“Then the man of lawlessness will be revealed, but the Lord Jesus will slay him with the breath of his mouth and destroy him by the splendor of his coming.” 2 Thessalonians 2:8 NLT
Discussion of the end times brings anxiety to many, me included.
There is so much that is difficult to understand about end times prophecy.
So many different interpretations exist about those prophecies.
But for me, this verse sums up the most important thing I need to know about the end.
Jesus will be victorious.
In fact, all it will take for Him to beat the devil’s schemes is His breath and His presence.
I, for one, want to be on the winning team and I know for sure which side that is.
What is your greatest fear about the end times? What are you looking forward to the most?
“There is more than enough room in my Father’s home. If this were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am.” John 14:2-3 NLT
TobyMac recently released the official music video for the song “Heaven on My Mind.”
You may want to watch it before you read on – spoilers ahead.
In it, people get to meet those who went on to heaven before them.
That got me wondering if that is how it happens.
I admit, I hope so. Scripture is not perfectly clear.
One thing I do know is that all those who trust in Jesus will be with Him in the Father’s house.
That must be an amazingly large house because Jesus said there was more than enough room for all believers there and that He was preparing a place for us there.
I have questions.
Many questions.
But when I get to heaven, all will be clear (1 Corinthians 13:12).
I believe from that clarity and all believers being in one place that we will see our loved ones who enter heaven before us.
While that will be wonderful, I believe that joy will pale in comparison to the joy of being in God’s presence.
Who are you looking forward to seeing in heaven? Who do you want to bring with you? Not at the same time unless the rapture comes first, be nice 🙂
“Yet I still dare to hope when I remember this: The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning.” Lamentations 3:21-23 NLT
I have fond memories of the hymn based on these verses.
Verse 22 was the theme throughout the summer that I ran sound at Mount Hermon Christian Conference Center back in the ‘80s.
I heard that hymn so many times that it is ingrained into the fabric of my mind.
That’s a good thing.
But then, most of us sing this hymn with no thought to the context.
The author proclaims a long list of complaints about the exile of Israel to Babylon.
It was a hopeless time for Israel.
In the middle of the long list of bad news sits this little treasure chest of encouragement.
Israel needed it desperately.
Sometimes we do too.
While most of us haven’t been exiled, we all still have difficult days, weeks, months.
In our best days and our worst, God is our hope.
In the midst of our worst trials, He is faithful.
On the darkest mornings, His mercies still arrive anew.
What is your favorite hymn or song to remind you of God’s faithfulness? How have you seen God’s faithfulness show up in dark times?
“Then Moses cried out to the Lord, “What should I do with these people? They are ready to stone me!”” Exodus 17:4 NLT
When I read this, my mind went all over the place.
It makes sense that the people would be concerned about the lack of water.
But notice that when Moses went to God with the problems,
he didn’t complain about the lack of water, he complained about the complaints.
In fact, Moses never even asked for water.
Personally, I think the parting of the sea was fresh in his mind and he was confident that God would provide a way through the problem of no water.
And he did.
One commentary I read (Enduring Word) made a good point. This situation shows that it is normal for people to come upon difficulties even when they are doing what God asked of them. God will provide in those times.
God allowed the problem.
He also provided the solution.
Once again, their faith was reinforced by the miraculous.
Have you had your faith reinforced by the miraculous? What situations has He provided a way through?
“After sending them home, he went up into the hills by himself to pray. Night fell while he was there alone.” Matthew 14:23 NLT
As many times as I’ve read this chapter before, I don’t think I ever realized that Jesus was mourning the death of John the Baptist during this time.
After hearing the news of John’s death, Jesus tried to get some time alone.
The crowds and His compassion for them would not allow it.
Once his ministry was completed for that time, He finally got the solitude He craved.
I can only imagine that He dealt with his grief in conversation with the Father in that time alone.
If Jesus had to take time to deal with grief, how much more do we need to take time to deal with the grief and other issues in our lives?
I believe God designed us with that need to work through emotions. I also believe that He is there to help us work through it.
He has perfect compassion and knows how to help us handle life’s rough times.
We need to be willing to start that process by spending time in prayer.
Are you working through issues that God could help you with? Is there something keeping you from spending time in prayer to work through them? Have you experienced God’s emotional healing power in times of grief? How has He helped you through it?
“Those who plant in tears will harvest with shouts of joy.” Psalms 126:5 NLT
When I was a young adult, I ran sound at a major Christian conference center in California. In that capacity I got to sit in on many different conferences put on by a wide variety of groups.
One of my favorites was Jews for Jesus.
Here was this group of believers from a people group that went through the Holocaust just 45 years before. Those who chose to follow Jesus were often shunned by their families.
But their worship was some of the best I have ever seen.
They sang and danced with such joy that none of the other conferences could match.
And they graciously invited me to join in the celebration.
They truly lived out today’s highlight verse.
The Psalms we read today are part of a group of Psalms specifically written for people to sing as they journeyed to Jerusalem for festivals.
Even back then, celebration was built into the culture.
Psalm 126 was written after the exile when Israel was a fraction of the size they were before.
Despite this, or more accurately because of this, they sang and danced with the joy of the redeemed and restored.
Have you been redeemed and restored? Does the joy in your praise and worship reflect that?
“On the sixth day, they gathered twice as much as usual—four quarts for each person instead of two. Then all the leaders of the community came and asked Moses for an explanation.” Exodus 16:22 NLT
At this point, the people of Israel had worked every day for their entire lives.
There was no Sabbath for them in Egypt.
But God called for their lives to be radically different.
In addition to trusting God to lead them through the wilderness, they had to trust God to provide for them through a day of rest every week.
To those of us with a 5-day work week, a day of rest seems normal.
To them it was a new concept.
While we are used to the concept of weekends, sometimes God calls us to step out in radical faith.
Just like God provided extra Manna on the sixth day,
God will provide for your needs when you step into His calling.
When God called me to go to Bible College, He provided the opportunity for me to start a business that provided my living expenses while giving me the flexibility to attend classes and assignments.
It was hard work, but God always provided.
Has God provided for you when He called you to step out in faith? Please share. Is there something God has called you to do but you have hesitated because of fear of failure (financially or otherwise)? What would it take for you to follow His call?
“I look up to the mountains— does my help come from there? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth!” Psalms 121:1-2 NLT
I’m at the edge of the mountains as I write this.
Yesterday afternoon, I went for a hike up what felt like a mountain to a place deceptively called Ladybug Lookout.
Mountain goats take one look at the last 50 feet of that trail and say, “No thank you!”
Not being of the mountain goat persuasion, I went for it.
While I scrambled up those rocks, I had the audacity to think, “At least I have good cell service up here if I get hurt.”
When I got to the top, I could clearly see the Garden of the Gods, a stunning collection of red rock formations, and the surrounding ridges and hills with Peaks Pike looming above.
I hear people say that these ridges were formed millions of years ago by the forces of plate tectonics that raised Pikes peak, tilting these ridges exposing the different colors of sandstone that wore into these beautiful shapes.
Personally, I believe God created them this way.
But even if He chose to use plate tectonics to create them, it was His artistic touch that made them beautiful.
He didn’t have to infuse them with the elements that made those amazing colors.
He didn’t have to give us the ability to see 100 million different colors.
He didn’t have to supply the right amount of erosion to create those amazing shapes.
But He did.
My dad was an atheist for most of his life.
After seeing enough of the amazing beauty of creation, he finally came to accept that there must be a Creator.
If God has the ability and imagination to create this amazing planet, He can help when we call out to Him with our needs as well.
When is the last time you got out to enjoy God’s creation? How did it inspire you?
“And now the prize awaits me—the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on the day of his return. And the prize is not just for me but for all who eagerly look forward to his appearing.” 2 Timothy 4:8 NLT
The Dove Awards aired last night.
There was a lot of good music by a lot of good artists.
And one artist I like wasn’t there.
He said he wanted his award in heaven and that he shouldn’t get an award that points to his talent when all the glory should go to God.
Ironically, he won Artist of the Year.
Then there was my friend in college who loved to read and collected many books.
He once had a dream that he went to heaven and was shown his heavenly home with a huge library.
When he asked why he deserved such a library, Jesus told him, “These were all the books you loaned out and never got back.”
After that he was constantly trying to loan out books.
I don’t know if either or both of these men were correct in their thinking.
I do know there is one great award for each of us. Paul spoke of it in today’s verse.
Whether we have believed our whole lives or finally trust Jesus in our final breath, every believer will receive a crown of righteousness in heaven.
As far as libraries or mansions or other rewards go, in a quick search yesterday, I didn’t find anything definitive to Biblically support or refute them.
But, just like that long list of questions I have for God when I get to heaven, I think when I get there,
I’ll be so overwhelmed by the presence of God that nothing else will matter.
If there is one reward or award you would like to receive in heaven, what is it? Is there an earthly award you think it is best to avoid?
Walk in the Light 