7/20/16

A Time to Shine


Our world. Broken. So broken.

It's hard to believe all that's taking place right now. For those of us who run towards righteousness and goodness, who believe that God's original intent was for this to be a place of love and warmth...the sheer evil rearing its head right now is hardly digestible. It's almost as if our worst nightmares are coming true right before our eyes. It's happening so fast, too! Terrible, horrific headlines seem to bombard us day after day.  

At the tender age of 8, I was at my church watching a low budget and badly-made film on the End Times, when God and eternity became very, very real. Seeing the reality of a world gone mad and a world without Christ play out on that screen, well, it pierced my heart like no sermon ever had. Suddenly, I faced the questions of "what if"...what if God was real? What if He truly IS the only way to Heaven? What if He returns and I am not ready? It was that very night, alone in my room, tiny tears staining my pillow, that I gave my life to Christ and committed to live for Him. He changed me in an instant and I knew it...even at the age of 8. 

Jesus talked about the days just before He comes...what they might look like and how those of us who were watching could recognize the signs. If you know His Word, it doesn't take much to realize that things are lining up right now, right before our eyes. Wars. Deception. Calling evil, good, and good, evil. The love of many growing cold. His gospel now being spread across the entire world through computers, cell phones, and airplanes taking missionaries to the uttermost parts of the earth. It is all lining up. 

And for believers and the church, what does this mean?

It simply means this...

I believe that very soon...even now...the darkness of this place is going to awaken within humanity the same questions that were awakened in a little 8 year old girl so many years ago. "What if" is going to be on the minds and hearts of people all across this world. Your neighbors will be quietly questioning. Your friends will be seeking answers. Your family members will strike up conversations. Heaven and Hell will not be myths as good vs. evil takes center stage. As a Christ-follower, it will be a time for you to speak the Truth like never before! YOUR testimony of what God has done in YOUR life matters immensely and will matter greatly in the days to come.

The Father promised us that in the last days, there will be a great revival and a great harvest. It will be a time when He will pour out of His Spirit upon all flesh. It will be a time when multitudes turn to Him and place their hope in Him as their Savior. How exciting is that?!!?! If that is what is upon us, then it is certainly not a time to shrink back and hide! No. It's a time for your walk and your witness to shine ever so brightly!! Please, please don't let the headlines scare you into silence (remember fear is the opposite of faith). Don't let the opposition cause you to hide. You know the Truth and the Truth has set you free. Offer that freedom to everyone who will listen!! Love your neighbor...no matter what their skin color or nationality...as you love yourself. And know this, the Lord has positioned you, right where you are, to point others to Him. Do your job and do it well.

Work as if the entire harvest depends on YOU!!

Can you imagine if we all did that?

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photo credit: Camden Little