, the picturesque landscapes, the cozy cabins, and the SNOW!

Where to stay?

This trip, we chose a secluded cabin in Cinnamon Valley, just minutes from downtown.

Cinnamon Valley

Cue the happy dance. 🙂

God’s Spectacular Design

As predicted, snow started falling.

Delicate flakes blanketed the trees surrounding us.

It turned cold fast, with a capital C.

The temperatures dropped below freezing, as did the wind chill.

plenty of wildlife

Every day was a new adventure.

Spectacular views greeted us on our hikes through the woods.

We even saw a bald eagle soaring above us!

His creation is just one of the many reasons I delight in God.

It’s so beautiful, I can’t help but say a little prayer.

Thank You, most gracious Heavenly Father,

for who You are.

The wonders of Your creation never cease to amaze me.

Who are we to deserve such a gift?

Thank You for sending us Your Son,

and thank You for providing us

with glimpses of Your perfection,

through Him, and through Your creation.

How Beautiful Is Heaven?

My husband and I made quite a dent in the walking trails.

At one point during a morning hike, the property owner drove up and told us about a black bear that was spotted a month earlier making itself at home on top of another camper’s car. He also pointed out that some of the tracks we saw belonged to some mountain lions that frequently hang out in the area after dark.

Hmm…it might be time to go back to the cabin now. We don’t want to be on the menu.

Here’s my handsome (and freezing) husband beside the frozen pond.

temperatures dropped

Can you imagine how beautiful Heaven will be?

No one creates a masterpiece like the Master Creator does, and no one is mightier than Almighty God.

When we see the spectacular displays of His creation and power, it should remind us that…

⁵God thunders wondrously with his voice;
    he does great things that we cannot comprehend.
⁶For to the snow he says, ‘Fall on the earth,’
    likewise to the downpour, his mighty downpour.
⁷He seals up the hand of every man,
    that all men whom he made may know it. – Job 37:5-7, (ESV).

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Our Exceptional God

No Other Name

January 9, 2018 Gracie

Do you need some encouragement today?

No Other Name

My brothers and sisters in Christ, please take heart, because the Lord is with you wherever you go.

It may seem like He’s far away from us at times, but distance is nothing to our Matchless King!

Remember, He’s just a prayer away.

Acts 4:12 tells us,

¹² And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” – Acts 4:12, (ESV).

You Are Loved

You are loved, and you have value.

Please don’t let anyone (including the troublemakers in your life) try to tell you otherwise.

Our hearts should leap with joy knowing that life’s troubles do have an end.

Where we should get our strength is from the blessed promise of an everlasting future with our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Recently, I heard a song from Tasha Cobbs-Leonard called, “The Name Of Our God.” I liked it so much I had to listen to it again.

I hope it helps brighten your day today.

God bless!

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Our Exceptional God

Fired Up For Your Faith

January 3, 2018 Gracie

There’s A Fire!

“What’s that smell?”

“Something’s burning!”

Those are not the kind of words you want to hear on New Year’s Day. (or any day for that matter).

What in the world?

Sure enough, something at our house was on fire.

You just never think it’s going to happen to you.

It was so scary.

No Time to Spare

where's there's smoke

You might think it started in the fireplace.

After all, it was freezing outside, with a wind chill of 0 degrees.

Brrrr!

We had a fire burning in the fireplace all day.

Everything seemed fine for hours, until one of our dogs started acting up.

They always know when something’s wrong, don’t they?

He started running around like he was looking for a place to hide.

Uh oh.

Then we started to smell it too.

A bad burning smell wafted into the family room.

We both got up and frantically started looking around.

My husband went to the kitchen and opened the oven.

First place you look, right?

There was no food burning, and no flames to douse.

Where the heck was that smell coming from?

I decided to open the back door to let some fresh air in, and that’s when I saw it.

A thick cloud of black smoke hung over the whole porch, and big flames were dancing and flaring out from the grill.

I yelled, “It’s here!!!!!!”

Sure enough, I had located the source, and we needed to act fast.

My husband ran outside to fight the fire. I opened some windows inside the house to get some fresh air in, and tended to our dogs. They were absolutely terrified. I was shaking too, as I consoled them.

It took a little time, but we finally got the fire out.

“Grateful” doesn’t even describe how we felt, once the flames were doused.

I’m so thankful that no one was hurt, and also for our dog for warning us.

My husband and I said a prayer of thanks. It could have been so much worse.

Get Fired Up

Our porch fire was a close call and an important reminder that life can change in an instant.

There was no thinking about it first, or putting it off until later.

We had to act fast to get the flames out.

The whole incident got me thinking.

Do we get just as fired up about strengthening our faith? Are there areas of our faith we need to improve?

There are difficult times up ahead on the global stage, and we need to be ready.

An important goal for me is Scripture memorization.

“It Is Written” For A Reason

Why is Scripture memorization important for all of us?

Because Jesus knew and quoted Scripture. (good enough for me).

Knowing and continuing to learn about Scripture is essential to knowing God.

It saddens me when I hear that some religious leaders want to change the words of, and/or reject the Bible.

They are misleading many people and they will be held accountable for that.

We must have discernment, now more than ever.

Christians – please don’t put your Christianity on a shelf, get fired up for your faith!

fired up for faith

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*Oswald Chambers quotation, public domain, and as quoted from Christian quotes.info

Our Exceptional God

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