(Hello mi amigos!) "And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold" Isn't this in our face true? ..And I'm not pointing fingers, I feel it myself. I imagine this is what our ancestors felt during the build-up into WW2, as-if the imminence of distress and the 'enemy' causing it were palpable, yet, somehow quite different this time. The distress isn't between nations and states, as the historical norm repeats perpetually since Adam and Eve's first groups of descendants until now. The increasing volatility of mankind: ------------------ "and on the earth anguish of nations, not knowing the way out because of the roaring of the sea" Then the angel said to me, "The waters you saw, where the prostitute sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations and languages. And I saw a wild beast ascending out of the sea ------------------ Divisions which the nations cannot escape, induced by a globally interconnected world as the first primary mega-shift in this regard since Nimrod! Corruption and lawlessness exposed openly catered to all persuasions, causing division in new ways, by the unstoppable force of the global information database and communication system we call the internet. It becomes vitally important, and I'm speaking to myself here as mentioned, that we consider 2 Timothy 3's prophecy deeply, because the intoxicating wine of anger is already dumping out through the digital pathways. "having no natural affection, not open to any agreement, slanderers, without self-control, fierce, without love of goodness" Therefore we have to do the opposite: - love goodness - have natural affection - be open to agreement - don't slander others - be self-controlled - be meek
Good to hear from you my friend, it's been an odd year personally; had nothing positive to add so I've been keeping myself away from the inter-web for the most part. The organization (which I will say is softening, with +'s and -'s), the unreasonable hate between people of various persuasions, it's a dark cloud really and I let it affect me too much. "enduring to the end", I've noticed, is usually within the context of mocking and scoffing, social and interpersonal problems, not "death camps" as is extrapolated from that last and final period as we've discussed many times. A flood of "reasoning lifted up against the knowledge of God" is exhausting! I missed this long-running community very much; thanks for keeping it going brother.
To me, this forum is part of waiting. Our Lord came back to his disciples three times finding them sleeping the night he was arrested, and this is presented very clearly in the virgin parable, and as well as the householder with the thief. We stay awake, and remain on the watch for our Lords arrival, so that he finds us caring for the flock. We are coming up on one of the special times, a time in which our Father set in motion his means by which he would bring his kingdom into this world. Whether or not now is the time is irrelevant to our service, but prepared we must be, as part of that kingdom. No doubt all of those here stand with me as I pray; "Lord may your kingdom come!"
Hi there SingleCell Nice to see you again. I've been a bit "out-of-sorts" lately myself - was given a pain killer that wasn't compatible with what I use. It feels good to be my usual self again.