We live in interesting times

"No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come. It's like a man going away: He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with his assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch. Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back—whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn. If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping. What I say to you, I say to everyone: 'Watch!' " (Mark 13:32-37)

The command of Scripture is clear. We are to "Be on guard!", "Be alert!", "Keep watch!". Jesus spoke at some length about the sign of His coming and the end of the age (See Matthew 24). As I look around today, it seems that the birth pangs have begun. Earthquakes around the world are happening at greater frequency and intensity, we are hearing of wars and rumors of wars, Israel is becoming isolated internationally, and her enemies are surrounding her and preparing for war like no other. God has promised to intervene and rescue Israel from her demise, which will ultimately bring glory to Himself.

So what are the implications of all this to you and to me? Not only are we to long for our Lord's appearing (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18) but we need to remain faithful in our service to God! In other words, we need to live our lives as if we expect Jesus to come for us today.

If you want good insight into world events and how they relate to the signs spoken about in the Bible, I would recommend you read two of Joel Rosenberg's books (Epicenter and Inside The Revolution). Also, a good blog to read on prophecy is www.prophecyupdate.blogspot.com

The Invisible Hand of God

Each day at the mission, I begin the day with fellowship and prayer with other staff members who gather in the dining room of our Outreach Center. We take time to list both prayer requests and praises in our mission prayer journal as we humble ourselves before our Heavenly Father in corporate prayer.

Over the years, it's been clear that God is concerned with the big things and the little things that concern us. It's been so good to see how God has been faithful and answered our prayers. We've become dependent on God to provide for the mission and for His power to make us effective in our ministry.

But even though we see God regularly at work in our ministry, we are also blessed to know that God still does the unimaginable as He works out His will.

I was reminded about this recently at our Association of Gospel Rescue Mission (AGRM) conference that Chip, Steve, and I attended this week in St. Charles, Illinois. At a lunch round table in the exhibition hall, a director from another rescue mission recounted his experience in funding a very large capital project. Although it was a lengthy story (and I've already forgotten some of the details), this director found himself lacking a certain sum of money that the mission had to have to contribute towards the funding of this project. So he decided to send out a letter to some of their donors simply asking for prayer about this. One of his donors who had received a letter, called the director and told him that God had called him to be the "check writer" for the project and he knew that he was to give a specific size gift, which as it turned out was the exact amount the mission needed to complete the funding of the project. PRAISE BE TO GOD!

God is actively pursuing His agenda in our world today. Ask God to reveal to you what He wants to do through you. His invisible hand will guide you!

But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my
power is made perfect in weakness." (2 Corinthians 12:9)