Day 14, 2011 Daniel Fast_Kelly Nevins, Summer Brown, and Michele Mayo

Know The Times & Be Ready
“As He was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?” And Jesus answered and said to them, “See to it that no one misleads you. For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will mislead many. You will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not frightened, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and in various places there will be famines and earthquakes. But all these things are merely the beginning of birth pangs.”(Matthew 24:3-8) “Now learn the parable from the fig tree: when its branch has already become tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near; so, you too, when you see all these things, recognize that He is near, right at the door.”(Matthew 24:32, 33) “For this reason you also must be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will.”(Matthew 24:44) “But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore of sound mind, and be sober unto prayer.”(1 Peter 4:7)” Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober.”(1 Thessalonians 5:6) “Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him. So it is to be. Amen.” (Revelation 1:7)

 
Provider
As we discern the times, knowing that the Lord is our total provision helps us walk confidently forward, no matter what lies ahead.  In John 6:35, Jesus tells us “I am the bread of life.  He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.”  He is enough for our every need, better than the actual food/water that we consume.  We lack nothing in Him.  As the Israelites finished rebuilding the wall, and were gathered together to read from the Book of the Law of the Lord, worshiping and confessing together, they are reminded in Nehemiah 9:21, “For forty years you sustained them in the desert; they lacked nothing, their clothes did not wear out nor did their feet become swollen.”  That physical provision is amazing to think of, in desert conditions nonetheless!  Psalm 73:26 says, “My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.”  He is enough no matter what we walk through.

 
You Were Chosen
As we walk forward with the Lord our God, take heart.  He is our Mighty Provider regardless of our situation.  Our sins have all been paid for; “But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.  And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:4-6).  “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.  For those God foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.  And those He predestined, He also called; those He called, He also justified; those He justified, He also glorified” (Romans 8:28-30).  The Word says, “But thanks be to God, who always leads us as captives in Christ’s triumphal procession and uses us to spread the aroma of the knowledge of Him everywhere.   For we are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing” (2 Corinthians 2:14-17). 

 Know who you are in Christ, know the times you are a part of, rely on His provision, and aim to spread the sweet aroma of the knowledge of the Lord your God.

 
 ”With the merciful, You show Yourself merciful; with the blameless man, You show Yourself blameless; with the purified, You deal purely, and with the crooked, You make Yourself seem tortuous.  You save a humble people, but Your eyes are on the haughty to bring them down.  For You are my lamp, O LORD, and my God lightens my darkness.  For by You I can run against a troop, and by my God I can leap over a wall.  This God, His way is perfect; the Word of the LORD proves true; He is a shield for all those who take refuge in Him”(2 Samuel 22:26-31).

Comments