Stay Warm!

Matthew 24:12-14 And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.

I’m not sure how much I enjoy the freezing weather here as we’re traveling across the United States, but I certainly can’t wait till Spring comes! On the Hebrew calendar, Nisan is the month that transitions from winter to Spring. The ice finally starts melting and new life springs forth during this month. Doesn’t it make sense that Yeshua (Jesus) died and rose again from the dead during this month; the month of the transition from that which is frozen to that which is alive?!

The power of God melts through thick ice, and infuses life into all things! Is your love growing cold and frigid? Then allow the Lord to thaw you out! The world is cold to the things of God — but as Saints, we need to be sure that we’re not allowing the world to numb us with its coldness; rather, we ought to be melting the frozen world around us!

Let’s not get iced over with the snow, and freezing winter weather, (for those of us who are shivering through it just now), or even worse, the cold hard world around us. The Lord our God is a sun and shield. His warmth will fill us and will radiate out into the lives of others if we will abide in His loving Presence.

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In his book, Pilgrim’s Progress, John Bunyan has written one of the most beautiful allegories about the journey we all travel as a believers. The book describes the hero, Christian, and his journey from the City of Destruction to his heavenly destination, the Celestial City. Now there’s one part of Pilgrim’s Progress that I want to focus on today — walking through the Swamp of Despondency!

While many around the world are apathetic and lack understanding about the times in which we live, we as believers should realize these are merely signs of the times and have a sense of urgency to be about the Lord’s business.

In Ancient Greece, mythology and history were hard to distinguish. Tales of gods and demigods abounded. The chief god of Mount Olympus was Zeus. It is told that Zeus became enamored with the princess Europa and decided to seduce and ravish her. Zeus shape-shifted, transforming himself into a tame white bull. Europa, the daughter of King Agenor of Sidon, was picking flowers, when she saw the bull, and then climbed on his back. Zeus carried her away. The Romans later recounted the tale which became known as the “seduction of Europa”, (with the Roman “Jupiter” replacing Zeus).

Some time ago, an old mule fell into an abandoned well which was no longer in use. The farmer who owned him tried and tried to pull the mule up out of the well — however after many attempts he realized he was not going to be able to rescue his mule. So the farmer decided to solve two problems simultaneously— by burying the mule in the well. Tragic as it was, he would, bury the mule alive, and in the process, prevent future accidents of this kind by filling up the well hole.

Growing up, one of my favorite Saturday activities was watching ABC Sports. I can still remember the opening line — “The thrill of victory or the agony of defeat!” One of the greatest prophets of the Bible, Elijah, experienced his share of victories — but he also knew that sudden feeling of defeat.

When a Michigan man entered the hospital for tests one day, he never would have guessed what the doctors would find. A routine chest x-ray revealed that the man’s heart was on the wrong side of his chest! Because of a rare reversed-organ condition, his heart was in the wrong place. This is a strange story indeed, although I think some of us suffer from this condition in a spiritual way.

There is a fascinating true story about the Apostle John narrated by the early church “Father”, Eusebius, well worth reading.