Expectant Prayers ®

My prayer time this morning has been reflective and stirring.  I will try to share a bit of what the Lord was showing me this morning.   I will begin with the verse that has been resonating in my spirit since I awoke:

Jesus' own words recorded in Matthew 24:36-39
"No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.  As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.  For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away.  This is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man."

In my prayer time, I had been thinking about the snow and people being home bound in relation to the spiritual.  I was praying for those affected by the storm... some in Pennsylvania still stranded on high ways since noon yesterday!  Some still without power, some without shelter- like a local homeless man who was about to succumb to hypothermia and was rescued by police.
I began to ponder how our homes become like sanctuaries- a safe haven from the elements. Then  I saw my sister's snow pictures from Indiana.  They got so much snow that it looked like their home was floating on a white sea - the drifts and rippled expanse looked like capped waves!  

Then my thoughts turned to Noah and the ark... how God caused it to rain and flood the earth, yet Noah and his family found safety in the ark!  It took a long time for Noah's ark to be built.  People scoffed at his structure, making fun of him and calling him crazy!  Hebrews 11:7 tells us, "By faith, Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family.  By faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that comes by faith."  No matter the opposition, Noah continued to build at the direction of the Lord.  God had it all planned out, too.  All the materials were specified, all the dimensions were calculated.  All Noah had to do was follow the blueprint.  

What kind of man was Noah?  In Genesis 6:9, we learn that he was a man who walked with God!  2 Peter 2:5 describes him as a man who preached righteousness.

Preached righteousness?  How many sermons have you heard on righteousness or sanctification lately? 

I feel an urgency for Pastors to build up the maturity of their congregations, preach the whole Word with conviction and holy fear, and prepare the end time church.  We are falling short of the mark!  Individually, we have a responsibility to learn the Word, not just be spoon fed or regurgitating those things that our spiritual leaders dictate to us.  God is a God of the individual and each of us are responsible for our own relationship with the Lord and following His leading.   Like Noah, God gives us a blueprint to follow as well... nothing is left to us to have to figure out.  The key is that we have to use it!

So back to Noah's day.  What were the people like?  Followers of their own lusts and pleasures, scoffers, and simply concerned with their immediate personal affairs.  They continued to eat and drink and to live for themselves... marrying and planning for their tomorrows... clear up until the day Noah entered the ark.

Folks, I am shaking in my boots at how many people scoff at the coming of the Lord.  We are warned over and over again that He is coming quickly, yet in our modern day minds we continue to be lulled to sleep by the seductiveness of the world, the devil, and our own passions and lusts.  WHEN ARE WE GOING TO WAKE UP CHURCH AND PREPARE OURSELVES????

I am sure some of you out there are thinking... there she goes again with all of her doomsday talk.  I wish she would give a more uplifting message.  But friends, what is more stirring than warning us all to prepare ourselves for what is ahead?   If I saw you walking toward the edge of a cliff, I would shout a warning the top of my lungs to keep you from harm.    Spiritually, we should all be watchman of our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.
Jesus warns us earlier in Matthew 24 that due to the INCREASE OF WICKEDNESS, the love of most will grow cold!  There are many feel good preachers out there telling us that things are only getting better and better... we can have our best life here and now!  Um, isn't that a contrary message to the one Christ Himself preached? 
Now is the time to guard our lives and doctrines closely.  Some of you older ones out there can't even remember how it was to serve the Lord when you were younger- what you believed in- what was acceptable to live a life of righteousness and holiness.   The lines of acceptability are muddied with our constant acceptance of a sinful nature; in ourselves and in the lives of those around us.

Jesus even says in Matthew 16:3  "You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times." 
Most of us who heard the snow storm was coming and prepared as best we could for it.  How come we can have faith in the weather, but not in the promises of God?

I may lose audience with many of you today, but I hope that is not the case.  I pray that the body of Christ will be strengthened, empowered by the Holy Spirit, abounding in faith, and discerning of the times.  I pray like Noah, that we will become people who declare and preach righteousness and walk with God. 

Each tick of the clock moves us closer and closer to His return.  What are you doing to get ready?