In the last week of 2023, I began my annual challenge. To be greatly encouraged weekly by a new book. What a thrill it is to solve the complex mystery of Revelation. What a joy it is to understand the ending, the climax, and all that must be — Revelation is a TOTAL WOW BOOK! I prefer listening to this audiobook by Nancy Guthrie entitled “Blessing.” Why? Because the narration is excellent and the content is extraordinary. Get encouraged, inspired, and walk in her glorious word pictures of HOPE! The written word was intended to cause a curiosity, a wonder, and to satisfy a longing to feel the unseen reality. There is more to “the Life” than meets the eye.

Chapter 11 welcomes ears to hear and eyes to clearly imagine the pearly gates, the streets of gold, and the all-consuming joy within a city inhabitated by pure holiness. All are greatly blessed by reading a fantastic letter written by a guy who lived as a prisoner on a remote island. Be blessed, be encouraged, be informed, be engaged, be equipped, be excited, and listen. Tune in and rejoice! A sampling of wisdom nuggets uncovered.

We can live joyfully knowing the whole truth. What are the blessings we can expect to receive when reading a future that God ordained? It is a reality all believers need to see. The opposition will escalate. The endurance we need to cultivate. The judgement we will celebrate. The victory in which we participate. The enemy Jesus will annihilate. The sorrow He will alleviate. The creation He will regenerate. The marriage He will consumate. The home we can anticipate. All who listen are greatly blessed by the gifted command that Nancy has of language. She imparts awe!

This wise persecuted man communicates as best he can, 4 visions he was given. Other prophets wrote what God said. John wrote what “he saw” using a first century vocabulary to describe what Jesus showed him. John unveils what was previously hidden. He testifies about what he saw. It was written to give us confidence in what God is doing.  We are invited to focus on the Lamb and welcome the voice of the Holy Spirit. Pull up a chair at the Wedding Supper of the Lamb and worship with wonder as you feel your tears wiped away by the Lord Jesus. God delivers His greatest blessing as we read aloud the final text of Revelation. Read or listen to “Blessed” by Nancy Guthrie and gain a brighter hope and better understand John’s dramatic vision as given by God. For more delight click Book of Books

One day, He who holds the key to death will transform and change us. Even as we get disregarded, rejected, and resented, we remember that He holds us in His hands. We can personally expect to enjoy the protected presence of God for all eternity. Choose to hold onto the peace promised by praying for ongoing Revelation to move with great confidence into eternity. PRAY: “Lord, I need Your grace, I need You to adjust my perspective about the increasing violence. Pull back the curtain so that I can see myself as a partner in the suffering and patient endurance of Jesus.” AMEN.

Revelation is a call to our patient endurance that we may reign with King Jesus. God knows every one of our days, and He chose us to live “in Him” for such a time as this. Remember that all evil, time, and the devil are under God Almighty’s control. There is massive sorrow and persecution today. Check ✔️ me Lord, am I willing to be imprisoned because I will not be silenced about who Jesus is? John was praying in the Spirit when Jesus appeared and asked John to write the heavenly things he was shown.

Jesus is the Alpha and Omega, and He is with us in this in-between time as we wait for His return. When we look into His fiery eyes, all that is not of Him gets burned away! His voice is like the roar of many waters that drown out all other noise. Think of the volume of Niagara Falls. We welcome His powerful, reliable voice speaking into us. “Then I looked to see Who was speaking to me.” His personal radiance, His face shone like the Sun. May His face shine upon you. Revelation engages us with fascinating symbols for us to understand and embrace. AMEN

Charles Dickens penned a poem. “Love is not a feeling to pass away, like the balmy breath of a summer day; It is not — it cannot be — laid aside; Love is not a thing to forget or hide. Love clings to the heart, ah, woe is me! As the ivy clings to the old oak tree. Love is not a passion of earthly mold, as a thirst for honor, fame, or gold: For when all these wishes have died away, the deep strong LOVE of a brighter day, though nourished in secret, consumes the more, as the slow rust eats to the iron’s core.”

“God is Love” penned our Creator, the One Almighty who has a plan for humanity.