November 2023

Violent Storms Ahead

 NOVEMBER 24, 2023
 Daily Reading – Ezekiel 28-31 / James 5

 GOD’S WORD:

Ezekiel 30:1-3 The word of the LORD came again unto me, saying, Son of man, prophesy and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Howl ye, Woe worth the day! For the day is near, even the day of the LORD is near, a cloudy day; it shall be the time of the heathen.

 

 GETTING INTO GOD’S WORD:

        Years ago, I was with a group of children, teens, and adults at a Bible Camp secluded in a wooded area not far from our church. Suddenly something happened. The children were crying and screaming. Adults ran for cover. Some began to panic, and their cries caused unsettled feelings in others around them. What happened? Did a wild animal scare them? No, it was not an animal. Did a cabin collapse or tree fall to cause this fear? No not that either. It was a dark cloud descending rapidly on the camp and fierce winds blowing things around. It came from nowhere with little warning. Some feared it was a tornado sweeping through the area of which we were unaware. Had we been near a radio or TV we may have heard of its approach and been able to plan accordingly. In a short while, it blew over and things were fine. However, for a while, there was a bit of tension in the air.

 

        Fear often strikes the heart of people during dark and stormy times. Especially if they come up unannounced. Repeatedly in Ezekiel we read, “The word of the Lord came unto me.” Following each one there is a prophecy of what was to come. Many of these prophesies have been fulfilled, some have been partially fulfilled. Yet not one detail has ever been left out. The prophecies of the Lord always come true as they are given. This leaves us to know, the rest are still to come. God says cloudy days and violent storms are ahead for the lost. 

 

 GETTING GOD’S WORD INTO ME:

        With no plan for the future, many stroll along as if nothing will ever happen. To them, it will seem as if there was no warning for these violent storms. Yet, a storm is coming, you can plan on it. Live life today, but plan for eternity. To do so you must live your life in Christ.

Are you ready?

 

 Value Your Days

 NOVEMBER 23, 2023
 Daily Reading – Ezekiel 24-27 / James 4

 GOD’S WORD:

Ezekiel 24:16 & 18 Son of man, behold, I take away from thee the desire of thine eyes with a stroke: yet neither shalt thou mourn nor weep, neither shall thy tears run down…
So I spake unto the people in the morning: and at even my wife died; and I did in the morning as I was commanded.

 

 GETTING INTO GOD’S WORD:

        How many years do you have with the ones you love? How many weeks, days, hours, or minutes? The answers are we do not know. We were created by God for His use as He sees fit. None of us know how, or when God is going to call us home in order for His plan for eternity to be fulfilled. Ezekiel served God. Doing exactly as God asked him to do. Yet, in Ezekiel 24, God tells him He is going to take his wife’s life so He can make a point to the children of Israel. None of us know if in doing so, God may have been kind to her. Some of you are probably thinking, how could this be God’s grace toward Ezekiel’s wife? It may have been, had she lived, she may have been taken and tortured. Some men from the region may have done terrible things to her had she still been around. Ezekiel may have had to watch as someone he loved was mistreated, and suffer a horrible, lengthy death. Or worse, a long dreadful struggling life.

 

        None of us know how, when, or why God may take us. What we do know is Heb. 9:27 says, “It is appointed unto men once to die…” That is an appointment set by God we all will keep, should Jesus not return first. So, what are we doing with today? This might be our last day together. Are we wasting it fighting and arguing? We all need to keep on living our life as if there was a tomorrow. Yet, if you knew this was your last day together, what might you do differently? 

 

 GETTING GOD’S WORD INTO ME:

        God never promises tomorrow. What you have is today. Use it to glorify God and let those around you know you love them. If today was the last day that you had to leave an impression on those around you, what impression are you leaving?

What will the impression of Christ in you be?

 

 Vacancy Of Leadership

 NOVEMBER 22, 2023
 Daily Reading – Ezekiel 21-23 / James 3

 

 GOD’S WORD:

Ezekiel 22:30 And I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it: but I found none.

 

 GETTING INTO GOD’S WORD:

       God was looking for someone who would become a hedge of protection. Someone that might cause Him to reconsider the destruction of Israel. He was seeking such a one but found none. Hezekiah and Josiah both tried to bring the people back to God unsuccessfully. Even though they were not able to draw people back to the Lord, they were able, by their actions and prayers to keep God from destroying them. But there was a vacancy of leadership. Not one prophet, religious leader, or royalty who cared about God.

 

         As I read this, I see something we all should remember. Do you realize you have a royal priesthood in your home? Men, we are responsible to stand in the gap for our family, as Moses did for the children of Israel. We are to build a hedge of protection round about our family. Wives and single mothers, you are not off the hook. You too should be in daily protective prayer for your children and grandchildren. Wives, you should be bombarding the throne of grace for your husband. That he will be the man that stands where God can see Him. Not ashamed to be humble before God. A man who gives credit to the Lord for all that he is and does. That is what God was looking for then, and we serve a never changing God. We all have responsibilities in this world. The most important thing we can do for our families is for Christians to become the hedge in our home. Stand up for Jesus and watch Him stand up for you. 

 

 GETTING GOD’S WORD INTO ME:

        How do you build a hedge and stand in the gap for your family? Study of God’s Word. Stay in contact with God daily. Guard your life that nothing interferes with your communication with God. If you see sin arise, confess it and turn from it.

Will you be a hedge for your family?

 

Verdict Is In

 NOVEMBER 21, 2023
 Daily Reading – Ezekiel 17-20 / James 2

 

 GOD’S WORD:

Ezekiel 18:20 The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.

 

 GETTING INTO GOD’S WORD:

        Society has found it easy to blame someone else for their situations. Courtrooms are filled with people wanting someone else to be at fault for their errors in life. For example: A lady spilled hot coffee on herself and received a rather bad burn. She sued the restaurant for not telling her the coffee was hot. How about the bank robber who was shot after pointing a gun at a deputy, and then sued the city for $6.3 million dollars for his medical bills. In Florida it is reported, a woman sued FedEx, because they left a package on her doorstep, and she tripped over the package and fell. It is clear that people want someone else to be responsible for their own errors of judgment.

 

        Well, according to scripture, there is one courtroom where the verdict is already in on who is responsible for where a person will spend eternity. When we stand before the Lord someday, we will not be able to blame our mom for our sins. We will not have our fathers to blame for our choices in life. We cannot blame society for treating us wrong, or the neighborhood we grew up in for the decisions we have made. It will not be about our gender, our race, economic standard, political affiliation, or the church we go to. Every person will stand alone before God and must give an answer to why they chose to accept or reject the blood of Jesus Christ for their own sins. Rejecting His loving substitution is the greatest of all sins. The verdict is in. 

 

 GETTING GOD’S WORD INTO ME:

        Rom. 1:20 says, “For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:” .

What will be the verdict on your life?

 

Visual Problem

 NOVEMBER 20, 2023
 Daily Reading – Ezekiel 13-16 / James 1

 

 GOD’S WORD:

Ezekiel 13:3 Thus saith the Lord GOD; Woe unto the foolish prophets, that follow their own spirit, and have seen nothing!

 

 GETTING INTO GOD’S WORD:

        You can hardly turn on a TV anymore without seeing some TV Evangelist giving real preachers a bad name. Why would I make such a claim? Well, because they often claim they have received extra revelations that are not in scripture. It is by claiming to have a word from God on someone’s healing. I never saw people in the Bible with telepathic revelations on others healing miles away. Jesus was the only one who knew the beginning from the end and could do so.

 

        I turned TV on one day and there was a man begging for money, (like this surprises you huh…) with a table full of pieces of paper. There were hundreds of them that people had called in with a deep need and a pledge of “x” amount of dollars expecting a miracle from their so-called seed pledge. This TV charlatan said, “In a moment I will be laying my hands on this pile, and I hear in my spirit, (small s on purpose,) when I pray, millions are going to be healed all over the world.” Right behind the man making this claim was a window. Behind the window were operators taking prayer pledges. In the front row of these operators was a young woman with a huge neck brace. If this man can heal people all over the world, why didn’t he heal the woman working for him? The reason is simple, he cannot. Nor can I, or anyone else. God can and still does heal. Yet, He never charged one dime to do so. Faith is not in your pocketbook. “Woe unto the foolish prophets…” . 

 

 GETTING GOD’S WORD INTO ME:

        People want to believe in something so badly they will often believe a lie. Do not fall for the fakes, fall on your knees to God. If you need healing do not go to a coliseum, go to Christ. He still can heal. Put your faith in Him. Get the Real Heal Deal.

Where have you placed your faith?