DON'T DELAY!!!

I lead a prayer group at our church on Thursdays and today I was alone. I took my devotional materials with me and while turning in my One Year Bible to what I thought was the wrong date...I was rereading the "word of the Lord" which had come as a huge encouragement to me last year shortly after I had started this prayer group.

After completing my reading, I had an 'ah ha' moment and realized it was actually Oct. 2nd after all, thus, the Holy Spirit had directed me to the correct reading making me tune in all the more to 'hearing' - THUS SAYETH THE LORD!!!!

"You should look for the Lord before it is too late; you should call to him while he is near. The wicked should stop doing wrong, and they should stop their evil thoughts. They should return to the Lord so he may have mercy on them. They should come to our God, because he will freely forgive them (Isa. 55:6-7 NCV).

"Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in and eat with you, and you will eat with me (Rev.3:20 NCV)."

I have the strong impression and I believe the signs around us would bear this out, that this is no time to 'put off until tomorrow' getting 'right' with God. The Bible makes it clear that before the 'rapture of the church' there will be an increase of trouble that is similar to the pangs of childbirth...more frequent and more intense.

Another important thing about the rapture is that those who will be caught away will be those who are 'looking for Christ', not just those who've gone through a prayer to be saved and then gone on about their business as usual thinking they bought a ticket for heaven but had a lot of living to do in the meantime (as I once did).

The parable about the 10 virgins (Matt. 25) would bear that out along with the words of Jesus when He said, "On the last day many people will say to me, 'Lord, Lord, we spoke for you, and through you we forced out demons and did many miracles.' Then I will tell them clearly. 'Get away from me, you who do evil. I never knew you (Matt. 7:22).'"