Last week we spent some heart-time with Jeremiah, the "Weeping Prophet," who was enduring a most tragic and horrific experience, being carried away along with his people, the Jews, into captivity.  The Babylonian King, Nebuchadnezzar, had invaded Judah and the capitol city, Jerusalem destroying towns, ravaging and laying waste to their lands, herds and people.  Nebuchadnezzar's army laid siege to Jerusalem cutting off water, and food starving the inhabitants.   After breaching the protective wall, the soldiers destroyed and fired the city, dead bodies lay in the streets: men, women and children; both young and old, poor and the powerful, status and wealth did not save a soul.  Many nobles along with the citizens still alive were put in chains, and force marched to Babylon where they would live as slaves, dependent on the care of the Babylonian empire (See Lamentations).

Jeremiah, under extreme duress, exclaims:

"My eyes fail from weeping, I am in torment within; my heart is poured out on the ground because my people are destroyed, because children and infants faint in the streets of the city."  (Lamentations 2:11)

Just totally beat-down, then God meets him in his despair:

"The Lord is good to those whose hope is in Him, to the one who seeks him; it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord." (Lamentations 3:25-26)

We find Jesus in a hard-harsh place, the wilderness, right after God the Father, spot-lighted Jesus at His baptism by John the Baptist, identifying Him publically as, "heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove, And a voice came from heaven: 'You are my son, whom I love, with you I am well pleased" (Luke 3:21b-22).  Jesus, the PROMISED Messiah, king of the Jews, the Rescuer and Deliver of the Jews and the Hope of All humanity - gentiles, the non-jews.

God the Father's mission was now squarely resting on His Son's shoulders; right into the FIRE!  The wilderness, a wild and dangerous place; not someplace you want to be alone in, or even spend the night in; but Jesus led by the Holy Spirit (God), entered the wilderness willingly, after 40 days and nights with nothing to eat, Luke says Jesus was, "hungry," (Luke 4:2).

Then the TEST of tests...

"The tempter came to him and said, 'If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.'  Jesus answered, " It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'" (Matthew 4:3-4)

Just like Jeremiah before Him, Jesus speaks the TRUTH that has resounded through the ages and has been tested and tried and found to be ROCK SOLID, life isn't about food, physical sustenance alone, but instead it is found in the Words that "flow from the mouth of God."

There is something to grab hold of here, Jesus hungry, after fasting, temped by the Tempter exactly at his point of need, declares resoundingly, "Man does NOT live on bread alone."  Jesus' hope in that moment of hunger, is not bread, but His Father, His Father's Words.  Just as Jeremiah waited on the Lord's salvation in Lamentations 3, so Jesus makes know, to us all, our salvation is in the Lord, and His Words, he alone satifies our true HUNGER and NEED, now tha's simplicity and a point of focus that brings LIFE in ways bread canNOT.  

For more on this catch us this on Youtube...(Checkout the Link below):

Link:   https://www.youtube.com/@MattsHouseChurch-1

As 2025 was winding down, literally, the last day...I was thinking about how hectic, crazy, and painful it had been.  I lost several friends, including my very good and dear friend Bill; then in October my Mommy passed away, a huge heart-hit!  My position was overrun, in every direction commitments, demands and decisions where rapidly, overwhelming me.  I was beatdown, dragging, bloodied and wounded.

One morning, SEEKING HELP, I found the words of one of God's spokes persons drawing me in...  God brought to mind a verse I'd read, and heard from the lips of many a pastor and lover of God over my 41 years of being a God lover.

"Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness."  Lamentations 3:22-23

Jeremiah, hit the nail on the head, known for being the "Weeping Prophet" he had endured the most heavy duty beat-down you and I could ever imagine, from both God and the people he loved and served...with every ounce of his being; his people, the Jewish people.  It's God's GREAT LOVE.  It's God's NEVER FAILING compassion or MERCY...His pity towards my state and person, because He cares about and hurts for me relationally, personally.  That's exactly how I was feeling, because of what I'd been through, and those I'd held dear had endured as well.  BEAT-DOWN, hopeless, just ready to quit!

I needed to taste some of those MERCIES, that just DON'T fail...; that are NEW EVERY MORNING...; that FAITHFULNESS that just doesn't quit.  Because I was ready to quit!

Jeremiah described His situation using these heavy words, dripping with suffering,

"I remember my affliction and my wandering, the bitterness and the gall.  I well remember them, and my soul is downcast within me."  Lamentations 3:19-20

The days of oppressive, at times violent affliction haunt me like an unending nightmare; there taste is bitter, my body is writhing and shuttering, retching under the poisonous, nearly deadly ordeal...not yet over.  Jeremiah was in a dark place, his mind, heart, SOUL, utterly consumed; he was in a desperate place physically, mentally, and emotionally; his life, even his breath was slowly, but surely ebbing AWAY.  "Yet," he exclaims, "this I call to mind and therefore I have hope..." (Lam.3:21a).  Then, in that moment of darkest despair, a miraculous flash: his mind, heart, SOUL RETURNS, better yet, TURNS BACK TO his ONLY hope.

"I say to myself, 'The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.'  The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him; it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord."  Lamentations 3:24-26

Jeremiah clings to the PERSON who is his HOPE, his Yah-Weh-Almight-Promise Keeping and FOR-EVER Loyal-Lord!  Jeremiah returns to sanity, to security, to strength, encouragement now coursing through his veins he RETURNS to his FIRST LOVE, his God and there, declares, "It is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord."

That's Jeremiah's, Simplify...  I too was hungering for some simplify...

How about you?

Next week, we'll catch Jesus in a desperate situation facing off with the Devil; here in the wilderness Jesus has something to say about, Simplify.

The word gets to Pharaoh, and Moses, who was a member of the royal house hold and a jew; takes a runner, disappears, finds his way to Midian, he was 40 years old at the time.  40 years later, after a life time of humiliation, alienation, and loneliness Moses, going about his daily grind as a shepherd leads his father in-laws flock of sheep to Horeb, the Mountain of God, to feed them in the lush green grass and water them in the fresh, flowing, cool streams in the surrounding valleys of Sinai.  There, just doing what he did, shepherd sheep, God met Moses in a "Burning Bush."  Moses' response, "I'm going to go and check this Burning Bush out."  (Exodus 3:1-4, Rob's Translation) 

Have you ever wondered about Moses' encounter with God in the desert at the "Burning Bush?" Or maybe, you've heard other folks share their personal encounters with God, and said to yourself, "What's up with that? Is that real, are they psycho? I've never met God like that... Come on a journey as we explore these encounters, hear folks share their personal "Burning Bush" moments; and maybe even find ourselves in a position for an encounter.

“Nevertheless, there will be no more gloom for those who were in distress. In the past he humbled the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the future he will honor Galilee of the nations, by the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan—
‘The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.’”

A people saddled with the heavy weight of gloom and distress, Isaiah’s message to his fellow suffering jews resonated in every heart. Zebulun and Naphtali represent the Northern Kingdom of Israel, the jews living in this region were invaded by the Assyrian’s, and had been oppressed by the heavy and brutal hand of Tiglath-Pileser III, the regional Gentile, non-jewish, Assyrian ruler.

The invasion, occupation, and oppression was self-inflicted, a result of the leaders and peoples rebellion against God. Their depressive state and experience, the gloom and distress, was self-imposed, and born out of choices that opposed their God and His Way. The result, a humbling.

Under the heavy weight of this gloom and distress, as is often the case, their is a cry to their God for relief and Isaiah, speaks of a brighter future for the people of this region, “Galilee of the Gentiles (Nations).

Reading this narrative that Isaiah left behind evokes thoughts regarding our plight as a nation. A nation that was established by God’s will, on God’s principles and promises, by people who openly declared their allegiance to God. Of course, imperfect people, just like those belonging to Israel’s Northern Kingdom, during the Assyrian oppression.

We are a people living in gloom and distress. Everywhere you look, people are down and out. We are on the constant hunt to find relief for our oppressive-depression. Legalizing gambling, weed, developing and prescribing medications to fix our beatdown state; streaming our way into fantasy land to find an escape. We even try to educate our way out of our problems, and yet every philosophy or self-help path-way we create leads us further and further down into the gloom and distress that festers like a plague, rotting us from the inside out.

Evidence of a problem, perhaps? Maybe even a “Danger” sign from God?

Question:  How about your world, what are the signs of humbling that you can see in the world you live in?
Question:  Looking a little closer to home, your life, your heart. What signs of humbling, Lord, are you showing me?

Hope is NOT lost!

‘The people walking in darkness
 have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of deep darkness
 a light has dawned.’”

Christmas Is Coming…

“I have gone strayed like a lost sheep. (Confession)
                                                             Seek your servant, (Prayer)
                                                                                                             or I have not forgotten your commands.” (Rescue)
Psalm 119:176, NKJV.

And Jesus in Luke 15:1-7 speaks as the Good Shepherd walking among men, the sheep who’ve ALL “gone astray…” reminding the SELF-Proclaimed “Right Ones” — the self-professed Law Keepers, that the Good Shepherd chases after the one’s who’ve “Gone Astray,” the SELF-Confessed — Law Breakers.

“Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus. But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”
Then Jesus told them this parable: “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.” (Luke 15:1-7, NIV)

Note: this joyous REALITY, as we step towards Christmas…

This good confession, “I have gone strayed like a lost sheep,” ends in Salvation for the sinner and most importantly, with God REJOICING and exclaiming, “I have found my lost sheep.”

So…We have choice to LIVE in.

We can be the Self-Proclaiming — Law Keeper, who claims to be without sin; or we can be the Self-Confessing — Law Breaker, who owns their sin.

“I have kept my feet from every evil path
 so that I might obey your word.
I have not departed from your laws,
 for you yourself have taught me.
How sweet are your words to my taste,
 sweeter than honey to my mouth! (Psalm 119:101-103, NIV)

This thought, a reality, brings such comfort in life and the struggles, hardships, even in the joy’s. In seeking God, His law or way through…., “God Himself becomes my teachers.”

Does it get any better than that?!

This morning in my “God Seeking,” I was reflecting on the previous day, honestly, the whole experience is connected to a very real life long battle that’s been debilitating at times.

The words I wrote, the dilemma, the memories that were triggered:
“Thank you Lord for bringing me through another day; getting things I’ve been apprehensive about, for a boat job I’m questioning, though it’s a must do type of job. A lingering fear of being yelled at if I messed up. Childhood flash backs! The job, a complete rebuild of an old sailboats sanitation system.”

“Amazing Lord how you move in and through life interactions, circumstances! Thank You Jesus!”

Me, grateful for Christ’s faithful presence meeting me so personally in the dilemma…

“I appreciate how you make me better! Praise, Glory and Honor, ALL OF IT, belongs to King Jesus!”

“I can sense the resistance in my being as I thought and wrote those words of Thanksgiving and Praise to you Jesus! The flesh certainly doesn’t want to submit! In the quiet of this morning I felt the battle, Spirit of God vs. flesh (Me apart from God), for real — ideal to real, Wow!”

Right out of Paul’s letter to the folks of Galatia, listen:

“So I say, walk by the Spirit (God-Holy Spirit), and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh (old destructive way of thinking, feeling, and doing). For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want.” (Galatians 5:16-17, NIV)

The last phrase, “So that you are not to do whatever you want,” to take a word from last weeks post, Hits!

Well that’s exactly what “I,” my flesh WANTS, “to do whatever you (I) want.” God’s got me cornered right in the middle of my problem. In His Spirit, I want to give thanks, and want to give praise, I want to ascribe Him all the glory and honor; but my flesh, mind-emotion, are in Conflict!

“But each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.” (James 1:14-15, NIV)

James nails it! He describes exactly, my conflict.

As I sought God this morning, God found me in my struggle with fear, and old nemesis, the temptation to surrender to the flesh was real…. “You don’t have the skill, or know how to do that boat job.” “Forget about it!”

Then, God, who promises to be my teacher, cuts through the lies (temptation) and brings His TRUTH to my morning moment:

“No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.” (1 Corinthians 10:13, NIV)

What?!

God, “will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.”

Back to the choice that God provided, His way out, or my way out? His Spirit, or my flesh?

Forget about even attempting the boat job, I’m not good enough to get it done; or with God’s help I will get it done?

So, I drove to several boat supply stores and picked up supplies, next into the bowels of the old, 1986 Hunter 28.5 sailboat to tackle the job that brought to light old fears of failure.

Any memories surface, or past circumstances God wants to meet you in…let Him be your teacher, as you seek His way out, and do His way out see:

“How sweet are your words to my taste,
 sweeter than honey to my mouth!” (Psalm 119:103, NIV)

I guess we need to come up with another way to draw attention to something, someone, or maybe even ourselves. “That Hits!” Hey you! Pay attention! Notice me, Notice me! That’s crazy! That’s awesome! That’s Wack! Etc., etc., etc.

Try this on for some attention getting…

"My eyes shed streams of tears because your law is not kept.” (Psalm 119:136, NRSV)

Wow!

This guy’s getting down to it, TRUTH! Now, that “HITS!”

What about you, as a whole our nation has gone it’s own way. We’ve literally lost our minds, and in so doing, we’ve lost heart, and of course, lost our way. It’s always amazing to me when I watch the news, listen to lectures from our esteemed leaders that it’s OK to lie to people, even when the facts expose the lies. So, our “eyes shed tears,” not because we got it all right, NO, but because we’ve got it all WRONG, and we keep denying it! Lying to ourselves! Now that’s being trapped in ADDICTION, what’s the addiction, we think we’re RIGHT when we’re WRONG!

YES, we humans got it all WRONG! The psalmist “HITS” it on the head, tears are shed, “because your law is NOT kept.” We DON’T do what God says, we do what we want. The psalmist and his people struggled with the same plight, my way, or God’s way.

And the psalmists REAL response to the REAL problem…

“Turn to me and be gracious to me, as is your custom towards those who love your name. Keep my steps steady according to your promise, and never let iniquity have dominion over me. Redeem me from human oppression, that I may keep your precepts. Make your face shine upon your servant, and teach me your statutes.” (Psalm 119:132-135, NRSV)

Needing a REAL, “HIT,” the psalmist cries out, prayerfully, to God for the assist! He zeros in on the real issue; the HUMAN, the HUMAN PLAN, the HUMAN INTELLECT, the HUMAN POWERED not by God but by SELF, that’s the real “HIT!,” the REAL problem.

The real issue is the you and the me, in the equation. We’ve got the iniquity issue, criminal feeling, thinking, living is our problem and it has dominates & destroys us. Driving us to harm ourselves, those we love, and others. We need a “BUY BACK,” God to redeem us from the oppression we seem to welcome in by, decriminalizing ALL that we once considered wrong.

Now, that “HITS!,” that rings true. That’s the WOW, the psalmist is speaking to.

“Your decrees are wonderful; therefore my soul keeps them. The unfolding of your words gives light; it imparts understanding to the simple.” (Psalm 119:129-130, NRSV)

Anybody? How’s that for TRUTH that “HITS!”?

It’s in doing it God’s “Wonderful” Way, from the deepest recesses in our being, our SOUL; that we discover how God’s Word brings TRUE illumination and pours understanding into the…

SIMPLE!

That’s me and you, the “SIMPLE.”

The psalmist put’s it like this…

“With open mouth I pant, because I long for your commandments.” (Psalm 119:131, NRSV)

Will you join the psalmist, will you join me in being SIMPLE…

And,

“Shed streams of tears, because God’s law is NOT kept!” (Psalm 119:36, NRSV)

Now try something that really “HITS!” Sorry, someone who really “HITS!,” God and His Way!

Pant with a thirsty soul, and opened mouth…
Long for Father’s commandments to thrive in and through YOU!

Keep it “SIMPLE!”

God “HITS!”

Jesus had been arrested, disowned, mocked, beaten, blindfolded, grilled at several sham trials and found guilty by: jewish religious leaders, a jewish king, Pilot Rome's regional leader, and rejected by His own people.

"Two other men, both criminals, were also led out with him to be executed.  When they came to the place called the Skull, they crucified him there, along with the criminals—one on his right, the other on his left.  Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”  And they divided up his clothes by casting lots.  Luke 23:32-34

The resounding words of Jesus declare His heart for lost sinners, like me and you, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing."  WOW!  His focus on us, lost sinners, while He is suffering on this implement of death, the cross.  Can you imagine?  Oh, what love Christ has for you and I.

And the result of this ultimate act of intercession?  How did the Father respond to His Son's prayer?  Paul, a devout follower of Christ writes these words in Romans, Chapter, verses 8:31-32 describing God's response:

"What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?  He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?"

The outworking of Christ's Great Intercession at the cross moved Father-God's heart, "He (God) who did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for us all."  Paul goes onto declare that Christ has justified, made us RIGHT before God by this single act of sacrifice!   Peter puts it like this...

"For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit."  (1 Peter 3:18, NIV)

As if this is somehow NOT enough, Paul makes another astounding statement of FACT:

"Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us." (Romans 8:34b, NIV)

The reality that Christ is seated at Father's right hand, in heaven and interceding for us RIGHT NOW!  WOW!

Does it get any better than this?

So, regardless of what we have to face off against in the daily mess, chaos, and pain that is life on this spinning ball called earth, we, me & you have an ADVOCATE named Jesus pleading with God on our behalf...advocating for our ultimate VICTORY over whatever we face.

"Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?   As it is written:  'For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.'  No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us."  (Romans 8:35-37, NIV)

Christ's intercession at the cross, and right now in heaven on our behalf continues to move the Father to act on our behalf.  Not only that, but the intercession of God's people, standing between sinful man and God's wrath, continues to move God's heart, just like Daniel, Moses, Job you and I, our intercession moves God to respond.  

America has been given a reprieve, there has been a Re-Turning to God from Christ's Body the Church; to the hallowed halls of leadership within our states, congress and the White House.  Our intercession mattered, and moved God to respond.

President Donald J. Trump spoke of his personal turning in the early morning hours of November 6th, the Wednesday right after election day.  He relayed a sentiment that was shared by folks right after the multiple assassination attempts, "That God had protected and spared him, because God has a purpose for his life."

NOW, as the 47th President elect, we have a man who has gone through a great humbling, a very public journey since he stepped onto the escalators in Trump Tower.  

He is NOT who he once was.  He, like you and I, has been justified by Christ's finished work at the cross; made RIGHT in Christ who interceded for Donald J. Trump in that plea, "Father, forgive them..."

"The greatest among you will be your servant.  For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted."  (Matthew 23:11-12, NIV)

If you listen to President Elect Trump's tone, words and demeanor he steps into this presidency looking and sounding more like a SERVANT.  That's good for him, and good for us!  For if this is the case, God will exalt this servant because he is humbling himself.

And this self-humbling, can ONLY come as a result of...

Christ's intercession at the right hand of the Father, as Paul describes, in Romans.

Now isn't that good news, Christ intercedes for Donald J. Trump, just like he intercedes for you and me.

How about that?  Humble yourself..., our plea, "Jesus help us!"

DON'T STOP INTERCEDING, our children, our country, and the world are counting on your FAITHFUL intercession.

Turning to God, pleading for His forgiveness out of our sorrow filled confession, because we as a people have gone our own, destructive, way draws the heart...the ear...the gaze of God towards us.  Daniel, desperate to see God move to fulfill His nearly 70 year old promise, to bring the jews home, pours out his heart towards His beloved God...

"'Now, our God, hear the prayers and petitions of your servant.  For your sake, Lord, look with favor on your desolate sanctuary.  Give ear, our God, and hear; open your eyes and see the desolation...'  'We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of Your great mercy.'  'Lord, listen!  Lord, forgive!'  'Lord, hear and act!'  'For Your sake do not delay...'"  (Daniel 9:4-6,NIV)

Our country remains in a desperate state!  God, in His mercy, has granted us a reprieve; He has relented, in an answer to the prayers and the desires of the majority of Americans the God of Daniel has responded and openned the door for sweeping change, transformation in our country, and in our hearts.  Old leadership is being shut out, new leadership is being brought in.  God raises up leaders, and He expels leaders.

This raises the question, what will we do with this opportunity that God has granted us?

I know, in my life, when I've sought God in desperation and God responds in a way that affirms my prayers I've often said, thank you very much, now back to the same old same old, "life my way," instead of His Way.  WRONG!

Is this a TRUE turning of my whole life, or what appears to be a turning, just to get my way?  Mind You God knows the REAL truth!

So, America, is this a beginning of a movement, back towards God, acknowledging His Ways are BEST; and acknowledging our desire to WALK in His Way?  Or, is this us getting what we want and turning our backs on Him and His Way?

In Maryland our citizens have overwhelmingly voted to enshrine the outright murder of unborn children in our state constitution.  Maryland's Secretary of State, Susan Lee, approved the following language regarding this "Right To Reproductive Freedom."

“The proposed amendment confirms an individual’s fundamental right to reproductive freedom, including but not limited to the ability to make and effectuate decisions to prevent, continue or end the individual’s pregnancy, and provides the State may not, directly or indirectly, deny, burden or abridge the right unless justified by a compelling state interest achieved by the least restrictive means.”

Notice, abortion appears to be the unstated purpose of this amendment, it is intentionally vague and makes room for future legislation that will infringe upon a parents rights to protect and make healthcare decisions for their children, specifically those who are struggling with genter confusion.  Though the politicians framed this amendment as a reinstatement of Row v. Wade, it is in all actuality a tool that will be exploited to not only justify the murder of infants in the womb, but it will be used to justify the states right to be directly involved in making sure minors have access to drugs and surgery's that permanently alter and destroy their bodies, circumventing parental rights and care.

God is NOT ok with abortion, the murder of infants and He is NOT ok with the mutilation of our children; regardless of what our leaders and 72% of Marylanders deem to be RIGHT.  Moses, emphasizes we are "made in the image, and likeness of God;" therefore, we are ALL sacred and have inherent value and dignity just as God created us.  David the a shepherd and king of Israel, writes we are, "knit together in our mothers wombs...we are fearfully and wonderfully made." (See Genesis 1, Psalm 139)

"In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the Desert of Judea and saying, 'Repent, for the kingdom of Heaven is near'."

Matthew records these words of John the Baptist, it is informative and hopeful, it demands to be heeded, and it remains a warning.

The church, certainly must respond, and stand for what God says is RIGHT and stand against, what God says is WRONG!  Grace & Truth, must be mingled together in our response!  Silence, going along to get along will NOT DO, it is disobedience.

We must continue to plead for hearts to "Turn 2 God."  He alone is SALVATION, and this found in Christ ALONE!

A doorway has been opened, to America, to it's citizens and to the church.  Prayers have been answered.

Are you willing to ENTER into God, and His Way; or will you let this moment slip away as you CHOOSE to go your own way, destruction!

Will you CHOOSE to pray with Daniel and me?

"Give ear, our God, and hear; open your eyes and see the desolation...' 'We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of Your great mercy.' 'Lord, listen! Lord, forgive!' 'Lord, hear and act!' 'For Your sake do not delay...'"

Know this, John the Baptist's words ring true today just as in Jesus' day, "the kingdom of heaven is near," a looming reality, Christ's return is immenant, and with His return comes His judgement.

"For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life.  For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him." (John 3:16-17, NIV)

Upon Christ's return, His second advent will come God's judgement.  And His judgement isn't based on what the majority thinks is RIGHT and WRONG, it's solely based on what God has already declared to be RIGHT and WRONG.  And the goodness, is you and I have access to God's mind and heart in His Word, the Bible; and through a living relationship with Christ, the Son of God; and in the Holy Spirit who desires to show us God's Will, and power us to live it NOW.

Hard, uncomfortable question, I always ask myself, Rob, are you ready?

Are you ready?

"O Lord, we and our kings, our princes and our fathers are covered with shame because we have sinned against you the Lord our God is merciful and forgiving even though we have rebelled against him; we have not obeyed the Lord our God or kept the laws he gave us through his servants the prophets.  All Israel has transgressed your law and turned away, refusing to obey you." (Daniel 9:8-11, NIV)

Daniel lays it all down, he gets real with God about how his own people turned their backs on God: our kings, our princes and our fathers...  

In other words, everyone has made a choice, from the most powerful to the least, ALL have sinned, ALL have gone their own way, ALL have broken God's law, ALL were disobedient, ALL have  "transgressed" violated and "turned away refusing to obey You," (Daniel 9:11, NIV).

Question:  How is this plea of Daniel's, this confession and ask for mercy and forgiveness relevant to US, right now?

Question:  How has our nation turned against God, violated His law, gone their own way?

Question:  How has the church, here in America, turned against God, not doing life His way?

Will you join me, as our election approaches, in seeking God with Daniel's kind of heart; will you join me in a good and right confession, an admission to God that me and you, along with the rest of America, have turned away refusing to obey?

Will you join me, and spend sometime reflecting on how we as a nation are in violation of God's way, His law; additionally, will you get real about how the church as strayed, and turned away?

Then, spend sometime bent toward God, on your knees or on your face pleading with God that He might RELENT, that He might show us His mercy, that He might forgive us ALL in our REBELLION!

God doesn't play, their are consequences to rebellion and we are the ones responsible for any curse, any judgement that follows our choice to rebel!

What will you do?