God’s care and perfect guidance
Once more we are entering a new year, with new grace and new opportunities. God already knows what this new year will bring, right down to the last detail, and this is a great comfort for us who believe. He watches over world events, and He watches over each of our lives. We can therefore face the future full of rest, joy, and thankfulness in all our circumstances, with faith and confidence in Him. He loves us and wants to prepare us for eternity through everything He sends our way.
But people who only want to have a good life here on earth will constantly be unhappy when things do not go the way they want or when things happen which they cannot understand. We read in 1 Timothy 5:6 that those who live according to their lusts are dead even while they live. God tries to wake people from this sleep of death because He loves them all and wants them to be saved.
When God resists the proud in all their ways, it is with the purpose that they, if possible, come to see and admit the truth and humbly seek salvation, and thus be blessed. Read Job 33.
Parents might think that God is hard if one of their children, whom they loved so dearly, is taken away from them. But this is also God’s goodness. It is, for example, far better to be taken home to God as a child, uncorrupted by sin, than to live as a sinner for many years and maybe be lost for all eternity.
A fountain of life
When we live just to please people and are bound by visible things, we will be restless and have all kinds of worries. But when we, by the Holy Spirit and a living faith, are set free from all this in our thought life, we will come to a glorious freedom of joy and rest. There is nothing that can then disturb our inner rest, and our joy will come from within and not from without. This fountain of life will never run dry.
“But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.” John 4:14 (NLT).
Let us meet the future with this fountain within us which is always leading us to a richer and more blessed life in God. As the years go by, our physical body becomes older and weaker, but it is blessed to experience that our spirit inside us is made new every day and our inner life is growing daily if we are faithful to God’s laws. (2 Corinthians 4:16-18.)
Israel and the rapture
There are many things that will happen on earth in the last days. These days, there is a lot of political unrest, and people wonder what the future will bring. These events have to do with Israel, but no power can hinder the Jews from building their country. This small nation is a miracle to the whole world and will continue to be so to an increasing degree. Anyone who wants to destroy them will be thoroughly put to shame.
But what is greater and more important than any of these things that happen now is the preparation of the bride for Christ’s coming. Blessed are those who take part in this preparation and who will be part of the rapture.
Let us make sure that we are among those who God has called and chosen, by growing in all the fruits of the Spirit. ”In this way you will receive a rich welcome into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” Read 2 Peter 1:10-11.
If we are God-fearing we have a bright future ahead of us. We drink of the spring, lift our heads up high and do God’s commandments, believing and trusting in Him who has called us. He is mighty to give us full victory over all conscious sin and to present us perfect and blameless before Him at His coming. (Colossians 1:22.)