Tag:

tribulation

Be Courageous

by TerryLema

There was another mass shooting. This time in Lewiston, Maine. Eighteen people died at the hands of one crazed man. Sadness. Disbelief. Confusion. Abound.

The one voice that keeps repeating in my mind was that of a young girl who was injured. She was shot in the leg. She sat next to her mother as they were interviewed about their experience. After expressing her amazement that being shot was part of her life experience now, she asked a profound question, “Why do people do these things?”

Indeed, why do people do these things?

Evil is in this world. We can give it all kinds of modern definitions, but ultimately it comes down to the fact that evil is a real presence among us.

Jesus said, “You will have suffering [tribulation] in this world.” But then He did not end there. He reminded His listeners to “Be courageous!” because He had “conquered the world.” [John 16:33 HCSB]

As children of God, we do not have to be afraid. Cautious, yes. Wise, yes. But afraid, No.  Jesus has given those who have surrendered their lives to Him the ability to be courageous. He has provided the strength to face the world’s evils knowing that even if they kill this body, they cannot divert our eternal destiny from that day when we will be with Him in glory.

Thank you, LORD, for the courage to face this world’s evil. Thank you, LORD, that you have conquered the world. Amen.

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Rejoicing

by TerryLema

Last December a friend sent me a quilt square with the words of Romans 12:12 embroidered on it. “Rejoice in hope; be patient in affliction; be persistent in prayer.” [HCSB]

I do not remember if I thanked her, but I have read those words every day since receiving her gift. (I put the square next to my hearing device case so that I see it every morning and every night.) Those words have ministered to my soul over and over. As I repeated them once again this morning, I realized that they are the roadmap to take me [us] through those difficult times of life.

Over the course of the last two years, I have been hopeful that my two auto-immune diseases will one day go into remission. While waiting, I am trying to be patient in the midst of the debilitating symptoms. I am also persistent in praying for God’s most perfect plan for my life … whether that brings healing or simply His grace that is sufficient for my every need. [2 Corinthians 12:9: “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.”)

This morning I am “tentatively” rejoicing in hope. The past two weeks I have been relatively free of the PMR pain and GCA scalp and face discomfort. I have developed side effects from the medication that apparently has shut down my adrenal glands (weakness, lack of stamina, sweating and hot flashes), but the daily battle with pain has not been an issue.

That is amazing! And I am praising God for this, and cautiously hopeful that the PMR and GCA is in remission. I am also hopeful that I can deal with the new issues. To have two-weeks pain free after two years of constant pain is truly a blessing.

Rejoicing in Hope: “I put my hope in You, Lord; You will answer, Lord my God.” [Psalm 38:15 HCSB]

Patient in Affliction: “We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God: those who are called according to His purpose”. [Romans 8:28 HCSB]

Persistent in Prayer: “[Jesus] then told them a parable on the need for them to pray always and not become discouraged.” [Luke 18:1 HCSB]

Bless the LORD O my soul! Amen

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No Vaccine Against Persecution

by TerryLema

The second church Jesus spoke of in the opening chapters of the book of Revelation is the church of Smyrna, identified as the persecuted church. While Americans may think we are being persecuted because the churches have been closed down, I would say differently. We have not yet experienced persecution. We may be seeing the beginning of opposition to the church in our nation, but we are far from being persecuted.

That is not the case if we look beyond our borders. The list of nations where actual persecution and martyrdom is found is long and it is getting longer. Persecution of believers is quite common in many places, people ripped from their homes and martyred, pastors beaten and imprisoned, churches driven underground. We cannot even begin to compare our situation to theirs.

Jesus, however, gave a warning to the church of Smyrna, “Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death.” [Rev 2:10 NKJV]

While we have not seen persecution in our nation except in extremely rare instances, that does not mean we are immune. There is no vaccine against future persecution. It could come – it probably will come.

What must we do to be prepared?  We can do all the human things, vote, be active in our local communities, etc., but that will not help much when thrown into prison or tested with tribulation. To be faithful until death requires one thing … that we have a true vision of and relationship with our Almighty God. Once again, we go back to Christ Jesus in Revelation 1:12-18.

He is the Living One. He holds the keys to death and Hades. He is Almighty God, First and Last. His eyes are blazing fire. He has a double-edged sword in His mouth. When He dwells in us by the power of His Holy Spirit, we will not fear anything man can do to us!

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