How To Witness Even AFTER The Rapture!

To those of us who feel the urgency building to increase our efforts in witnessing to our small part of a lost world, we can’t help but think about our family, friends, neighbors, co-workers and others who will be left behind after the rapture.  We know that not everyone we know will accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior before the Lord returns for his “bride.”  So what do we do for those left behind… for those we know and love?

Just because we will be absent from this world for a while, it doesn’t mean we can’t continue to witness to those who are left behind.  Here are a few things that I believe we can do to help those who are seeking the truth in a world that is preparing to enter in to a seven-year tribulation.

1.  We need to get the word out as urgently and as lovingly as we can before we leave.  We have to prepare that soil or plant that seed or water that seed before we leave.  There is nothing more important than that.  Along with this, we must share our belief in the coming rapture and tribulation.  We must get that warning out before the Lord returns.

2.  We need to put together a packet of information for those left behind.  You can create a “generic” packet that can be left or given to anyone.  You can also individualize it in a way that speaks to a particular person in your life.  What kind of information am I referring to?

a.  Tracts.  Tracts are very important.  There are plenty of really good tracts out there that explain the process of becoming a born again believer in Christ.  There are also tracts out there that explain about the rapture.

b.  Bible.  A bible will be an important tool for the new believer in the tribulation.  There are plenty of inexpensive paperback bibles out there on the market.  You can either purchase a full paperback bible or you can purchase the New Testament in paperback.  Either way, we need to leave a copy of the word of God behind for those seeking answers.

c.  Personal Message.  Many of us have a web cam, camcorder or phone that can take videos.  We can use that technology to create a brief message explaining in our own words what has just taken place (the rapture) and what is about to occur in the near future (the tribulation).  It also gives us a chance to share the salvation message in our own words to those we have left behind.  Once that’s downloaded into your computer, you can burn DVD’s of this message or audio CD’s of the message.

d.  Music.  There is so much royalty free Christian music out there that it would be easy to find songs that would bless the new Christian in their new walk with the Lord.  Rip or download those songs that you believe would be most beneficial and encouraging to the new believer and rip it to a CD.

e.  Internet Resources.  There are a myriad of Christian web sites out there.  Find those that adequately describe what you need everyone to know about salvation through Christ, the rapture and the tribulation.  Make a list of these web sites and print out a copy to include in your packet.  A great website to list is www.tribulationharvest.com.

f.  Additional Materials.  Add any additional materials that you feel someone might appreciate.

g. MP3 Player.  A friend (kellygirl) suggested that music and helpful sermons could be downloaded to an MP3 player and included in the packet.  If you go that route, you might also want to upload an audio version of your personal message on the MP3 player instead of including a CD in the packet.  Since an MP3 player costs money, you may want to do this only for those who are closest to you, unless you have the money to include it in all your packets (depending on how many packets you plan to create, of course).

Find some inventive way of packaging up this information.  No matter how you decide to pack up the information, remember to include a label describing what’s in the packet.  Example:  “Emergency Rapture Kit” or “In Case Of Rapture, Open Immediately!”  Here are some ideas on how to package up your “Rapture Kit”:

1.  Plastic zip-lock bag.  This will not only keep everything together, but it will protect the contents from dirt and liquids.

2.  Plastic wrap.  It will not only protect the contents, but it will also help keep things tightly bundled together.

3.  Plastic container.  The amount of information you’re leaving behind will dictate the size of the container.

4.  Cardboard box.  Again, the size of the box will depend on what you’re including in the packet.

5.  Large manila mailing envelope.

However you package up the information, remember that it should be clearly marked so that there is no doubt what the packaging contains.

Here are some ideas on what to do with the packet when it’s completed:

1.  Give one to family members, friends, etc… who do not have a relationship with Jesus.  Now there are those who will not even want to look at the information.  In that case, ask them to do you a personal favor and put the information in a safe place so that when the rapture happens, they can retrieve the packet and find out what happened, what’s coming next and what they can do to be sure they spend eternity with God.  If they know you’re giving them the option of whether to look at it or not, they’ll most likely take the packet and tuck it away.

2.  Hand them out to neighbors or strangers on the street.

3.  Leave some in a conspicuous area in your house, like near your video tapes, CD’s, DVD’s, books, etc… where they will be easily found.

4.  Leave a packet or two at work.  Place them in your desk drawer or locker at work to become a witness to your co-workers.

5.  Donate one to your local library.

6.  Show the packet to your church and suggest the church create packets to leave behind in the sanctuary or Pastor’s office so that those flocking to the church after the rapture will find that valuable information.

7.  Leave a packet in your glove box in your vehicle.

8.  Carry one with you.  If you carry a large pocketbook, keep a packet with you to give out or to leave behind (after all, you’re not taking your pocketbook with you…lol).

9.  Leave a copy where you keep your important paperwork (last will and testament, home insurance, mortgage papers, birth certificates, etc…)

These are just a few examples on how you can share or store your packets so that anyone left behind will be able to access this important information.

The important thing to remember is that however you package up the information and however you give them out or store them, you are taking steps to continue witnessing to the lost and unsaved world even after you’re gone.

I look forward to hearing how you would package up the information or what you would add to the packet or how you would store or give out the packet.  God bless and let’s keep the word alive even after we’ve been taken home.

Additional suggestions for sharing the word of God after you’ve been raptured:

Upload your video and audio information to your:

1.  Game System.  I’ve uploaded information to my XBOX360 for anyone to find when they access the game system.

2.  Computer/Tablet.  Put a shortcut on your desktop that is separate from all your other shortcuts and describes what it links to.  Example: Emergency Rapture Info.

3.  Cell phone.  Add your own personal video or audio to your cell phone.  Anyone left behind who is searching through your media files will find it.

4.  MP3 Player.  Add video or audio to your own personal MP3 player to be accessed by anyone who finds it.

If you, the reader, have any more suggestions, please let me know.  I will seriously consider placing them in this blog.

What Is Jesus Waiting For?

Why is Jesus taking so long to return?  What is He waiting for?

I will attempt to answer this question without adding a lot of details that may make this blog difficult to get though…lol.  So here we go!

Jesus is our Bridegroom, but many Christians don’t understand what that means.  In Jewish tradition, if a man wanted to marry a woman, he went to the woman’s father and asked for his permission to marry his daughter.  The father would then inform the potential groom of the “bride price” or “ketubah.”  If the potential groom agreed to this price, he would pay it or, if he didn’t have enough money, he would leave and work until he had saved up the entire amount.  Then he would return to the potential bride’s father weeks, months or years later with the amount agreed upon. 

(Let me state clearly here that the bridegroom was not “purchasing” his wife.  The “ketubah” is belongs to the wife and is used to support her and any children they may have had together in the event the marriage was dissolved.)

When the “bride price” was paid, the potential bride would be asked to make a decision as to whether she wanted to marry the potential groom.  The potential bride was offered a cup of wine.  If she drank from it, then the agreement was made.  The groom would then go back to his father’s house to prepare the bridal chamber.  This preparation could take up to a year to be completed.That’s not the end of the ceremony, but let’s stop here for a moment and compare this with what Jesus did.

The cup of wine:  Jesus offered us that cup of wine at the Last Supper.  When the disciples took the wine offered by Jesus, they were accepting Jesus offer for a new life with Him in His Father’s house.  When we take communion, we are remembering the sacrifice that Jesus made in order for us to be with Him for eternity.

The bride price (ketubah):  Jesus’ desire is that we should all believe in Him and live with Him forever, but there was a “ketubah” that was required.  What was this “bride price” that Jesus paid?  It was a price that no one had ever been asked to pay in the history of the world, and a price that would never be asked of again.  That price was Jesus’ life.  He paid the “bride price” by being beaten, whipped, spit upon, degraded and then crucified upon the cross.   He paid the ultimate price to the Father for His bride (all true born again believers in Christ). 

Back to His Father’s house:  When Jesus went to heaven, He went back to His Father’s house to “prepare a place for you.”  He went to go prepare the bridal chamber.  How great is that!!!

Now back to the marriage ceremony
During the time that the groom was preparing the marriage chamber, the bride would wear a veil to signify that she had been promised in marriage to someone and that she was no longer single.  Anyone seeing her would know that she was “off the market” because of her appearance. 

The veil:  Today, all true born again believers in Christ have this “veil”… this symbol of our promised marriage to the Bridegroom.  That symbol is the baptism of the Holy Spirit.  It is He who is in us and covers us and causes us to live our lives in a way that people can look at us and say, “He/She belongs to the Lord.”

Now as the bridegroom is preparing the bridal chamber, the bridegroom’s father keeps an eye on the progress.  It’s only when the bridegroom’s father says the bridal chamber is ready that the bridegroom can go and retrieve his bride.  To do that, he gathers his male friends together in the middle of the night and heads off to the bride’s father’s house.  They carry torches and make quite a bit of noise on their way there, including blowing the shofar.The bride constantly anticipates the groom’s arrival.  When the bride knows the bridegroom is coming, she prepares herself.  It’s an exciting time for everyone.  The bridegroom and his friends then whisk the bride away to the bridal chamber where they remain for seven days while everyone else waits for them to emerge at the end of this period. 

Waiting for the Father to say go:  Jesus is preparing a place for us (mansions) and is preparing the marriage feast.  As the Bridegroom, He must wait for the Father to say that everything that needs to be done is completed and that He can now go and get His bride. 

Anticipating the Groom’s arrival:  We’re told in bible to be prepared for the Lord’s return at all times.  Don’t fall asleep or assume that the Lord will be long in coming, because the Bridegroom can come at any time.

Making noise:  Jesus will come with the angels, making a lot of noise.  There will be a shout of the archangel and a trumpet will be sounded.

The Bride is taken:  He will come at that exciting moment and steal us away to be with Him forever. 

Seven days:  Just like the bride and groom would be in the bridal chamber for seven days, we will be with the Lord for seven years.  When the seven years is up, we will exit the “bridal chamber” and return to earth with the Lord at His second coming.

God created the wedding ritual, the Jewish feasts, etc… not only to signify an event in the bible, but also to mirror the life of the Messiah.  Jesus is our Bridegroom.  He is preparing the bridal chamber for His bride.  He is just waiting for our Father to tell Him to come back and retrieve His bride.  When He does, there will be a great shout and the blowing of a trumpet.  At that moment, all true born-again believers in Christ will be changed, at the twinkling of an eye.  We will be changed from corruptible to incorruptible, from mortal to immortal, to finally be with Jesus forever in heaven.

Tribulation Harvest

Well I finally did it.  I created my own web site.  It’s called, “TRIBULATION HARVEST.” It’s a web site that explains end time biblical prophecy; mainly the rapture and the seven-year tribulation.  I also hope to be able to offer a packet of information for sale on my web site in the very near future.  If you’d like to take a look at my new site, just click here.

I welcome any feedback, good or bad.  Please leave feedback at the web site or here on my blog.  If you leave positive feedback, I may include it on my home page along with some other very glowing comments that I’ve received from others who have visited my site.

God Bless!!!

Take Off Those Muddy Boots

I borrowed some of this blog from a friend on another blog site.  I liked what he had to say, so I expanded a little on what he shared and this is the result.

People often say, “God loves everybody just they way they are.”  That may be true, but He also loves us too much to let us remain in our sin.

We cannot enter the kingdom of heaven in our present unsaved condition.  We must be born again to enter the kingdom of God.

As non-believers, our spiritual connection with God is severed.  It’s not until we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior that this connection is repaired so that we can have a direct line of communication to God and vice versa and begin building a lifelong relationship with Him.

God has revealed to us that we are sinners and unless that condition changes, we can’t enter into His kingdom.  Look at it this way: Just as you refuse to let somebody walk through your clean house with muddy boots on, God has a requirement for His home too.  You love your child, but he isn’t coming in the house until he takes off those muddy boots, no matter how much he sweet-talks you or tries to use his intellect to convince you otherwise.

It’s the same with God. He’s pretty much saying “come to me dirty, just the way you are.”  He even kneels down and takes those filthy boots off of us; all we have to do is let him.  But people still refuse, claiming those boots will be coming into God’s house in spite of what He says. 

It’s our choice; do we take off those filthy boots or do we remain outside of God’s kingdom.

Why Won’t God Prove He Exists?

When you ask, “Why doesn’t God prove He exists?”, what you’re really asking is why doesn’t God prove His existence again — and this time, to you personally.

But what if He did?  What if God revealed Himself to you in a way that you could no longer deny His existence?  What’s next?  Well, you’d want to share what you knew, right?  But how would that work out?  A lot of your friends are like-minded.  They don’t believe in God and if you just walked up to them and told them that you had a true one to one experience that left you with no doubt that God truly existed, how do you think they would react?  They’d want proof, proof that you wouldn’t be able to give them.  The only thing you would have to offer them is your word that what happened to you was real. 

Where would that leave you?  In the same place every other Christian finds themselves; in a personal relationship with the living God and the challenge of sharing who He is with people who don’t  believe in His existence. 

Every true Christian has a common experience; that moment when we reach out in faith to a God we can no longer deny exists.  At that moment, we are spiritually born again and we begin a new life in Jesus Christ. 

You can’t prove it, you can’t even adequately explain the change that miraculously happens at that moment, but you know that the experience is true.  Others may mock us and say all manner of evil against us, but we remain steadfast in our belief because we KNOW that what we’ve experienced is real. 

Do we hate those who mock us, make fun of us, abuse us, degrade us, assault us?  No.  Instead we pray that God will give them that little ounce of faith needed to believe; that He will soften their hearts and open their eyes to the truth that can set them free. 

We are saddened for those who may never allow God to touch their heart, knowing that the only alternative to eternity in heaven is an eternity in hell.  So we persist; we persevere; we make ourselves available to plant and water the seeds of faith and then hope to be there for the reaping.

May all praise and glory be to the living God!!!

Israel: Land For Peace

Land for peace? You’ve got to be joking! The world is demanding that Israel give up even more land to its enemies in order to bring peace to the Middle East. Is history to be repeated again?
One of the most famous “Land for Peace” agreements was between Britain and Germany.

September 15, 1938: British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain set out for Germany to visit Adolph Hitler. Hitler wasn’t asking for too much, just the liberation of the German-speaking areas of Czechoslovakia [the western part of Czechoslovakia called Sudetenland]. It was a sweet little “Land for Peace” deal that would hopefully appease the Fuhrer and give the German-speaking Czechs their “rights of self-determination”, albeit under Nazi control. Fifteen days later the Sudetenland was handed over to Hitler. In exchange, Hitler gives his word that he has no other territorial designs on Europe.

October 1, 1938: Germany now owns half of Czechoslovakia and not a single shot was fired. Before the year ended, Hitler broke his agreement and occupied the remainder of Czechoslovakia.

The following year Hitler invaded Poland. He continued to invade most of Europe, Africa, and Russia and even bombed Chamberlain’s very own Britain. Needless to say, the duped Chamberlain was replaced rather quickly by Winston Churchill. The Brits had THEIR fill of “Land for Peace!” And that was just one example!

The policy of “Land for Peace” logically entails the surrender of Israeli territory whenever Arabs threaten war. As anyone may see from the US House of Representatives Task Force Report on Terrorism and Unconventional Warfare issued on December 10, 1996, the territorial shrinkage of Israel following the Oslo peace process has triggered a “frantic military build-up” by Arab and Islamic states that now see an opportunity to annihilate the Jewish State.

Question: Can Israel be certain that peace will never be withheld again by those who receive the land?
Question: What will happen if surrendering land reduces Israel’s ability to defend itself from those who will occupy the surrendered land?

Many may say, “Well, we won’t know until we try.” And if it fails, it will be too late to save the country and its people. Israel will be gone.

Fortunately, biblical prophecy does state that although Israel will be attacked in the future by a large and powerful coalition, God will intervene and destroy all but one sixth of the attacking forces, saving Israel and bringing glory to His name.

Praise be to the Lord God Almighty!!!

The Tribulation and Near Earth Objects (NEO’s)

8”The second angel sounded, and something like a great mountain burning with fire was thrown into the sea; and a third of the sea became blood, 9and a third of the creatures which were in the sea and had life, died; and a third of the ships were destroyed.” Revelation 8:8-9 (NASB)

10”The third angel sounded, and a great star fell from heaven, burning like a torch, and it fell on a third of the rivers and on the springs of waters. 11The name of the star is called Wormwood; and a third of the waters became wormwood, and many men died from the waters, because they were made bitter.” Revelation 8:10-11 (NASB)

12”The fourth angel sounded, and a third of the sun and a third of the moon and a third of the stars were struck, so that a third of them would be darkened and the day would not shine for a third of it, and the night in the same way. 13Then I looked, and I heard an eagle flying in midheaven, saying with a loud voice, ‘Woe, woe, woe to those who dwell on the earth, because of the remaining blasts of the trumpet of the three angels who are about to sound!’” Revelation 8:12-13 (NASB)

NEO’s are those meteors and asteroids that fly really close to earth? They’re called Near Earth Objects (NEO’s) and they’re more common than you think. How close is close, you may ask. What if I told you that many of them pass by close enough to fly between the earth and the moon? Close enough for you? That doesn’t count the small ones that burn up in our atmosphere. Scientists know they’re there, the governments of the world know they’re there and I’m sure most of us have heard something about the subject. Why am I making such a fuss about NEO’s? Biblical prophecy.

You may think that I’m saying that NEO’s are the cause of all of this, but that’s not what I’m saying. I believe that there is a good possibility that these NEO’s are going to be used by the enemy to explain away the judgments of God. Why believe in God when it can be shown that NEO’s have been tracked for years and that they are a natural part of the universe, causing destruction on the earth for millions of years. Just one more lie the enemy will tell those who remain after the rapture.

Occult Experience In The Bible

The practice of necromancy. It’s in the bible. 1 Samuel chapter 28 verses 9 through 21 tells the story of a witch who seemingly conjured up the spirit of Samuel. Is this God’s way of telling us that ghosts really do exist? Let’s see what this scripture says.

Brief background: Saul was a king King of Israel. When Saul was walking in fellowship with the Lord, He obeyed God in His command to destroy all demonic practices because it was an affront to God. Saul eventually began disobeying God. God had repeatedly warned him that He would turn His face away from Saul if Saul continued to disobey Him. When the Philistines were preparing to attack, Saul sought out the Lord, but the Lord didn’t answer him. It’s because of this that Saul sought out a medium to conjure up the voice of Samuel so that he might seek Samuel’s council.

Then Saul disguised himself by putting on other clothes, and went, he and two men with him, and they came to the woman by night; and he said, “Conjure up for me, please, and bring up for me whom I shell name to you. But the woman said to him, “Behold, you know what Saul has done, how he has cut off those who are mediums and spiritists from the land. Why are you then laying a snare for my life to bring about my death?” 1 Sam. 28:8-9

Saul had to disguise himself because he couldn’t let anyone see that he was visiting someone who performed demonic rituals. The woman was cautious at first, making this stranger aware that she was taking her life into her own hands if she were to assist him. At this time, she was unaware that it was Saul that was asking her to do this.

Saul vowed to her by the Lord, saying, “As the Lord lives, no punishment shall come upon you for this thing.” Then the woman said, “Whom shall I bring up for you?” And he said, “Bring up Samuel for me.” When the woman saw Samuel, she cried out with a loud voice; and the woman spoke to Saul saying, “Why have you deceived me? For you are Saul.” 1 Sam. 28:10-12

Now necromancers were used to hearing the voices of the “spirits”, and the witch would not have been surprised to hear an audible voice response; in fact, that’s what she expected. But when she used her incantations to bring up the usual voice response, God took control over the situation and He actually sent Samuel back from the dead. That terrified the witch. She knew that it had to be God who was performing this act, which made her realize that it was Saul that she was speaking to.

The king said to her, “Do not be afraid; but what do you see?” And the woman said to Saul, “I see a divine being coming up out of the earth.” He said to her, “What is his form?” And she said, “An old man is coming up, and he is wrapped with a robe.” And Saul knew that it was Samuel, and he bowed with his face to the ground and did homage. Then Samuel said to Saul, “Why have you disturbed me by bringing me up? 1 Sam. 28:13-15a

Saul not only created a terrible sin by disobeying God, but now he has appealed to the occult to get guidance., which was the final straw for God. Read through to verse 21 for the rest of that story. It’s easy to misinterpret this piece of scripture and think that God is showing us that ghosts exist and that it’s possible to conjure them up and speak with them. The fact is that it was God who caused the REAL Samuel to appear to Saul.

So, are ghosts real or not? It depends what your definition of “ghost” is. The spiritual realm exists and it is divided into two parts, good and evil. Unfortunately for us, evil tries every trick in the book to keep us from experiencing a close relationship with God, including mimicking our loved ones or mimicking those who have died in the past in the hopes that we will develop a belief in ghosts, thus watering down our relationship with God.

Do we honestly believe that God, who is omnipotent, would allow His children to wander around spiritually lost in some sort of limbo state? That He wouldn’t have the power or authority to call them home? That a powerless spirit could override the Almighty? Doesn’t make sense to me and I’m sure if you see it in that light, it doesn’t make sense to you either.

God said that it was appointed for a man to die once, then judgment. There is no scriptural basis for believing that ghosts are people who have died and who have not figured out how to get to where they need to go. God takes care of that at our death. It’s not something we have to figure out on our own. The question is, have we accepted Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior so that we can receive the gift of salvation and be assured of eternal life in heaven when we die?

Diluting Our Faith

How many of us have diluted our faith to keep peace with the world? I will be the first one to raise my hand.

I am no spring chicken. I am almost 50 years old. For so many years I have limited most of my conversation about my faith in God to Christians. I didn’t want to be bogged down in debate or embarrassed by being caught without an answer, so I shied away from discussing God with non-Christians. What changed all that? Well, God led me to Thoughts.com where I could express myself and say things that I haven’t been able to share with people for so long. That, of course, has brought a new freedom which I have been experiencing since being on this site.

Sure, I get angry, condemning and borderline offensive replies (especially considering the subjects I blog about), but that gives me the opportunity to speak the word of God and get some truth out there, whether people want to accept it or not. All I want to do is plant, water and reap the harvest. I’ve found it easier to share my faith in other formats, like on other web sites and in person. That is a freeing experience and one that the Lord has blessed me with. I thank God that in the few short weeks I’ve been on this site I’ve become more extroverted in the sharing of my faith.

Some of my friends are not believers and I have avoided actively sharing my faith to keep peace, but no more! I won’t hit them over the head with the bible, but I won’t bite my tongue when I have a Christian prospective on whatever they’re talking about either. If they want to put something out there in Thoughts.com, Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, etc. then they can expect a Christian perspective if I have an opinion. If they talk about gay marriage, racism, national security, Israel, etc. then they can expect to hear my Christian perspective.

So, I’ve decided that I will no longer water down my faith to make peace with the world. If the truth within God’s written word is an offense to others, then I just have to understand that and realize that the curses and condemnation are all part of sharing in the sufferings of Christ. Now “taking up my cross” has a more significant meaning to me. Too bad it took me this long to work this out. I used to be an outspoken Christian when I first became born-again (as I think we all are), and I’m glad that I’m getting back to that point in my life where the love of God just pours out!!!

Sure, I may lose some friends, but I might be used by God to save some of them from an eternity in hell, and that’s what my life is all about; sharing the word of God and rescuing my lost brothers and sisters from the hands of the enemy, Satan.

Praise God, I’m back baby!!!!!

I’ll Leave The Proof To God

I have participated in numerous discussions about God and evolution on thoughths.com and I must say that I’ve learned something through all that. I’ve learned that we are all on a path that leads us to our own personal destiny and we alone have to make the decision to change the path we’re on if we want to change that destiny.

For me, my destiny is spiritual; the path I walk leads me towards heaven. I believe with all my heart and with all my mind and with all my soul that God exists. He has made Himself real to me many times and has blessed me beyond measure. He has spoken to me and has given me spiritual experiences that I cannot ignore. I believe that the road I walk on will lead me to a destiny where I will spend eternity in the presence of Almighty God.

And you know what? I don’t have to prove anything. How great is THAT!?! I don’t have to prove that God exists, that’s not my role in life. God has made Himself known to better men than I and He will continue doing so until time literally runs out. No, I’ll continue to spread the word of God and allow Him to shine through me as a beacon for anyone who is seeking His light, because that’s why I’m here.

Jesus went in to the tax collector’s home and He also befriended prostitutes and all manner of “sinners” because they were looking for redemption. The religious men of the day rejected Jesus because of their self-righteousness, but the lowly in heart… they knew that they needed the salvation that came only through Jesus.

So I’ll stay on thoughts.com doing what I’m doing, but trying to prove God exists… that I’ll leave in the hands of God and the hearts of mankind.