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“And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.” – Daniel 12:1

Right now, for many of us, it feels as if this is THE “time of trouble”. But whether THE time of trouble is here or it is A time of trouble (which Jesus said would come as well), the answer is still the same 🙂

Jesus.

Pray like other people breathe. Rest in God’s Hand and call upon Him to send His Holy Spirit. Walk with Jesus everyday.

Because once day Jesus WILL come for us. Watch, Pray and Be Ready. And all will be well 🙂

Courage looks like the fireman who ran into the Twin Towers in their attempts to save the lives of others. Courage looks like the police officers that risked their lives to help on September 11^th. Courage looks like the people who risked their own lives to bring another out.

Courage looks like the Dad who is going to work during Covi and the child who is going to school during Covid. Courage looks like the Mom who goes to the grocery during Covid and has a wonderful dinner and a welcoming refuge waiting for everyone when they come home 🙂

Courage is telling a friend the truth, even when it is hard. In the Bible it says in Ezkiel 33:9, “Nevertheless, if thou warn the wicked of his way to turn from it; if he do not turn from his way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul.” We need to help each other and we can do that best by being honest with one another.

Courage is standing up to today’s current culture with the Gospel and the Good News that God does not change with the winds of time, but rather stays the same always!

The current culture may not kill our bodies, but it may destroy our souls-which is far more horrific. Jesus said, “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell” – Matthew 10:28

The American people have always had great Courage. And great Faith. As a nation, we need to find it again!

As the song goes, “Courage comes from walking with the Lord”. And courage comes from Praying like other people breathe. And I can promise you this, if you ask God for courage-He will give it to you 🙂

A Pastor from Port City Church in Wilmington, NC always encourages the Christians who attend Port City to choose a word they will “Focus” on for the year.

It’s Tuesday, January 4th, 2022 and that seems like a really good idea. Some will choose patience, because they want to spend the next year being more patient with others. Some will choose “loving”, because they want to spend the next year working on being more loving with others. Still others will choose “faith”, because they want to be more faithful.

I’m choosing Focus. As the headlines screams their usual scarey headlines and omicron seems to be rising, as we enter our third year of Covid in a world that despite all it’s challenges, stubbornly refuses to turn back to our Lord, “focusing” on God seems a truly worthy endeavor, it will help us all deal with our worries and rise above the current state of the world.

One step that can help us do that is to read the Bible, God’s Word, every single day and pray like other people breathe 🙂

“The Battle is the Lord’s. Take courage in the fight…” – Rebecca St. James

“We are in this world, but we are not of it.” 🙂

No human being can completely focus on two things at once. Want to be happier? Feel safer? Worry less? Focus on God completely and you will do all of those things and more. For God’s Peace surpasses all understanding :).

So as we enter the New Year, this can be our New Year’s Resolution: To focus on God-completely 🙂

It doesn’t necessarily look like having everything in life “fixed” or “healed”.  It doesn’t mean we won’t get sick or we won’t struggle financially. Jesus said that in this world, “we would have troubles”!

Winning means that we, despite any troubles we encounter, will keep our Faith in Jesus.  We will not be deterred; we will keep walking with Christ.  It means that we may receive the Peace that only God can give and a greatful heart 🙂

We win with faith, courage and acceptance.

My Father In Law fought during WWII in both the Battle of the Bulge and on D Day.  He was our hero and we loved him. The suffering in both was overwhelming and surviving both was indeed a special gift. His favorite Bible verse was John 3:16.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”- John 3:16

Before he went to Heaven, he shared many of the events of WWII with us.  One of them was the Battle of D Day.  His unit ran up a large hill.  He said there was absolutely no cover and his follow soldiers dropped wherever they were shot. 

His point was that his fellow soldiers lived and died on earth by chance.  There was no “winning” in getting to the top of the hill alive.  There was only winning if you got to the top with your faith in Jesus still very much alive! It didn’t matter how smart you were, or how fast you ran.  It was simply “chance” whether one made it to the top. The only choice we get to make in this life on earth, is will we run with Jesus?

The soldiers who ran with Jesus won! And the Believers who left this earth didn’t die, they went on to live in Heaven! But there are a few attributes that those who chose to run with Christ shared-faith, courage and acceptance

Today, the Battle is the Lord’s.  But we do need faith, courage and acceptance.  And they all come from “running” with Jesus ?

Originally referred to as our Lady of the Good Event, Mary’s Appearance in Ecuador later came to be known as Our Lady of Good Success.  Mary appeared to Mother Mariana de Jesus Torres in Ecuador from 1594 to 1634.

Mary shared that in the 20^th century, the following would happen:  “widespread moral corruption”, false charity, a scandal that would cause many to loose faith in their priests and cause good priests to suffer, “unbridled lust” which would trap many, children would loose their innocence, many women would loose their modesty, there would be a growing lack of priests and pastors, along with other religious vocations.  ” A worldwide campaign against the virtues of chastity, and purity would succeed in ruining the youth”.

The Sacraments such as the Last Rites would be denied to many (think of all the people who had Covid who died without them).  Marriage will be under attack, as will those of faith.  There will be a crisis both in the Church and in our culture itself.

Can we not see this happening now?

As for the Priests, whether it be Catholic priests or Protestant Pastors, many have abused and hurt both our children and others! In addition, some priests and pastors do NOT preach God’s Truth and mislead many. “Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil;” – Isaiah 5:20

But there are many truly good priests and pastors, who have dedicated their lives to sharing God’s Truth, however many of them are persecuted for sharing God’s Truth, instead of society’s lies. Some have been physically persecuted and some have been persecuted by society’s current culture.

In Mary’s appearance during the years 1594 to 163 4, she shared all of this and more! Seems pretty accurate.

Mary’s appearance has been written about on websites and books.  Catholic websites, secular websites such as Wikipedia, Marian websites, other religious websites and books by a variety of authors… The list is endless.

But the real message of Mary’s Appearance is Hope.  A Hope I am so grateful for. A Hope that when evil seems just about to triumph, the dark times in which we live will end. 

So keep praying 🙂 Flood the Heavens with prayer. Call upon our Father in Jesus’ Name to bring an end to these difficult times and pray our Father’s Will Be Done 🙂 And pray that God will give us the faith and couragewe need to triumph over the difficult times we face.

Because Mary, Mother of Jesus, Queen of Heaven, Queen of Angels said that the dark times would be followed by a “complete restoration of the church”. And the Church, which is all who believe in Jesus, would be filled with Joy.

A friend sent this, just had to share 🙂

“In a Peanuts strip Lucy once grumbled to poor Charlie Brown about the awful New Year she was having. She complained that problems abounded, and she felt that difficulties were around every corner. Then she said, “I don’t think this is a New Year at all – I think we’ve been stuck with a USED year!!”. Truly, only prayer can bring the “Peace of God, which transcends all understanding” into the heart and mind. 

Fears, doubts, and unwarranted cares divide, distract, bewilder, and destroy unity and quietness of mind. What great need to guard against them and learn the one secret of their cure – prayer! Prayer about everything can quiet every distraction, and lift every care from weary lives and from confused hearts. The specific prayer is the perfect cure for all anxieties, cares, and worries. Only fervent prayer and trust in our Lord can drive worry away and save from worrying over things we cannot change.

The mere act of praying is no test of our relationship with our Heavenly Father. It may simply be a routine of habit of the mind and not from the heart. But to fervently pray and receive clear answers and direction (i.e. may or may not be what you thought should be) IS the sure test and IS God’s Mercy and Grace for our vital connection with Jesus Christ. We should always ask before we pray, that God sends His Holy Spirit to teach us to pray right. To always praise the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit for ALL things, is a good start. The Best Part is that Jesus Christ helps us with our prayers to His Father! What an Awesome Representative we have, that Loves and Cares for you SO much, to always be there for you!

My thoughts and prayers are that, in this New Year coming up, you are Renewed and Refreshed in body, mind, and Spirit. That you are Alive and Awaken in the knowledge that God IS Good in ALL things. That your prayers are fervent and from your heart, receiving your Father’s Clear Answers and Direction for His Will and Purpose for you. In Jesus’ Name. Thy Will be done. Amen. Peace.“

Wear A Cross 🙂. As a Believer, we need to think about how we are encouraged when we meet someone who is wearing a Cross. When we meet someone who is wearing a Cross, we know that they Believe. It’s kind of like meeting someone who is in the same “club”. We know right then and there, we are on the same path-together. We can give that to other Christians as well. 🙂

And we can offer words of encouragement as well as a smile. Sometimes just a kind word or smile is all it takes. A “that dress is so pretty” or “can I help you with those groceries”. A genuine smile in the grocery story. A “Hi, how’s your day going?”

Or sometimes we run into someone who is struggling, and we really don’t have any answers. A hug is all we can offer, but a hug can make all the difference 🙂

Or how about just Thanking someone. We thank God all the time and we should. But we can also thank others who cross our path. A thank you for the seemingly smallest things can make a very real difference in someone’s day, and in our own.

Jesus said, “what you do for the least of these, you do for me”. As Christians, we are grateful for all Christ has done for us, these little acts of encouragement and kindness can be our gift to Jesus 🙂

Some churches tell God’s Truth With Love.  They give us, and our children, exactly what we need:  God’s Word.  But sadly, some do not! 

They do not teach the God’s Truth for a variety of reasons.  God’s Truth is not popular in today’s culture; it does not raise as much attendance or money, and it does not teach that one can do whatever one wants!  And sadly, many of the church’s that do teach God’s Truth face persecution, peer pressure, and dwindling attendance and funds.  But we know this, because Jesus warned us:

“In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge:  Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction.   For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. ⁴ They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. ⁵ But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.” – 2 Timothy 4

We need to flee from churches who do not teach God’s Truth!  We live in difficult times, which may get even more difficult.  We need to surround ourselves, and our children, with God’s Truth.  We are “in this world, but we are not of it”.  We need to remember that and search for “sound doctrine”.

How do we know if we are in a church that truly teaches God’s Word-as it is!  One way we can know is if we read the Bible ourselves.  If we know God’s Word ourselves, than we can easily recognize if our Pastor or Priest is actually preaching God’s Word.

Another way we can protect ourselves from untruths is to ask the Holy Spirit to show us what is true and what is not.  The Holy Spirit is our Comforter and Friend.  He is happy when we ask Him for Help and He exists in every believer.  God sent Him.

Another way to recognize these untruths is that they usually contain something that we “feel” is true.  The best lies do.  Current society wants to do whatever they like-when they like.  They try to tell those who follow Christ that any teaching to the contrary is not nice.  But whether some think that God’s Teachings are too restrictive, doesn’t change the fact that the Bible’s Teachings are true!  Feelings just are.  But Faith is not about how we feel, it’s about who we follow!

Another way we can help ourselves is to surround ourselves with things that remind us that God is with us!  Whether they are Crosses that hang on the wall, plaques with our favorite Bible verses, Bibles, music, meditation books and calendars with Bible verses, pictures of those we love or nature scenes.  The list is varied and endless.  But what each item shares IS important.  They remind us that God is with us ?

The world is changing, but God is unchanging and Keeps His Promises-Always!  God’s Promise is one we can count on?

“God is with us, our labor is not in vain” – Paul Zach