Persecution

 Book of Jude

Dear friends, remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ foretold. They said to you, “In the last times there will be scoffers who will follow their own ungodly desires.”  These are the men who divide you, who follow mere natural instincts and do not have the Spirit. But you, dear friends, build yourselves up in your most holy faith and pray in the Holy Spirit. Keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.

I want you to understand now that you have watched this video, that this is nothing new. Persecution happened in the days following the death and resurrection of Jesus and has been going on ever since. We are not any closer to the end times than the day that Jesus ascended to Heaven. He could be back any time and we are simply to be ready for his return  by trusting in him as the one who saved us from our sin!  There are people and groups that scoff and attacked followers of Jesus yesterday,  who are currently doing so today and will be attacking tomorrow. There is really nothing new under the sun. It is upsetting and brings up fear and worry within our life. I want to pray and have prayed; "come soon Lord Jesus"!

That prayer is fine but remember not to let these attacks divide us as the text above reminds us. We can stand together and stand united. The faith we have been given can not be extinguished by the hands of men. It can be pushed underground. It can be made illegal by governments and rulers. These things have happened in history but the faith in the Lord Jesus Christ continues to spread and grow. 

Pray for those who persecute our faith. Come together as a body of Christ and be built up in order that the faith we have been given will remain strong until the day we experience eternal life. 

Until next time...

God's Peace!

Pastor Andy

Happy Ground Hog Day!!!

Well, Ground Hog Day does not have the luster and excitement to it in Alaska as it does in other parts of the United States. I was reminded by a friend that is because we have eagles, bears,and wolves that would eat this little furry rodent! 

Yes, poor Punxsutawany Phil would have a hard time surviving up here in the Last Frontier. 

Ground Hog Day was a day my wife decided to make it into a celebration for the kids one year awhile back. Cheeseburgers (ground meat for Ground Hog Day), root-beer floats, and yes, brown colored noses to match that rascally weather forecaster!

(Don't believe me, see the photo below!) 

You can go on line and see how poorly his weather prediction abilities stack up. His predictions are pretty much a miss most of the time. Poor Punxsutawney Phil will most of the time simply slip back into his house, fearful of his shadow or the thousands who show up to party in this little town in PA. 

My Anchorage ramblings are pretty simple this time. 

I have to say I am really glad that when Jesus came out of the tomb, he did not go back in. When he came out of the tomb is was good news for all people in all places.  

That the predictions from the Old Testament that pointed to Jesus were right on the nose! (yes-it is a pun!!! Did you expect anything less from a pastor!!)

Happy Ground Hog's Day!

until next time...

Blessings and be safe!

Pastor Andy