We often convince ourselves to take a particular direction. With confidence we believe that the path we are on is the right one. Many travel down a preferred road without a thought about eternity. The Truth warns us “Push yourself through the narrow gate. For wide and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and the foolish enter the six lane highway to hell!” Those who seek the wonder of a packed stadium, or the sign in the sky of an angel, often miss the exit sign to salvation. Great speakers and singers are considered fearless people as they astonish crowds with lyrical words on great stages. Today the Wisdom in the Bible seems irrelevant to many. “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.” Many fools hang on the words of ball players, actors and politicians while they stiff arm the many words of warning from their Creator, the Ruler of heaven and earth, Jesus Christ, the Son of God Almighty.
“How long will you who are simple love your simple ways? How long will mockers delight in mockery and fools hate knowledge?” Those who mock people of faith will one day be left behind as those who delight in God get removed before the final trumpet sounds! Who does the fool hope to impress or imitate? Their parents, their favorite rock star or maybe a pastor? We are all invited to walk with the Power of God in us and by His grace imitate Christ alone! “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God” Eph 2:8 —To reject the GIFT of GOD, the Holy Spirit, we reject Power, Wisdom, Grace and Mercy on judgement day! 
The Bible recounts the life of a man named Simon who boasted that he was great. The rich and the poor listened to his impressive words and called Simon “the Great Power of God”. People flocked to hear him speak because he performed miraculous signs and wonders of hocus-pocus! Peter and John were in the neighborhood praying and laying their hands on people who then received the Holy Spirit. When Simon saw that the Holy Spirit was given as the apostles’ laid hands on folks, Simon offered Peter and John money to buy their ability. Peter answered: “May your money perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money! You have no part or share in this ministry, because your heart is not right before God. Repent of this wickedness and pray to the Lord in the hope that He may forgive you for having such a thought in your heart. For I see that you are full of bitterness and captive to sin.” Suddenly the fear of the Lord landed on Simon’s heart because he feared God’s judgement! The Girl I Was
The Best way to READ the WORD of GOD in 2 years includes COMMENTARY laced into it. “The New Spurgeon’s Devotional Bible” by Charles Spurgeon. Available on AMAZON kindle – YOU will be so encouraged. God asks us: “Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.” 1 Timothy 4:2-4 – God’s Power is not a show! God’s Power is the Holy Spirit which infiltrates the hearts and minds of those who accept Jesus as Lord. The Holy Spirit imparts fear and trembling with a conviction! “For we know, brothers and sisters loved by God, that He has chosen you because our gospel came to you not simply with words but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and deep conviction.” The Power is the Holy Spirit! “You became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you welcomed the message in the midst of severe suffering with the joy given by the Holy Spirit.” Those who become imitators of Christ in the midst of suffering, are like Paul who sang in prison for the Joy of the Lord is our strength! NEW WINE, old skins
My research and acquired knowledge from school or hard knocks pales in comparison to the all knowing Holy Spirit. “When you seek with a sincere heart, when you desire to know the Truth above all else, when you are ready for a supernatural change…then is when the Power of God, the Holy Spirit enters and your heart and all your selfish desires radically change.” God will hold us accountable for ALL our choices. “This is the judgement, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness, rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil.” Whatever a believer may accomplish, it is the work of the Holy Spirit in them that brings Glory to God. “If you seek Him, He will let you find Him; but if you forsake Him, He will reject you forever.” Oh Lord, You are all-wise, all-knowing and I can hide nothing from You. I praise You alone for Your patience and guidance along my curvy path. I confess that I have lied, cheated, and stolen the reputation of others by gossiping. Please forgive me. I give you my life and ask that You begin the work that is needed in me. When I flub up, Holy Spirit do Your job and convict me that I may quickly repent and be restored by Your mercy. ” Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.” CLICK PIC view SLIDESHOW Fences and Gates
Scriptures: Matthew 7:13 * Proverbs 1:7 * Proverbs 1:22 * Acts 8:20 * 1 Thessalonians 1:4-10 * Colossians 3:12-15 *Jeremiah 29:13 * 1 Chronicles 28:9 * Thank You God for preserving us by Your living Word. AMEN
Living Abroad 
Pingback: Bodacious Babes | Living Abroad
Will begin reading the Bible, thank you
LikeLiked by 1 person
GREG LAURIE March 21, 2022 “It is later than it has ever been before. Quite literally, we are nearer the world’s final days than we have ever been in human history. People in the 19th century were alert to the biblical signs playing out in their society. People in the 20th century—across two world wars, the reestablishment of Israel, and then the Cold War—also thought the end was near. A popular radio host and pastor named Harold Camping got a lot of national attention for saying the Rapture would happen on May 21, 2011. He said it would occur “beyond the shadow of a doubt.” It didn’t. The world laughed at him and shrugged him off. (It didn’t help that he had previously predicted the Rapture would happen back in 1994.)
In the children’s story, Chicken Little got everyone in the barnyard all ramped up about the sky falling, but it never fell. The boy who cried “Wolf!” for so long gradually lost the attention of the people who needed to hear his message. So is the end of the world really near or are we just singing the same old song about the end times? If you’re like me, and you feel a compulsion to tell people about JESUS because without Him their eternity will be excruciating in a pit of fire with a smell of stench. The LEADERS around the GLOBE have had their hearts hardened, and they are stiff necked against the Truth of Jesus Christ. As a coalition of nations gather to take the plunder of Israel’s trillions of natural gas, we are absolutely correct in saying the time is drawing near. Earth as we know it will soon be devastated by the wrath of God. Maybe our neighbors think they have “heard it all before.” That shouldn’t surprise us because the Bible predicts this: “Most importantly, I want to remind you that in the last days scoffers will come, mocking the truth and following their own desires. 4 They will say, “What happened to the promise that Jesus is coming again? From before the times of our ancestors, everything has remained the same since the world was first created.”—2 Peter 3:3-4, NLT
For those of us who are paying attention, the evidence keeps mounting. It is escalating in intensity. Wars and rumors of wars. False teachings. Apostasy. Earthquakes and famine. A global pandemic. The decline of cash. And the miracle of Israel (the size of New Jersey) a slice of land set aside by the Sovereign Lord God Almighty! GOG (Russia) and his MAGOG assembly of nations are chomping at the bit to take the land and all the rich resources of Israel. The truth is that Jesus Christ is coming back again. This is clearly taught in Scripture, and you and I both know that we are nearer to that world-changing event than we have ever been.
People shrug off the signs because of PAST predictions failing. They ask “why we should expect Jesus to return when every generation seems to have that expectation, then remind them of this: In Luke 12:40, Jesus said, “be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected” (NLT). Scoffers will be crying when the CHURCH of JESUS CHRIST is taken out and the RESTRAINER departs from earth. The Scoffers will run to caves and still DOUBT God’s word. DO NOT be deceived, I’m not listening to the scoffers. I’m listening to Jesus, and I will be ready. Will you?”
LikeLike