Christmas – the true Hope and Change

manger sceneAs we approach this Christmas season, it is good to remember the hope contained in it. Many false voices have cried “hope and change” but, there is only One who can truly bring hope and change. He is the One we celebrate this Christmas. Our Father in heaven sent Him to us as a gift and he came as a little baby, like we all do. Yet embodied in Him was the hope of the world.

All those who have children will understand the wonderment, joy, and love Mary and Joseph must have felt as they looked at that little face so at peace, even in a stable, yet, they must have also felt the pain of knowing what His purpose was and the things He would suffer for us all. Continue reading

Thanksgiving is Here

Chuck's 70th+2

Unless the LORD builds the house, They labor in vain who build it; Unless the LORD guards the city, The watchman stays awake in vain. … Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD, The fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, So are the children of one’s youth. Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them; They shall not be ashamed, But shall speak with their enemies in the gate.” – Psalm 127

As families gather for Thanksgiving this year be especially thankful for the children. They are your heritage from the Lord. Properly trained and cared for they will be your defense against all the warfare of the devil in these times. Even if the Lord has not seen fit to give you children at this time, yet you can rejoice in them, enjoy them, and by your prayers stand for their godly training. Continue reading

The Prophetic Nature of Christmas

As we are just a few days from Christmas it would be good to reflect where we are in God’s plan for mankind. We know the Hebrew people had the promise of Messiah’s coming long before He actually came and when He really did come, many in Israel missed it because they were looking for a warrior King who would re-establish the kingdom of David. They forgot that God loved all people, all His creation, as much as He did His people Israel. God foreknew most of Israel would reject their Messiah and so the door would be open for all people to come into the Kingdom of God through the Grace that was won by Jesus on the cross. Continue reading

Don’t Worry about ISIS – Worry about God!

Israel under David_Solomon

Israel Under David and Solomon

Don’t worry about ISIS – worry about God!

“For behold, in those days and at that time, when I bring back the captives of Judah and Jerusalem, I will also gather all nations, and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat; and I will enter into judgment with them there on account of My people, My heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations; They have also divided up My land. – Joel 3:1, 2

1922mandatemap

1922 UN Mandated Territory

 

As you can see by the map of Israel under David and Solomon, Israel extends to the Euphrates River in the North and through most of
Jordan in the East. Damascus is only about half way up the map that God promised to Abraham and that David and Solomon conquered. In 1922 the UN partitioned the land into a state for Israel and for the Arabs. That map is shown to the right – later in 1947, to appease the Arabs for their oil, the map was changed to a new UN Mandate, which was

1947-un-mandate-map

1947 UN Mandated Map

never accepted by the Arabs – they went to war instead, a war which they lost! So, when President Obama calls for Israel returning to pre-1947 borders, they are basically giving the West Bank, Samaria, and Gaza back to the Israelis, though I doubt he understands that! So, we have three groups trying to solve the problem of Jerusalem and Israel: 1) the nations of the world who want peace so they can continue making money off the resources of the Mideast or gain acclaim for their ‘legacy’, 2) the Muslims who can never give back land once taken by Islam and want to destroy Israel and God’s claim to the land . and 3) God who calls it My land (Joel 3:2) and declares that He has set His name in Jerusalem (1 Kings 11:36). Now, I ask you – “Who do you think will win this argument! Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Continue reading

The Problem of Lawlessness

10-commandmentsAs we approach the end of the age, we know the spirit of lawlessness will be prevalent. This is true in every part of society and that includes politics.

For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way – 2 Thessalonians 2:7

The lawlessness referred to here is not the breaking of man’s laws but, the breaking of God’s laws, which are more stringent than man’s laws. For example, breaking your word is as bad as stealing. By that standard most politicians would be called ‘lawless’. Politicians are more concerned about their standing and re-election or committee positions than the keeping their word or the good of the country. We have a lot of politicians and very few statesmen! Continue reading

Unless the Lord Builds the House

how far we've come

Psalm 127 has one of the wisest sayings in the Bible:

“Unless the LORD builds the house, They labor in vain who build it;
Unless the LORD guards the city, The watchman stays awake in vain.”

People and nations throughout history have discovered the power behind these words – some to their benefit and some to their disaster. Today I want to share about them from a personal family level. 50 years ago I realized the truth of this passage as I accepted Jesus as my Lord and Savior. For the last 50 years I have been growing in my understanding of their truth and I have only just begun to plumb their depths. The Psalm goes on to reveal the way in which God builds the house spoken of here.

“Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD, The fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one’s youth. Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them; They shall not be ashamed, but shall speak with their enemies in the gate.”

Continue reading