The Sky Is Falling!

Recently, I have seen a lot on the news and on Facebook about the end of the world, prophesies being fulfilled, etc. They are talking about the Great Tribulation being upon us...warning us that we as Christians will face untold tribulations starting real soon. The articles are written as scare tactics to put fear in people!  Although there needs to be a serious repentance in this nation, yet that begins with the individual heart.   

I have been impressed for some time to sit and write as God gives me words on this issue.

1.  The Great Tribulation is upon us.  That may be true or not.  We do not know.  No one knows the day or the hour. Only the Father knows!  So this "Run for the hills and grab your squirrel rifle business"  is not what God had in mind. 

The God that I have come to know and love is not a God of harsh judgments on those who love and serve Him with their whole hearts. Would a loving and tender God pour wrath on those who loved Him?  No, His punishment is reserved for those who are not serving Him...who have rejected Him as the Messiah.  

He does not say, "Come to me all ye who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you one moment to rest then beat you senseless!"  NO!  He says, 

"Come to me all you who are weary and are heavy laden and I will give you rest."  (Matthew 11:28) 

When we come to Him, we find comfort and rest and healing, not harsh beatings. He wants us to rest in Him in all circumstances and in every situation that we face. 

Jesus told us before He went back to Heaven, "Let not your hearts be troubled. 

 John14:27  Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. 

 So many places throughout the Scriptures you find  His comforts for your troubles. ( I'm not saying that we will never face tribulations and troubles, but He  promised that He will be with us in those troubles.)

John16:33  These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world. 

2.  One statement said that, "We in America will be facing what others around the world are facing so that we can be  prepared for Heaven." Really?  I do not know how many families that are in my acquaintance who have not faced unreal trials and problems lately. We are facing things as a family that we have never faced before.  Things are happening in this nation as never before.  Yet, GOD IS STILL IN CONTROL!.  We may not have faced the firing squad as some have, but the persecution is still here in America, folks!  Christians are being persecuted for their faith on a daily basis. 

It has been happening for many years!  Growing up, we as a family were persecuted for our faith in the public schools and in the community. Christians are discriminated against all of the time in the marketplace for jobs and business. However, God always takes care of His own.  There is nothing to be afraid of wherever we go or whatever we are doing in His name.  HE IS WITH US!  When Jesus left, He sent the Holy Spirit as our COMFORTER!

3.  Look around you and see the being prophesies fulfilled every day.  Yes, things are shaping up for Jesus to split the eastern sky and return to this earth to take His Bride away.  However, when we read about all of this, our hearts should have a stronger tug toward Heaven! What a glorious day that will be for the saints of God! 

On the other side of this coin, this is not a time to be putting our heads in the sands and ignoring what is taking place around us.  We are to be vigilant, watchful, and redouble our efforts to pray for those who are not part of the Bride...those who have rejected the Messiah.

There is still time, folks, but it may be shorter than we think..  The door is still open for all to come to Him.  No matter what anyone has done or where they have gone, God's Grace still reaches farther than the stain has gone! Thank God!

So, this is my take home message for us.

1.  Do not let your heart be troubled about what is going on in the world.

2.  Keep your heart right with God.

3.  Pray earnestly for loved ones.

4.  Look Up! Our Redemption Draws Nigh!!!

OH yeah, and just for the record, if the sky  really is falling, we as Christians will not even be here.  We will be with our Lord in the His Place that He prepared for us. 

That is not a bad thing to think about today.

Thanks for reading.

Donna  McHugh

Snuggle Up and Be Quiet!

This may sound like an unusual title, but when you read on it will make perfect sense.

Recently in my quiet time with God, He showed me something that I never even thought about before. Maybe I was taken to a new level, but I am still trying to wrap my mind around what it all really means.

I was reading in, "God Calling", by A.J. Russell on February 6 in which the devotional entitled, "God's Longing".  In this reading, the author was saying that God was longing for a close friendship where we come to Him for more than just asking for things, needing direction and advise, etc.  What He is really wanting is so much more than that.

God spoke to me personally about what He was wanting from Me. Yes, He wants me to bring my burdens to Him. He wants me to come to Him with everything, but when He answers prayer and grants the petitions of my heart, He doesn't want me to rush off and do my own thing.  

Let me illustrate it this way.  As a mother of two rambunctious sons, they were always getting scrapes and bumps in their wild little adventures as they were discovering new things in their world.  They would ultimately come crying to me as their mother for comfort...to fix the boo-boos.  I would hold them in my lap and cuddle them, comforting them until they stopped hurting and off they would go sporting a band-aid and mother's kisses and hugs.  

That is what God wants, but He doesn't want me to jump down and go about my business. He wants me to stay in His arms for a while every day basking in His warmth and love.  He wants to talk to me as His own dear friend where we sit in the silence just basking in the fellowship that we have....that companionable silence like that of a couple who has been in love for a very long time. His Presence is comforting and warm and restful.

His Word declares in  Matthew 11:28  Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 

It also says: Psalms 46:10  Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth. 

What would happen here on earth if we had a friend and all we did was demand, complain, and whine, but did not take time to listen to the other person or just enjoy being in the other one's presence?  That friendship would not last long.

I guess the take away message is this.  When we come to Him, don't rush away after He fixes the boo-boos. Snuggle up close to Him and bask in His warmth and Love.  He wants you in His Presence.  He loves you more that you could ever imagine. 

Thanks for reading.

Donna McHugh

Changes

Remember back when our current President was campaigning?  His slogan was, "Change."
He certainly brought that about...and most of it was not for the good of the people, either. However, this is not about him; and I am not writing a political post. I am talking about our every day lives. 

I am to the stage in my life where changes are happening at a rapid-fire pace. Within the last year our sons have moved out into an apartment that they share until July.  Then, both will have to move again to different locations because one is getting married and one has not yet found the love of his life. Both will move to locations closer to where they will be employed next year.

The other day, my younger son and I were talking about some things in my office.  He said, "You know, Mom, I am having a lot of new things in my life." Last year, he graduated from college and took a temporary job in a different town.  He moved to a different location.  He had to get a new(er) car. He fell in love and will begin a new life in September with his bride-to-be. 

Talk about changes!  He has experienced them.  Oh, and, in the near future, he will move again, start a new business part-time, work part-time at another job, learn how to be a newly-wed husband, etc.  He has a lot going on in his life.

While he is making a life of his own, his dad and I are making changes and adjustments of our own.  Our nest is empty! (except on weekends when they bring their voracious appetites with them and come home!) And with all of that comes adjustments...lots and lots of adjustments. And change! 

In the bigger picture, the world is changing.  Our laws are changing rapidly.  People are changing. Our lives are in a continual state of change.

However, with the changes in all of our lives, there is One constant!  He does not change! 

He is not swayed by the speeches of men... of what they promise or don't promise.  He is not swayed by circumstances.  He is the constant in every circumstance whether that change is for the better or not.  He changes not, never has, nor ever will!  That is a change we can count on. 

The words to the song, "Be Still, My Soul",  has these words in the first verse..."In every change He faithful will remain"....  How true that is!

Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever.  He never changes. Now, there is change you can believe in!

Thanks for reading!

Donna McHugh

Winter Is Not Forever!

It has been a long, long time since I posted and I have really missed my times of writing. 

My life last year was full of rapid-fire changes, deep valleys and hard places, yet it has been sprinkled with joy.

You might say that this past year has been a wintertime that lasted all year.  However, even in winter there are days when the sun shines brightly and the snow melts away by the warmth that it brings.  There are some things that I have learned in the past year as I have been on my journey of life.

1.  Winter is not forever! It might seem like it, but when we read way back in Genesis when God was creating the universe, He said: 

Genesis 8:22  While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease. 

2. Into every life some rain must fall....winter is destined to come.  As I look outside my window now, I see the icy snow on the ground, and the bare trees waving their branches in the strong winds.  However, I also see, among the trees with bare branches, an evergreen tree standing tall and straight against the wind.  That tree has endured the same  weather that the others have, yet it remains green in spite of winter. I know, that it is supposed to be that way, but there are people that we all know who are like that tree.  When the hard times come, they stand strong and rooted firmly, enduring the hard things even though what surrounds them is bitter cold and not conducive to the bright and fresh colors that they wear on the outside.  

However, without wintertime, the earth would not produce the leaves and flowers of springtime, nor the fruit of harvest time.  Without wintertime in our lives, we do not become strong and grounded and produce either.  

3.  Winter is necessary! If all we had was sunshine and blooming flowers all of the time, we would not experience the wonders of springtime after the long, dark, cold winter. Winter allows the trees to rest so that in a few months they will be bursting forth with the beauty of springtime.  In our lives, we have hard times so that others can see those blossoms of springtime when we have endured the heartaches and tears of wintertime. I told my boys growing up that the hard times built character.  They would roll their eyes, but have to endure whatever it was at the time.

4.  When we get through with all of this earth's seasons of wintertime, springtime, summer and harvest time, we are going to a place of perpetual Sonshine!

Heaven is better than this!  No more gray skies, blizzards, bitter cold nor scorching heat! No more heartache, sorrows, pains, hurts, illness, or diseases of this old world... No more darkness of evil!  Wintertime is not forever, but Heaven is!  Travel on, my friend, it will be worth it.

Thanks for reading!

Donna

Lessons From Marys

In my last post I mentioned that I was having some tests done to determine what was wrong and how to make me feel better.  The ultrasounds and blood work showed that I needed a minor surgery to correct the problem...and I had to have a time to heal afterward. All of this was happening during the worst time of the year to be sick...Christmastime! While the world around me was whirling with activities, shopping, wrapping presents, parties, food preparations, choir practices and programs, events, etc., I was down for the count and at times it was hard to be content until one day God spoke to me and had a few choice words for me to hear. 

He said it was time to stop dwelling on the pain and the complications and instead focus on what I could learn through my circumstances.  I felt that I was the only one who had been sidelined when I should have been celebrating along with the world. However, He reminded me that all of the activities are not what matters most in life; instead it is the time spent with Him that really matters most.  So, I guess as the new year has progresses, I have my marching orders from Him...Learn contentment!...and that among many other lessons have come my way through my down time. 

He suggested that I think about the different Marys in the Bible and see what I could learn from them.  There are a couple of them that come to mind.

 Mary, the mother of Jesus
I know, I know, we only talk about her at Christmastime, however, I think she has some character qualities that would be good to model all year long. 

• She pondered things in her heart.  She did not second guess or argue with God when she was chosen to be the mother of the Messiah.
• She thought before she spoke. ..which means that she guarded her tongue. She did not blabber the things she knew to everyone. She thought about the happenings.  Even when Jesus was crucified, she pondered that, too!
• She humbly accepted God's will for her life without questioning God as to what He was doing. 
• She was submissive to God. She said, "Be it unto me according to thy Word."

Mary Magdalene

Here is a lady who had sunk to the bottom of life's stairway...to the point where she had 7 devils dwelling in her. She was powerless until Jesus came and set her free from it all. 

• She never forgot from where she had come. She knew what it felt like to be delivered from an awful life of sin. 
• She was a faithful follower of Jesus. Once her deliverance came, she never looked back.
• When Jesus was crucified, she wept and mourned, yet in her heart of hearts she knew that the story was not over yet.  The day was dark and she could not understand what was happening to Jesus, yet she never lost hope.
• When she met Jesus at the tomb, she was overwhelmed with gratitude and praise. 
• She shared the good news with the other disciples even though they were a bit skeptical at first, yet she persisted.

Martha's sister, Mary

Here is a lady with her priorities in the right place.

• Mary was sitting at Jesus' feet learning of Him. Maybe she should have been helping Martha. Maybe she had worked for a while and dropped down for a rest, but it was at Jesus' feet where she was found. 
• Martha knew where to find her and tried to humiliate her in front of the other guests.  That was not kind of Martha to do that, however, Mary did not retaliate and criticize her sister. I know the Bible does not say it, but I think she quietly stood up and slipped into the kitchen to help while Martha was still on her rant. She had chosen the better part...spending time with Jesus. 

And finally, the Mary who anointed Jesus's feet.

• Some say this was Mary, the sister of Martha and Lazarus. Whomever she was, she had a few lessons to teach, too.
• She poured out her most expensive treasure on Jesus' feet. She wiped his feet with her hair. She knew what the others did not. 
•  She understood what He had been telling them all along.  She knew that He was going to die. 
•  She did what even the host had forgotten to do. She washed His feet and took the place of a servant. 

So for this year I think the lessons that He wants me to learn are:

1. Think before speaking!!!

2. Humbly accept whatever God's will is and be submissive to it.

3. Don't forget from where you come from, but never lose sight of the Heavenly goal!

4.  Even in the dark times, never ever lose Hope.  The story is not all written yet.

5. Spend time at Jesus' feet.

6. Don't be afraid to serve others even in the menial tasks.

Those are good goals for this year. 

Thanks for reading.

Donna McHugh