Well, my friends, Easter is upon us. The winter (for most) is over and spring is beginning. We once again had a wonderful time with Thanksgiving and Christmas, enjoying family and friends and really good food as well. It all leaves me feeling very nostalgic. I so miss my Mom and Dad, and aunts and uncles that have passed on. Thankfully, to my Lord and Savior, I will see all of them once again, one day pretty soon (Lord willing). And so as I sit here writing to y’all, a question popped in my head, as is usual for me. Once we get to Heaven, will we enjoy the Lord’s birthday as we would here on earth?

Okay, I know everything in Heaven will be far better than my feeble mind could envision, yet the knowledge of how these times on earth were, so happy and warm – will we experience that again? Here’s what I mean. My Mom baked some of the best pies I have ever known. Today I use the same recipe and then I pray they are like hers. My Dad was the “Cook” for our Christmas meal, and I have no words to describe the results of his work…except mouth-watering wonderful. Still as yet, those words do not seem to do it justice, if y’all know what I mean.

Since my Mom and Dad have passed on many years ago, the job falls to me, baking and cooking the meal. I want those same smells to enlighten all of us, to watch my grand-kids squeal and giggle with delight. I would like the smell of the tree to fill the air again, but…many in my family are allergic…sadly. Still we “Endeavor to Persevere!” We are most thankful to the Lord for all that He blesses us with. So typically, we are all full and then sleepy afterwards. Such is our birthday celebration of our Lord and Savior.

Now we move on in time, although lovingly remembering the past.

With spring just beginning, we spend a little more time outdoors; we love the early blooms and leaves. We…here in Texas…enjoy our Bluebonnets and Indian Paintbrush, for sure! Rebirth, my friends, if you will. The air is alive with new scents and wonderful Texas Hill Country scenery. Indeed, my friends, the Lord is Wonderful in His Creations, and we Praise Him. We have our own small excursions that we drive to and enjoy frequently. It’s not the Northwest with all the pines, and it’s not the Mideast with its multi-colored trees. It is uniquely Texas and just as beautiful. How Gracious is our Lord God?!

We are now looking to celebrate Easter, the Remembrance of the Lord’s Gift of His Life for us. What better way to celebrate that Gift than to watch the Hill Country renew its colorful life. Of course, in Texas this means “Old-Timey Texas Barbecue!” It matters little what it is that is chosen to BBQ; we enjoy it all and thank the Lord for it. Sometimes we head to our favorite BBQ place and buy it, and in most other times we pull out the Old Smoker and do it ourselves. The results are always wonderful.

Even though the seasons change, one thing is always consistent – praise and thank the Lord for our blessings! Several things come to mind with this. We should always give thanks no matter the situation, whether we have or have not. Trust me, things could always be worse…right?

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 “Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.”

The Lord always provides for us, according (as the verse says above) to His Perfect Will. And the Bible always asks a question – if you love your family, would you give them a snake or a scorpion? Of course you wouldn’t!

Luke 11:11-12 “If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion?”

So now, does this make any sense to you? Our lives should always resemble that of our Lord and Savior, beginning with the “Intent of our Heart.” We must also remember this passage of Scripture.

John 15:5-7 “I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.”

The passage above should be taken literally. Without Jesus Christ…we can’t do anything! That includes taking the next breath of air or having the next heartbeat. Now does this make any sense to you? This then asks us, to whom should we give all the thanks and praise? Obviously, to the Lord God Almighty!

Now that doesn’t mean just for Christmas or Thanksgiving alone, but every day and every minute of our lives, breath to breath and heartbeat to heartbeat. In other words, every single millisecond of our lives…we exist…because of Him. Does this make sense to you? Sort of puts a slightly different spin on John 3:16, doesn’t it? And that goes a long way with every other passage of Scripture too.

How wonderful it is that the Lord God preserves us moment to moment, from one mouthful of food to the next, if you will. Again, it lets us view how fallen a species we truly are when we fail to recognize the Lord God and all His Blessings to us. My friends, this should be moment to moment, day to day…all year long, no matter our situation.

How much better would our situation be if every one of us was constantly giving Him our heartfelt thanks and praise? Each of us would then be following Him as we should, no matter where we are. This means “no matter our situation…good or bad…we praise Him.” We wouldn’t have any situation…if we did not have Him. We would not exist!

As I have stated many times, our time here on earth is very short, and it is short for a reason. We are here to make one single decision, to follow Jesus Christ or not. That’s the whole ball of wax rolled together. It’s in God’s Holy Word, the Bible. Read it and believe it! Trust me when I say it will change your entire life—how you see this life and how you experience every single day. Remember this:

Matthew 11:28-30 “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

That’s the answer to the question, Why are we here? It tells us that the Lord God Jesus Christ loves each of us so much, He left Heaven and came here to die for us—to give us, each of us, a way to live with Him in Heaven for Eternity! Anyone says anything else…they are lying. They will not see Heaven. The Bible says so. Again, the Holy Word of God answers every question you could ever think of. It also says this:

Isaiah 55:11-12 “So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.”

These passages of Scripture run through my head all the time, especially when we take our little drives through the Hill Country. How amazing is my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! HE continually shows that His Holy Word is true, that it is alive and so worth reading and believing.

I have no idea what will happen the exact moment I see Him…I will probably be shocked to say the least. Then I will bury my worthless face in the dirt and praise Him for His love for me, regardless of my life. And you? What will you do? How do we envision such absolute Perfection?

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.“

All Scripture comes from the King James Version of the Bible.

You may reach me at twobears44@gmail.com

 

As I remembered in my last article, the days in my child years of the “Tent Revivals,” I love describing the event: the hot and sweltering conditions, the field next to the tent, rolling with heat waves. Yet every time I think back to those times, I hear, “You won’t get to Heaven with unforgiven sin in your Life.” And there would be a pounding on the pulpit as the pastor yelled this: “God’s Holy Word wants us to understand that the Precious Blood of Jesus Christ from His Cross on Calvary…is to cover our Sin…BUT…you must ask for it!”

And there would be another pounding on the pulpit…loud enough to make everyone jump. “You MUST…humble yourself before the Lord God…get on your knees…and reverently ask Jesus to SAVE YOU. Did you hear that? For Jesus to SAVE YOU…from your sin…to cover your sin with His Blood!”

And the podium would rock and sound off, “If you don’t ask for it…you will go to Hell and later the Lake of Fire! I do NOT say this; the Bible…God’s Holy Word to you and I…says this.” And I would have sworn the tent itself would jump.

Can you imagine a Tent Revival like in those times happening nowadays? I am sure there would be protests and maybe a bomb threat to boot! Feelings would be hurt because everyone was yelled at by the pastor. Boo hoo! “A Revival,” what a concept that is and especially in these days and times. I know this: I would be there, hot or not.

Yet I must say this: there would be NO HOLY FEELINGS in any Tent Revival, no saying “I just feel so holy every time I walk in the church.” There would not be a sermon on “prosperity.” The seats would be hard and uncomfortable, the heat sweltering. And the “Answer to Salvation would ring out!”

Revelation 2:5-7 “Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent. But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.”

This verse strikes me to the heart. In other words, do as the Holy Word of God says, come to Jesus, ask HIM to save you and cover your sin with His Blood. There is NO other way to Heaven. I am saying this just as those Tent Revival pastors said it back then, because there truly is NO other way.

It does not matter how bad a sinner you are; Jesus says simply…”Come unto me!” The only sin that is not covered is the sin of “Rejecting Jesus Christ.” That, my friends, is the Fulcrum, the Tipping Point between you and Jesus Christ for His Salvation for Eternity. If only everyone would read this and understand it. Everything that you could ever want or desire, every comfort, every Blessing, every good thing…is found in Jesus Christ…and only Him. And it will last for Eternity. What else is there?

I don’t care if you are a murderer, a thief, whatever…Jesus Christ…IS your answer. All you must do is to ask for it…with all your heart! No pomp…No other process…no nothing else…a simple decision in your heart is all it ever takes. This is why you are here on Earth…to become a child of the Most High God! To go to Heaven…to be with Jesus Christ…who IS God! It’s that simple ya’ll.

I can vividly hear the pastor yelling this from the pulpit…everyone’s eyes were wide open…Hearts were beginning to understand…nothing else mattered at the moment. As the pastor would mop his brow, a piano would begin to play, and then there was the “Call to the Altar” of Jesus Christ. People would wobbly rise to their feet, and they would walk forward to the Altar, lives being saved to Jesus Christ. You could feel the moment in your heart; I know I did.

The pastor would lay his hand on each head, and he would ask, “Do you want Jesus Christ in your heart and life? PRAISE THE LORD.” Tears would be streaming from their eyes, chests heaving and shaking, hands clasped together, “thank you Lord” on every lip. No “feeling good about yourself,” no “Prosperity gospel” was heard, but you could feel the weight being lifted from your heart…finally!

No more fear… about life…or even death for that matter…they are one and the same in this life on Earth. Yet, you knew where you would be in Eternity, with the Lord God. That, my friends, IS enough.

In my heart, my friends, we NEED a revival for Jesus Christ. We need to Come to Him as HE asks us to and give Him our hearts and lives, more today…than ever before! Or do you not watch everything going on around you in this life? If you want your children to grow and live, then they need Jesus Christ in their every moment. How would your life prosper? Money does not bring prosperity….never has and never will. How about everyday harmony and a sense of peace? How about no more worries? Sounds great…does it not? Your answer is above and it comes from the Holy Word of God.

Matthew 11:28-30 “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

Do you know of anything else that will offer the same? I know I do not. Do I still have troubles in my life? Absolutely, I do! The difference is, no matter what happens to me, the Lord holds me in His capable Hands…I KNOW where I am headed.

I am here to give witness of the Love of Jesus Christ…for me…for others as well. Will I be spared death? It doesn’t matter anymore. To be born on this earth is to know one day I will die. Yet I know where I will spend Eternity…In Heaven with my Lord and Savior. You know…that is enough for me.

We all think with our earthly senses: comfort, pain, hardship, even death…that is our own downfall. We must remember, “We are the fallen species.” We need Jesus Christ. We need to be saved! This life here on Earth…is the FIRST stepping stone on our trip into Eternity. What comes next is what truly matters.

Which do you want…Heaven with love, safety, comfort, harmony, peace…forever? Or do you want Hell and the Lake of Fire…with pain, suffering, agony, NO HOPE. My Friends…it is your choice. That choice is the entire reason you are here on Earth to begin with.

Your only choice here is to go to Heaven or to Hell…that’s it. Everything else that happens here is not within your control…never was and never will be. The Holy Word of God has every answer to every question you could ever think of. And to think it has been around for better than 4,500 years!

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should NOT perish, but have everlasting life.“

All Scripture comes from the King James Version of the Bible

You may reach me at twobears44@gnail.com