~ Thought for the day ~

Here are a couple scripture passages that I was reading this morning in my personal Bible time:

Luke 21:8-19, 22:

8And He (Jesus) said: "Take heed that you not be deceived. For many will come in My name, saying, 'I am He,' and, 'The time has drawn near.' Therefore do not go after them.
9"But when you hear of wars and commotions, do not be terrified; for these things must come to pass first, but the end will not come immediately." 1
10 Then He (Jesus) said to them, "Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. 2
11 "And there will be great earthquakes in various places, and famines and pestilences; and there will be fearful sights and great signs from heaven. 3
12 "But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering you up to synagogues and prisons. You will be brought before kings and rulers for My name's sake.
13 "But it will turn out for you as an occasion for testimony.
14 "Therefore settle it in your hearts not to meditate beforehand on what you will answer; 4
15 "for I will give you a mouth and wisdom which all your adversaries will not be able to contradict or resist. 5
16 "You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, relatives and friends; and they will put some of you to death. 6 7
17 "And you will be hated by all for My name's sake. 8
18 "But not a hair of your head shall be lost. 9
19 "By your patience possess your souls.
22 "For these are the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled.

Here is the second passage of scripture:

1 Kings 8:33 - 40:

33 "When Your people Israel are defeated before an enemy because they have sinned against You, and when they turn back to You and confess Your name, and pray and make supplication to You in this temple,10
34 "then hear in heaven, and forgive the sin of Your people Israel, and bring them back to the land which You gave to their fathers.
35 "When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain because they have sinned against You, when they pray toward this place and confess Your name, and turn from their sin because You afflict them, 11
36 "then hear in heaven, and forgive the sin of Your servants, Your people Israel, that You may teach them the good way in which they should walk; and send rain on Your land which You have given to Your people as an inheritance. 12
37 "When there is famine in the land, pestilence or blight or mildew, locusts or grasshoppers; when their enemy besieges them in the land of their cities; whatever plague or whatever sickness there is;
38 "whatever prayer, whatever supplication is made by anyone, or by all of Your people Israel, when each one knows the plague of his own heart, and spreads out his hands toward this temple:
39 "then hear in heaven Your dwelling place, and forgive, and act, and give to everyone according to all his ways, whose heart You know (for You alone know the hears of all the sons of men), 13
40 "that they may fear You all the days that they live in the land which You gave to our fathers."14

When I think of the continuing evil of America, the continuing downward spiral that we are on, spiritually & politically, I think of these verses. When I think of the foreseeable persecution coming to America I think of the passage in Luke (Luke 21). When I think of the many droughts, famines, wars, I think of the passage in 1 Kings (1 Kings 8), and the passage in 2 Chronicles (2 Chron. 7:13-14), talking about the Lord's people obeying, not the whole country. If only the Lord's people will humble themselves, pray, seek Yahweh's face, and turn from their wicked ways, then the Lord will heal our land. It only takes the people who are called by the Lord's name, to do the necessary repentance, praying, seeking, etc. Remember the destruction of Sodom in Genesis 18? Do your part.

P.S. The past 2 or 3 days some of my family and I listened to a, 4-CD, book-on-tape about a man named Dietrich Bonhoeffer. You might have heard that name before. I had heard of the name before, but didn't know much about his life. Dad got 3 or 4 different books-on-tape from the library, about different people (John Calvin, Bonhoeffer, and 2 others.) Here is a little summary of Dietrich's life, taken from the back of the CD case we got:

This is the biography of a man who refused to compromise his beliefs to save his own life.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906-1945) paid the ultimate price for his faith and principles. A pastor and founding member of the Confessing Church in Germany. Bonhoeffer participated in underground conspiracies against Adolf Hitler. This gripping account of Dietrich Bonhoeffer's life puts in context the horrors of Nazi Germany and the challenge Hitler presented for dedicated German Christians. The events of World War II take on a new reality when viewed through the life of one man, his family, and associates.

Best remembered for his writings, Bonhoeffer and his story continue to inspire and instruct Christians more than sixty years after his death.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer helped in several conspiracies theories, which all ultimately failed. For this, one he was found out, he was imprisoned, interigated, and ultimately hung. While the Nazis took over every aspect of German everyday life, the Nazis did not take over Dietrich's beliefs. He calmly endured pursecution, and was even calm while climbing the steps to the gallows.

While listening to this book on tape, I reconized many familiar things (bad things) that happened during Adolf Hitler's 'reign', that are happening...right here in America. The government taking over the schools, jobs, family, pursecuting Christians, etc. Yes, it's not as bad as in Hitler's day in Germany, but if we don't do something really soon, it will be that bad...maybe even worse. We must stand up for our faith, and our Constitutional rights. Act now!

Foot notes: 1. Rev. 6:4, 2. Matt. 24:7, 3. Rev. 6:12, 4. Luke 12:11, 5. Acts 6:10, 6. Micah 7:6, 7. Acts 7:59, 8. Matt. 10:22, 9. Matt. 10:30, 10. Solomon's Temple (see 1 Kings 6 - 7), 11. Lev. 26:19, 12. Psalm 25:4, 13. 1 Sam. 16:7, 14. Psalm 130:4

Writer's note: The words in red are the words of Jesus.