In this section of Matthew 24 he is speaking of foretold persecution and the end times. Nation will rise against nation, famines, earthquakes, hate for Jesus’ namesake.

This should cause us to reflect on Matthew 22:14, “For many are called, but few are chosen.”

When you think about the times in your life where situations considered worthy of testing your faith arose for you and those close to you, what did that look like? Did you lose a friend?

Did someone fall away from their faith?

Did you betray someone?

Faith is easy when things are going well for us.

Faith is hard when we experience the “birthing pains” of life (first mentioned in Genesis 3:16). Matthew 24 speaks of the birthing pains before Jesus returns. Many people will fall, betray, hate, and be led astray.

Maybe the birthing pains in this life are ways of preparing us for the most painful event. The end times are foretold in the gospels and Revelation and in them we are told things will be confusing and crazy. Hold on to your faith fellow believers, for the Lord is strengthening us for our ultimate battle. – Commentary by Kristina Taylor

Today’s Prayer:
Father, I thank You for the “birthing pains” I’ve experienced in my life so far. Thank you for giving me opportunities to dig into Your truth, remember Your promises, and strengthen my faith and trust in You. I pray that my brothers and sisters repent and turn to You. Please protect them and help them to flee from Satan and his lies. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen. 

Wil you pray this prayer with me today? There are a lot of people walking away and losing faith today, they are all depending on our prayers today.

Tuesday, March 23, 2021

Jesus died on Friday just before sunset. Why?

Because Friday night was the beginning of the Shabbat, the Sabbath, the Day of Rest.

So what was Jesus doing on the cross? He was working.

But when the Sabbath came, all work had to cease. So even in His death, Jesus honored the Word of God. He rested in the tomb.

So He had to die when He did, because the Shabbat was coming. He had to finish His work. It’s not so much that He died because the Shabbat was coming – but rather it was that the Shabbat came because He died.

Jesus’s peace is more powerful than time and space and is never dependent on circumstance.

So we can stop waiting for the Sabbath.

We can stop waiting for the circumstance to change.

It doesn’t matter what day it is, it doesn’t matter how many problems you have, or what condition your life is in enter Jesus’s peace now, and the Shabbat will come. Come sun or storm, hell or high water, it doesn’t matter.

Bring it to Calvary and dwell in Jesus’s rest, and He will cause the Sabbath to come.

For the Son of Man is Lord of Shabbat.
Scripture: Matthew 11:28

TODAY’S MISSION – Enter His peace today, living as if the circumstances surrounding you have already changed – it doesn’t matter what you see or feel, remind yourself you have the victory through His finished work.

Today’s Verse:
Where can I go from Your spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? – Psalm 139:7 

When our children were little, either my wife or I would sometimes attempt an escape to the powder room for five minutes of peace and quiet. It wouldn’t always work because one of them would find us and start banging on the door or you would see those little fingers under the door with insisting cries that they needed me.

Thank goodness God isn’t like that.

He never hides from us or insists on a five-minute break from all the chaos, prayers, and help needed. He is a constant, loving presence in all of our lives at all times. We can’t understand His omnipresence power, but we have to believe it is true that He is somehow everywhere at all times.

There is a funny joke that says “The children were lined up in the cafeteria of a Catholic elementary school for lunch. At the head of the table was a large pile of apples. The nun made a note, and posted on the apple tray: “Take only ONE. God is watching.”

Moving further along the lunch line, at the other end of the table was a large pile of chocolate chip cookies. A child had written a note, “Take all you want. God is watching the apples.”

The constant truth is that He is available to all of us whenever we call on Him, and the Holy Spirit lives inside of us always ready to help too. For better or for worse, that also means the Holy Trinity is always aware of all that is happening to us and how we are behaving. He is capable of watching both the apples and the cookies.

So don’t act in ways that make you cringe and want to hide from God because you can’t. Just ask for His forgiveness and be grateful. He is always there cheering you on to be the holy person He lovingly created you to be!

Today’s Prayer:
Almighty Father, You are everywhere and know everything. It is nice that I don’t have to explain what I am going through and what I need, I can just come to You as my Loving Father anytime, thank You. Amen.

We continue the Passover Mysteries with the mystery of the Zeroah.

On virtually every Passover Seder Plate there is something called the Zeroah.

Yet it just sits there on the plate and is never touched and rarely mentioned. What is it?

The Zeroah is the roasted shank bone of a Lamb. The Zeroah is the full and awesome power of God. And in Isaiah 53, the mystery is revealed.

For it is written, “To whom has the Zeroah of the Lord been revealed?” Your translation will read arm, but the Hebrew is Zeroah, the same word as the Lamb’s bone.

The Zeroah is Messiah, who is wounded for our sins, scourged and crushed for our punishment, and who goes to His death as a lamb. And by the Zeroah, we are saved. This is the true full power of the Almighty, the loving, gentle, merciful, giving, and beautiful One who bore all things to save us. This is the Zeroah, the arm that saved your life. Trust in it, rest in it, reach for it, rejoice in it, and live by it, and nothing will be impossible for you.

TODAY’S MISSION – Today take some time to thank the Lord for all of the many blessings He has given you. Commit this day to rejoice in the Zeroah of your life.

Today’s Verse:
Let them (the wicked) be like the snail that dissolves into slime; like the untimely birth that never sees the sun. – Psalm 58:8  

In this verse, David graphically conveys that God despises evil. The few verses before verse 8 say that God will spare no one who plots evil, and God laughs at those that are evil because of their naive thinking. God’s wrath will consume the wicked.

Do you recall times when you felt like you were drowning in this mortal life, when God felt distant, or like you had been knocked down?

Have you ever felt like your sin was all-consuming, or you keep falling short? Remember the God you serve.

The God that despises evil and laughs at their naïve thinking. God is still there with you and will not let you be consumed.

God is more powerful than any evil thought or action you may have or experience. His hand is always out for you to hold onto, you just have to keep reaching. – Commentary by Kristina Taylor

Today’s Prayer:
God, we are so grateful that You are always protecting us. You are our fortress and shelter. Please help us focus on You and remember that we are a part of Your eternity. The things we experience that are of this world like evil are temporary, and You are forever. Amen.

There was a day ordained in the Hebrew Scriptures, in Exodus 12, on which every Hebrew family was commanded to take a lamb home.

It really is exciting to know that it was on this very same day, when Jewish people were taking the Passover lambs to their houses, that Jesus was received into Jerusalem with Palm Branches and Hosanna – Palm Sunday.

Further, the Exodus 12:3 reads “Tell all the congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month every man shall take a lamb according to their fathers’ houses, a lamb for a household.”

This command to “Take the Lamb” can also be translated as “Receive the Lamb,” “Accept the Lamb.” This is amazing stuff, so watch this.

Redemption comes when you receive the Lamb, when you bring Him home, when you bring Jesus to the place you really live.

Far too often and far too long we have kept Him at church, in worship, and in fellowship. We never really bring Him to our marriage, to our relationships with our children and parents, the place we really live our lives.

Since redemption only comes when we take the Lamb to where we actually live, then we need to take advice from the children’s recitation, Mary had a lamb and she took it wherever she went.

Do you really want the joy and blessings of salvation?

Then bring the Lamb home – let His salvation have its way in the place you really live – in ALL the rooms/closets of your life.

Open up those long locked doors and welcome Him in – for that is what Palm Sunday is really all about.

TODAY’S MISSION – Today focus on bringing Jesus into every part of your life – especially those areas you haven’t let Him touch before.

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the LORD, My refuge and my fortress, My God, in whom I trust!” Psalm 91:1-2

Although we would like to think that we don’t have any fear or anxiety as believers, if that were really true, we wouldn’t need God. We could just face a crisis without Him.

With the uncertainties of life, it is easy to allow fear to creep in unchecked. Days like today, when we are threatened by certain disastrous storms, the question is not do you fear, doubt, dread or even worry.

The real question is, “What am I doing with the fear that comes into my life?” After all, fear can creep into our life and wrap itself around our mind and heart. This can happen so subtly that we don’t recognize how anxiety has affected our faith. Ultimately, if fear goes unchecked in our lives, we will miss God’s best for us because apprehension will keep us from stepping out in faith to do His will.

Unless it is entrusted to God, a single fear can easily rule over us and we become indecisive, worried we will make the wrong choice.

Psalm 91 is a great source of reminding us of our “refuge and fortress.” God wants us to trust Him especially when things seem to be out of control.

During a time of the unknown and uncertainty, if fear takes over your life, ask God to help you make an honest assessment of where fear is holding you back in your life and faith.

As the storms approach, remember that there is nothing too big or small for God to handle.

Tuesday, March 16 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 I have learned over the years that there are times I can’t tell someone, “I understand how you feel.” After all, if I haven’t had the experience someone else is going through, why would I tell someone I know what that feels like. There are times we don’t really know how to feel. But as Paul is writing in 1 Corinthians 1, we need to remember that God will use those of us who have had the heartaches of life to be there to comfort those who are facing a similar situation. Always remember, however, that “the Father of mercies and God of all comfort,” is the only One who can truly understand, comfort, and encourage us when we face things that are difficult and discouraging. So even though we may be facing a time that we have never seen or experienced before, let’s all remember that God can use us to be there for one another during this difficult time. Even in uncharted waters, the Lord will be there to show us the way!

Matthew 27:46  And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?

Although heartbreaking and brutal, the death of Jesus is hands down the most beautiful act of love this world has ever seen. And while the Scriptures paint a beautifully epic timeline of this event, there is one part that has always made me curious as I am sure it has many others — the time of God’s silence while Jesus was on the cross.

“When Jesus had tasted it, he said, “It is finished!” Then he bowed his head and released his spirit.”—John 19:30

Why was God silent?

Where did he Go?

Why did he forsake Jesus?

At about three o’clock, Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” which means “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?”—Matthew 27:46

These words that Jesus cried out as he was hanging on the Cross have been the source of much debate among Christians throughout the years.

Regardless of why…God’s voice was absent.

I write this because I feel like many people today struggle with knowing God’s voice, curious as to whether or not God is hearing their cries. Regardless of why Jesus thought God to be silent upon the cross, I believe that even in God’s silence there is power. We may not always understand what God is doing in the moment, but we must trust that God will provide for those who are in need and bring support for those who need it — in his timing, not ours.

There have been many times in my life where I felt God to was silent but later realized that “silence” was actually God doing a mighty work within me — I just failed to realize it. What we perceive as God being silent isn’t always the reality, and we must trust that God knows what he is doing when it comes to taking care of the children he created.

Whether you have financial burdens, relationship problems or even health issues, trust that God is always present, even amidst what you perceive as silence. He’s still there. He’s still taking care of you. He’s still God.

Prayer:

Dear God, please remind me daily that your silence never signifies your lack of love or presence in my life. Thank you for being my provider, protector, and comforter even amidst the silence. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Once upon a time there lived a frog, a nightingale, and a prince. The nightingale used to sing the most beautiful songs with the most beautiful of voices. The frog just croaked. Whenever the nightingale started to sing, the frog would start to croak. This was very disconcerting for the nightingale. Whenever the frog started croaking, the nightingale would stop singing. It was driving the nightingale crazy.

One night, the prince was walking by the nightingales’ tree. He stopped, hoping to hear it sing. There was no singing. He could only hear the croaking of the frog. “Aren’t you going to sing?” asked the prince, “I know you have a beautiful voice.” “Sing!” replied the nightingale. “How can I sing when all day long I have to listen to that stupid bullfrog and those horrible noises he makes. Don’t you hear it?” “Yes,” said the prince, “I do hear it. But I wouldn’t hear it if you’d stop complaining and start singing.”

Let the one who has ears hear… You don’t have to be dealing with that bullfrog. You could be singing.

Start singing to the glory of God and the croaking will disappear.
Scripture: Psalm 100

TODAY’S MISSION – Praise God for His blessings in spite of and over all the little annoyances of the day.