I will make them and the places round about my hill a blessing; and I will cause the shower to come down in his season; there shall be showers of blessing. Ezekiel 34:26.
Under the figure of the early and the latter rain, that falls in Eastern lands at seedtime and harvest, the Hebrew prophets foretold the bestowal of spiritual grace in extraordinary measure upon God’s church. The outpouring of the Spirit in the days of the apostles was the beginning of the early, or former, rain, and glorious was the result. . . . But near the close of earth’s harvest, a special bestowal of spiritual grace is promised to prepare the church for the coming of the Son of man. This outpouring of the Spirit is likened to the falling of the latter rain.
The great work of the gospel is not to close with less manifestation of the power of God than marked its opening. The prophecies which were fulfilled in the outpouring of the former rain at the opening of the gospel are again to be fulfilled in the latter rain at its close. . . .
Servants of God, with their faces lighted up and shining with holy consecration, will hasten from place to place to proclaim the message from heaven. By thousands of voices, all over the earth, the warning will be given. Miracles will be wrought, the sick will be healed, and signs and wonders will follow the believers. Satan also works with lying wonders, even bringing down fire from heaven in the sight of men. Revelation 13:13. Thus the inhabitants of the earth will be brought to take their stand.
The message will be carried not so much by argument as by the deep conviction of the Spirit of God. The arguments have been presented. The seed has been sown, and now it will spring up and bear fruit. . . . Now the rays of light penetrate everywhere, the truth is seen in its clearness, and the honest children of God sever the bands which have held them. Family connections, church relations, are powerless to stay them now. Truth is more precious than all besides. Notwithstanding the agencies combined against the truth, a large number take their stand upon the Lord’s side.
Maranatha p. 256
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Prayer Requests
—-Please pray for Jamie who went to the ER in the middle of the night.
—–Please pray for Travis, he goes in for an aptitude test with Kaiser on Friday, we are so hoping he can get hired there. Thank you, Kelly
—–Please pray that D finds a job that pays well enough to take care of his family. L
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Dear Friends
Some years ago, various things happened that made me very stressed and nervous. I wasn’t angry just had a feeling like I wanted to crawl off into a corner and cry even though I really had nothing bad enough to do so.
Ron and Ronnie Jay were starting to paint our house trailer, so he asked me to move the cars so he would not get paint on them. I grabbed my purse, got in the car, and started to back out of the driveway. I didn’t want paint on my car either.
As I checked my rear view mirror, I saw the ice cream truck that drives the neighborhood parked right behind me. I honked. He didn’t move. I honked the horn louder. He still didn’t move. Suddenly, the stress I was feeling turned to anger. With a scowl on my face, I jumped out of the car and waved him away. Still he didn’t move! Instead, he asked, “What do you want?” I said in not too pleasant a tone, “I want you to move from behind me! Didn’t you see that I was going to back up?” Disappointment and confusion came over his face. As he began driving away, he said, “You didn’t have to be so mean about it.”
His words shocked me. I hadn’t meant to be mean, but all the stress that I was feeling was showing on my face. I felt terrible! If I could have run after him to apologize, I would have. Sadly, I watched him drive to the trailer park beside ours and begin driving slowly along the street hoping for a sale.
By this time, Ron had returned and was painting the front of the trailer. I told him about it. He said, “This is all my fault.” Puzzled, I asked how it could possibly be his fault that the ice cream man blocked our drive.
He had seen the man look at him and instinctively had waved. Then Ron went into the trailer to get a drink of water. Now the ice cream man’s actions made perfect sense. The ice cream man had thought that he had gone in for some money to buy some icecream. This made me feel even worse!
Later, that evening, the icecream man returned to our trailer park. Some children stopped the man and were buying some of his wares. Ron went over to him, bought a couple of ice cream bars, and apologized for the misunderstanding.
The icecream man said that he had, indeed, seen me in the car but thought that Ron had gone in for money to buy something to eat while we were driving somewhere. When I honked, he thought that I was telling Ron to hurry up before the ice cream man drove off. When he asked me what I wanted, he meant what kind of ice cream did I want. I thought he was being rude and had no idea what he was thinking. After Ron told him how sorry I was after he reacted with disappointment and confusion, he suddenly understood and said, “That makes me feel so much better.”
How often, we misjudge another’s actions. How many times we react to what we think they’re thinking rather than find out why they are doing or saying a certain thing. Our Dear Saviour warns us, “Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.” Matt 7:1-5 Another time, He expanded upon this principle, “Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven:
Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.” Luke 6:37, 38
How careful we must be with our words and attitudes. Someone’s whole future may depend on how we treat them. Indeed, our whole future does depend upon how we treat those around us. Even if we think we are wronged, we are to exhibit the same kind attitude that our Dear Saviour has for us. “For this is thankworthy, if a man for conscience toward God endure grief, suffering wrongfully. For what glory is it, if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently? but if, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God. For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps: Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth: Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously: Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.” 1 Peter 2:19-24
May we treat others with love and kindness even when we are enveloped by stress. May we realize that those who cause anger to rise within us, may be acting in as much sincerity as was that young icecream man, and that we may be totally misjudging them. May we remember our Loving Redeemer’s words, “as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise.” Luke 6:31
Rose