Jun 9
Summer Donation Drive
Once again, folks, it's time to reflect on accomplishments we’ve achieved over the last quarter, and to forecast our plans for the near future. We are only about halfway into the year and it already looks like 2008 will be a great year for productivity.
We've been posting a continuous flood of new articles to the site. We have added several authors to our list of featured writers. Last month, I set a record for the most number of articles uploaded in a single day. I posted 15 new articles to the site along with my regular Monday updates. The old record was 10 articles, set just a couple of weeks earlier.
One woman half-jokingly complained to me that we're adding articles faster than she can read them. Our goal is to reach the largest audience possible. I don't expect anyone to read all of the articles on the site. RR includes a vast library of end-time information.
Each month, the site is visited by people who find us through 53,000 search results. Because there is a huge difference between an article ranked at 400th versus the fourth spot, I spend a large amount of time designing the site's content to be more appealing to the search engines.
The job of getting our content ranked in the indexes has actually gotten easier. Despite that fact that the quantity of articles on the Internet has risen by over 10 tens in the past five years, Rapture Ready's strong connection to prophecy causes our content to rise above the average website. The site has a high level of search momentum that gives any new articles priority ranking.
The Rapture Ready message board has seen amazing growth. We are very near the point of setting all-time highs for traffic. The moderators deserve special praise for doing a job that requires the wisdom of Solomon. They make the board a safe place for Christians to fellowship. Our main admin, Chris, has been very inventive in adding the latest new features to the board.
Over the years, several people have decided that they could do a better job of running a Christian message board. They've started their own boards and quickly found out it's easier said than done. I recently visited one of these boards and found I was the only visitor at that time.
We're getting so much traffic on our main server that the software that normally keeps track of the hits has not been able to keep up with the demand. Because it is the lowest priority for a server, the function has been unable to work since February. We've had to turn to Google Analytics to keep tabs on our visitors. In May, we set a three-year high for unique visitors, and an all-time high for page traffic.
In the past few months, we have seen incredible signs that the tribulation hour is rapidly headed our way. We had one disaster after another, and a number of economic catalysts are driving prophecy forward. As the world grows darker, Christians need to be more focused on the Kingdom.
If Jesus is coming soon, it shouldn’t matter that the U.S. political progress looks dire for November; oil is at $140 a barrel; and the Middle East is ready to explode at any moment. When we stand before throne of God, the Judge of all things is going to ask us whether we noticed the end was coming. The Lord will want to know what we did about it.
One of the simplest ways to contribute to Rapture Ready is through a regular donation. PayPal subscribers and people who have their banks send funds to our PO Box have become a vital part of our ministry. If you're interested in signing up, you can find the link on the Donation Depot page. Donations can also be sent to our PO Box at:
Rapture Ready Min.
PO Box 185
Boys Town, NE 68010
-- Todd
Sin Brings Thirst, Hunger
Recent headlines hit the discerning observer of the signs of the times between the eyes. Sin is the deadly bane of mankind, and the Creator of all things will not allow any generation to move into an era of His judgment and wrath without considerable warning.
Pointing out this truth is more often than not unpopular. Doing so is often more excoriated by those within the Body of Christ (the Church) than by the secular world. But, when God’s warnings are so direct and dramatic, to do less than attempt to point them out would be more than dereliction of duty. Pointing out such things is what we are commissioned to do here at Rapture Ready, along with breaking the Bread of Life (God’s Word)–and that gets to the point of a couple of news stories at which we will briefly look.
Sin is at the heart of man’s thirst, the Bible tells us. There is drought where the water of life that comes only from God is disregarded–that is, refused. Certainly that water of life is wrapped up in God’s prescription for living here on this fallen planet. We can get perspective on this matter in the following excerpt of a story about California lawmakers dealing with homosexual issues. Particularly, the “gay marriage” issue hits home in this regard:
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - California's Supreme Court gave the final green light on Wednesday for gay marriages to begin later this month, turning down requests for a delay.
The most populous U.S. state's highest court ruled last month that refusing homosexuals the right to wed violated the state constitution…
The court voted 4-3 to deny the petition to stay the decision. The same judges voted the same way on May 15 in the landmark decision, hailed by gay activists and condemned by social conservatives.
The court's original ruling becomes final at 5 p.m. on June 16, opening the way for gay marriages to start the next day ("California court says gay marriages can proceed," Adam Tanner, Reuters, June 4, 2008).
Following hard on the heels of the decision, in effect, to validate gay marriage as a norm for California, comes the announcement by the Terminator. Well, not God, who will indeed terminate all sin with judgment and wrath at a point perhaps not too distant, but by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger:
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - After two years of below-average rainfall in California, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a statewide drought on Wednesday…
"For the areas in Northern California that supply most of our water, this March, April and May have been the driest ever in our recorded history," Schwarzenegger said in a statement…” ("California governor declares state in drought," June 4, 2008, Jim Christie).
The connection between the decision to defy God’s design of one man and one woman in marriage for life and the governor’s declaration that this is the worse drought in the state’s history is at the very least fascinating to consider. I will be so bold as to postulate that it is not coincidence at all.
While California thirsts, hunger grows on a worldwide scale, bringing about stated concerns from the very body that many who study Bible prophecy believe is the organization that harbors the greatest rebellion against the Almighty. The U.N. will likely be a part of establishing Antichrist’s power base during the most horrific time of famine in the history of man.
ROME - World powers must act quickly and boldly to control soaring food prices that threaten nearly 1 billion people with hunger and could trigger global social unrest, the United Nations said yesterday…
"Nothing is more degrading than hunger, especially when man-made," UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon told more than 40 world leaders gathered here ("UN warns of food shortage and unrest, Urges world leaders to work to control prices," Los Angeles Times, June 4, 2008).
There is increasing rebellion to God’s designed way for man to comport himself upon this planet. People more and more are directed to worship the creation more than the Creator, such as is involved within all of this “green” nonsense. Mankind majors on the minor do-good things, and gives little attention to the truly major issues in God’s omniscient view–like living within His marriage guidelines. The result is God’s warnings that will be increasingly commensurate with the seriousness of the transgressions, and lateness of the prophetic hour.
An instant cure is at hand for the thirst and hunger that plague this generation. It is a cure of a spiritual nature. Jesus Christ is the Word, and the Word of God is the Bread of Life. Water that assures eternal life is available, the Bible promises. “And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely” (Rev. 22:17).
--Terry
