–Michael D. Abbott  (Colorado Wind)

       “But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly.”

                         –Luke 21:34 (NKJV)
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There was a song that was very popular a few decades ago written by Gordon Jensen.  The chorus is

               “Signs of the times are everywhere
               There’s a brand new feeling in the air
               Keep your eyes upon the eastern sky
               Lift up your head, redemption draweth nigh.”

I wrote last week regarding the Euphrates River drying up, and all the problems that it is already causing.  This week I heard that the source of the Thames River is dry and that the Yangtze River is drying up and that China had to cut off the power to 94 million people.  Now, it isn’t a total shutdown, but what will happen if the river continues to dry?  Not only does it bring about the necessity of fresh water, but because of the shortage the water that is there is not fit to drink.  
                Signs of the times…
       Look at a couple of the Trumpet Judgments in Revelation.  Could this be an omen of things to come?  Results of the First Trumpet:  “And a third of the trees were burned up, and all green grass was burned up.” (Revelation 8:7, NKJV).  The Third Trumpet:  “The name of the star is Wormwood.  A third of the waters became wormwood, and many men died from the water, because it was made bitter.”  (Revelation 8:11, NKJV)  From the riding of the Black Horse we know that there will be a scarcity on the earth of the staples of life.
               Signs of the times…
       Jesus says that “There will be great earthquakes in various places, and famines and pestilences; and there will be fearful sights and great signs from heaven” (Luke 21:11, NKJV)  Pestilence–we have just gone through what is being called a “pandemic” of the COVID virus.  Thousands died, yet what is to come?  Another virus, natural or man-made.  I read just this morning that polio cases were reported and samples of the virus were found in wastewater.  Polio?  Wasn’t it supposed to be eradicated?  Plus, there is the monkeypox–something that is 99% among gay people.
               Signs of the times…
       Science has the answer, but science is always changing so how can the “answer” be trusted?  We were to get vaccinated for the COVID, now there are saying that we should use common sense.  Knowledge is ever increasing, ah, but what kind of knowledge.  Daniel prophesied, “…Shut up the words, and seal the book until the time of the end; any shall run to and from, and knowledge shall increase.” (Daniel 12:4, NKJV)  Think of that, the intelligencia tell us one thing, then another, and yet some more–“professingn to be wise, they became fools…  Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness….” (Romans 1:22, 24, NKJV)
               Signs of the times…
       We live in a time when immorality has become the morality of the culture.  When evil is now called good by the cultural progressives.  They are more enlightened, but actually they are declaring themselves fools and are mocking God’s eternal moral values.  “Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!  Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight!” (Isaiah 5:20-21, NKJV)  Does that sound like the elite of this country today?  Arrogance, haughtiness and they speak the lie with a smirk on their face.
               Signs of the times…
         I assume that you have heard the talk regarding digital money.  It is on the agenda of President Biden and is very much a focal point of the United Nations.  They are calling it “digital sustainability” and it goes beyond money.  The idea is to have a “trustworthy internet” that is to be “consistent with our shared global values.”  Purchases will be “registered and assessed” according to how they benefit climate.  In other words, the United Nations wants to control who purchases and what is purchased.  No more cash, all will be digital.  Now, think of this!  You say something against the government, against the media, against the policies of such and what happens–your money is shut off.  You can’t get it from the bank even though you have it on deposit.  Forget about the cash you have hidden under the mattress.  “No one may buy or sell except one who has the mark of the name of the beast, or the number of his name” (Revelation 13:17, NKJV)
               Signs of the times…
       Ah, but you say this can’t happen.  This is America, and I’m free, and I have my rights.  But are we subtly having our rights taken from us?  Are we giving them away for what is called “progress”?  When I taught I always had my students write a paper:  Liberty or Security?  As the years progressed Security became to dominate until by my last couple of years of teaching over 80% of the students believed that Security was more important than Liberty.  “Peace and safety! then sudden destruction comes upon them…” (1 Thessalonians 5:3, NKJV)
               Signs of the times…
       Oh, you are so negative and pessimistic today, I hear you cry.  No, just reality.  This is the world in which we live, and this is just a smidgen of what is happening.  It is really an exhortation of joy.  We are told to “not sleep, as others do, but let us watch and be sober” (1 Thessalonians 5:6, NKJV)  The words of Jesus should make us look heavenward and with an expectant and hopeful heart.  “Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near” (Luke 21:28, NKJV).  I like the way the Amplified puts it, “Now when these things begin to occur, stand tall and lift up your heads [in joy], because [suffering ends as] your redemption is drawing near.”
               Stand tall, straighten up, and when you have done all to stand continue standing — signs of the times.

                         –Elmer Kelton  (The Good Old Boys)

       “Woe to him who builds a town with bloodshed, who established a city by iniquity!”

                         –Habakkuk 2:12(NKJV)

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                    “I know that whatever God does,
                    It shall be forever.
                    Nothing can be added to it,
                    And nothing taken from it.
                    God does it, that men should fear before Him.”
                               –Ecclesiastes 3:14 (NKJV)

       This “fear” is a term that is often misused.  Some say it simply means “to be in awe” and that is only partially right.  However, there is fear, a type of fear, when we understand who God is and His power and holiness.  We are told in Psalm 2:11, “Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling.” (NKJV).  Paul tells us that we are to “work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.” (Philippians 2:12, NKJV).  There is definitely more to this aspect of “fear.”  
       It is not an attitude of terror.  We do not live in fear!  We have nothing to fear from the Lord, our heavenly Father.  We do not want to displease Him.  I have likened it to a young boy, just receiving his driver’s license and asked his dad, good old dad, if he can borrow the car.  Dad says sure and hands him $20 to put gas in (or should I write in today’s life, $50?)  The boy smiles, and heads for the car.  His Dad is good.  Three hours later he has to call his Dad–he has wrecked the car.  He stands with head bowed as his father comes up to him.  Notice, it is no longer “Dad”, it has become “Father.”  There is some fear and trembling.  Living in the fear of God is like that; it is a commitment of the total being to trust and believe the living God–Lordship!  The boy realizes that he has displeased his father; he is not afraid of being severely punished, but hates to see the concern and disappointment in his father’s eyes.  “The one who fears God dreads nothing more than God’s disfavor.  Such a worshiper wants nothing more than to know the living God intimately and submit to His will.” (Walter C. Kaiser, Jr.)
       Life with God is trust and there is that wholesome fear.  Life comes from without–we are not little “gods” as the Cosmic Humanist and many Postmodernists would proclaim.  There is no “Universalism,” only the true believer will see his heavenly Father, others will see their Maker and Judge.  It is important that we realize that in this life we have been given power by the indwelling Holy Spirit.  This is the power to live now.  Look at you, the epitome of power–Ha!  Look at the massive cement structure of the Hoover Dam; it is nothing more than stone, but what does it produce–power.  Look again at yourself.  The Holy Spirit within you produces power to live this life.
       One more thought:  around you is always the cynic.  It comes from the word that means a mongrel dog in the streets.  The cynic says that wickedness wins.  He shakes his head saying, “woe is me, woe is us.”  With terror, death, the virus, shootings, the world situation, drought, heat, and famine along with myriad other things, the cynic says–“see I told you, no use.”  I am reminded of the verse written by the American sage, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.

                    “And in despair I bowed my head:
                    ‘There is no peace on earth,’ I said,
                    ‘For hate is strong, and mocks the song
                    Of peace on earth, good-will to men.'”

The cynic has cried, the hopeless wails, the devil sneers and laughs.  But, wait a minute, Longfellow doesn’t stop there.  In the midst of despair.  In the midst of a hopeless world he continues to write:

                    “Then peeled the bells more loud and deep:
                    ‘God is not dead: nor doth He sleep;
                    The wrong shall fail, the right prevail,
                    With peace on earth, good-will to men.'”

                    –Exodus 9:5 (NKJV)
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               “Now it came to pass, when the TIME had come for Him to be received up, that He steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem.”
                                       –Luke 9:51(NKJV)

               “Now concerning our brother Apollos, I strongly urged him to come to you with the brethren, but he was quite unwilling to come at this time; however, he will come when he has a convenient TIME.”
                                       –1 Corinthians 16:12 (NKJV)

                “To everything there is a season, a TIME for every purpose under heaven.”
                                      –Ecclesiastes 3:1 (NKJV)

Notice the emphasis on the word “Time.”  We often look at time with contempt.  “I’m out of time.”  When I coached basketball, when the game was close and towards the final buzzer I kept noticing the time.  I would find myself checking out the time clock.  We don’t do that much in life, but there is a point when we are finally, surely, out of time.  We don’t measure our life by time, but in a sense it is.  We have a breath, a gasp, then nothingness and we’re out of time.  Solomon and James would liken time to a vapor.  It rises for a moment, then is blown away by the wind.
       We cannot hasten time nor can we stop time; it marches ever onward.  We take pills, have surgeries to stop the progress of time, but in reality it takes its toll.  Look in the mirror, I dare you, and you can see the effects of time.  Throughout life we may have missed an opportunity because we didn’t think the time was right.  We may have missed an important appointment because we wasted time and were late.  What is the old saying, “Time stands still for nobody.”
       Be sure of this, in all of the hustle and bustle of life.  In the midst of the hurrying and scurrying we cannot hasten time, it moves one second at a time, never faster, never slower.  One thing, however, you can count on is that the “Lord keeps all the great opportunities and appointments in His own hand.” (Joseph Parker)  He’s never late, nor is He ever early.  He never misses an appointment and His schedule is right on time–all the time.  If we could but learn to trust Him, leave things in His hand yet do our part as much as we humanly can, these would run smoother and better for us.  Parker states, “If we could but know our limitations and quietly work within them, we should live in a holy and quiet sanctuary, we should not attempt to hasten anything.”  We would leave the clock in the hands of God.
       We must realize that in our life there are opportune and inopportune moments in life.  It is more important that we allow our lives to rest in the providence of God’s timing.  (I use that concept lightly for we must realize that it is us that lives and works in time; God is outside of time.)  Do not attempt to be a little god and hasten the coming of an event. Christmas will not get here any sooner even if you celebrate it every month.  We dare not tell God to do this and do it at such-and-such a time.  Leave it in His hands.
       The conveniency of time is something that we take ever so lightly.  Let me give an example by Joseph Parker, “Men can make it convenient to go to church, or they can make it extremely inconvenient to go and hear the word of the Lord.  There are times, of course, when circumstances do seem to combine against the most honest desire, but there are other occasions when we can so arrange matters as to make our convenience the standard of divine purpose.  Let every man examine himself…”  We can arrange things to make it more convenient to go, or we can arrange our schedule making it inconvenient to go.  We can make time to pray and study the Bible, or it can become an inconvenient nuisance to us.
       “O the danger!  The temptation!  The pits that lie hidden on life’s rugged road!” (Joseph Parker)  Do we dare take the next step, or do we say that we will wait for a more convenient time?  That hedge that is in my way when I go to study my Bible, should I cut it down now, or perhaps, wait for a more convenient time?  The question becomes–what is a more convenient time?  The time is before you, choose therefore, the right time.  Let me close with some a final admonition from Parker, “I will trust in Christ, I will say to my Savior, Still lead on; through desert or through gardenland, still lead on; through deep waters, through rocky places, still lead on; through flowery gardens, through balmy air, across velvet sward, still lead on; and let me do nothing before the time.”

                    –Louis L’Amour  (Lando)

       “‘Be angry, and do not sin’:  do not let the sun go down on your wrath, nor give place to the devil.”

                    –Ephesians 4:26-27 (NKJV)
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There are times in our lives when everything seems to be going all right.  Life is hunky-dory; it’s like eating a hot dog, fully-loaded at a baseball game.  Then you get sloppy in your eating.  A bit of mustard and ketchup fall onto your shirt, then on the next bite a glob of onions and relish join the already forming stain.  Not all is lost for you scoop up the onions, relish and some of the mustard on your finger, glance around and finish eating it, but the stain is there and most likely forever visible.
       When we read Psalm 81, we see the same thing.  We see that the people are called to worship.  Everything seems to be going smoothly…

          1 — Sing aloud to God our strength; make a joyful shout to the God of Jacob.
          2 — Raise a song and strike the timbrel, the pleasant harp with the lute.
          3 — Blow the trumpet at the time of the New Moon, at the full moon, on our solemn feast day.
          4 — For this is a statute for Israel, a law of the God of Jacob.
          5 — This He established in Joseph as a testimony, when He went throughout the land of Egypt, where I heard a language I did not understand.
          6 — “I removed his shoulder from the burden; his hands were freed from the baskets.
          7 — You called in trouble, and I delivered you; I answered you in the secret place of thunder; I tested you at the waters of Meribah.      Selah
          8 — Hear, O My people, and I will admonish you!  O Israel, if you will listen to Me!
          9 — There shall be no foreign god among you; nor shall you worship any foreign god.
         10 — I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt; open your mouth wide, and I will fill it.”  (NKJV)

Stop!  From worship, God then brings forth warning and reinforces previous instruction.  Listen!  Listen!  Notice the emphasis, we are to listen to what God is saying.  If you remember Meribah was a place of testing–quarreling.  There were arguments, fightings, but today we should look at it in the manner of attitude.  What is our attitude like toward God?  Do we go about our day, in ease, skipping along thinking all is okay?  Perhaps we go to church and worship, sing, clap our hands, but it has become perfunctory.  Israel was upset with God because of the lack of water.  We perhaps get upset with God because our soul is dry.
       Thirsty, we forget God’s provision for us in the past.  Hungry, we look at the shirt and see a stain–why did God allow that to happen?  Doesn’t he care for me any longer?  “Meribah did not just occur in the wilderness–it’s a perpetual test.  At every juncture in life we are called upon either to trust God or go our own way.” (George O. Wood)  We are not to lean upon our own understanding, but fully trust the Lord in each and every step that we take.  Put away your gods (i.e., money, power, career, bank account, ,etc.)  Don’t depend upon the god of self to get you through or the stain will remain.  Go back to your trust in God; it is He who rescues you.

                    “When Israel out of Egypt came, they left the proud oppressor’s land
                    Supported by the great I AM, safe in the hollow of His hand.
                    And all things, as they change, proclaim, the Lord eternally the same.”
                                  –Charles Wesley