Preparation for what Lies Ahead

Seek ye the Lord, all ye meek of the earth, which have wrought his judgment; seek righteousness, seek meekness: it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the Lord’s anger. Zephaniah 2:3.
Transgression has almost reached its limit. Confusion fills the world, and a great terror is soon to come upon human beings. The end is very near. God’s people should be preparing for what is to break upon the world as an overwhelming surprise.
The “time of trouble, such as never was,” is soon to open upon us; and we shall need an experience which we do not now possess and which many are too indolent to obtain. It is often the case that trouble is greater in anticipation than in reality; but this is not true of the crisis before us. The most vivid presentation cannot reach the magnitude of the ordeal. In that time of trial, every soul must stand for himself before God. “Though Noah, Daniel, and Job” were in the land, “as I live, saith the Lord God, they shall deliver neither son nor daughter; they shall but deliver their own souls by their righteousness.” Ezekiel 14:20.
The last great conflict between truth and error is but the final struggle of the long-standing controversy concerning the law of God. Upon this battle we are now entering–a battle between the laws of men and the precepts of Jehovah, between the religion of the Bible and the religion of fable and tradition.
We should study the great waymarks that point out the times in which we are living. . . . We should now pray most earnestly that we may be prepared for the struggles of the great day of God’s preparation.
Those who place themselves under God’s control, to be led and guided by Him, will catch the steady tread of the events ordained by Him to take place. Inspired with the Spirit of Him who gave His life for the life of the world, they will no longer stand still in impotency, pointing to what they cannot do. Putting on the armor of heaven, they will go forth to the warfare, willing to do and dare for God, knowing that His omnipotence will supply their need.
Maranatha p. 161
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Prayer Requests
——please pray for me and Anna tomorrow morning. She has her first transition meeting with the public school and I am super apprehensive.
Wendy
——Peter had another seizure yesterday about two hours after starting a new medicine and has a doctor’s appointment this morning. Please pray that he can get on the right medicine with no side effects. Rose
——Please pray for my Dad, Emil. His blood pressure is extremely high at the moment and he has been bleeding from the nose for 45 minutes. Nobody can stop it. Mary
—–Please pray for my sister Missy who is having surgery today. Amber
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Dear Friends,
Some years ago, the brakes on Ronnie Jay’s old, white Pontiac began growling and squealing. Ron has changed many sets of brakes over the years, so he figured that he would have no problem with these. He drove the car to a vacant lot and began changing the rotors and brakes. It was not long, however, till he realized that he was going to have a problem. He had the wheel off and had put the new rotor on, but the brakes were just not fitting.  He tried and tried, but he could not get the bolts in properly.  He was becoming frustrated and despairing.  He just did not know what to do.  The car was not drivable in the condition it was in and Ronnie Jay needed that car to get to his job on the other side of town.   He knew that if he could not fix it, we would have to get it towed to a mechanic and that would be expensive.  He sent Ronnie Jay home to get me. He thought maybe I could see why the bolt was not fitting. When I got there, we prayed that God would have the angels put those bolts in and the brakes on.  Ron then tried to put it all back together again.  This time the brakes went on easily and the bolts slipped into place! Our hearts thrilled that God had answered our prayer!
How good God is to answer the prayers of His children.  Just as David prayed, “Hide not thy face from me in the day when I am in trouble; incline thine ear unto me: in the day when I call answer me speedily.”  Psa 86:2, so He speedily had answered our prayer.  Moreover, He goes beyond this. He urges us, “Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and show thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.”  Jer 33:3  There are great and mighty things in His Word just waiting for us to discover.  As we read his Word, the Holy Spirit will reveal these gems of truth to us.  Jesus bids us, “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.  For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.  If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent?  Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion?  If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?”  Luke 11:9-11
How vital it is that we ask for the Holy Spirit’s guidance each day. How important to our present and future happiness that we study God’s Word diligently. Paul commands, “Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”  2 Tim 2:15 When we fulfill the conditions, the promises in His Holy Word are for us.  Our Loving Saviour promises, “If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.”  John 15:7
May we abide in Jesus every moment. May we spend time in His Word each day.  May we declare as did David, “Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.”  Psa 119:11  As we study and memorize His Holy Word, may we become changed into His likeness which is the best blessing of all: to become like our Loving Saviour. (2 Cor 3:18)
Rose