Letter
Dear friends and fellow Bible students,
I pray that the peace and grace of our God and of the Lord Jesus rest upon you. I thought I would write, just to let you know that you’re in my prayers. We all know that the world around us is, well it’s just full of evil, and it can affect us. It can draw us away. We know that our own hearts are a problem too. I hope you are praying for me as I am for all of you.
What do you think about what’s going on with Israel? At war, again. Does this signal that the Lord’s return is near? We know God has said His commitment to Israel is certain and irrevocable. (I’ve just reread Jeremiah 30 thru 33. Need to do that every so often!) But we also know there will be a terrible time for them right at the end. (Need to read the Lord’s Olivet prophecy now and then too!) I pray that God will carry them, and all of us, quickly through that time, and we’ll then “see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory,” as he promised. We just have to stay alert, as he also said, because we don’t know when it will be.
I’ve heard you’re going through some troubles of your own. So many are. I want you to know that you’re not alone. You have people around you—including me—who love and care for you. We’re here to support you, and we hope you are here for us too, because we have trials as well.
It concerns me that many churches are seeing involvement declining. There’s so many distractions. I think the only remedy is focus on God’s Word. That focus seems to be dissolving. It’s up to us, I think, to set an example. Bring God’s Word into our conversations, reach out & connect, be there. As Hebrews says, “And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” I hope and pray that what we’re seeing is the day drawing near!
It isn’t just Israel and its neighbors. What’s going on in Haiti is just heart-wrenching. Wars and violence in Ukraine, Cameroon, Congo and so many others. Persecutions seem to be mounting. These things are daily reality for some of you. God be with you and give you strength!
In the midst of all this, we must keep our eyes fixed on our hope. It’s easy to get discouraged if all we’re looking at is the bad stuff. But we have the unbreakable promises of the Almighty Creator, and He guaranteed it by raising His Son from the tomb. He was the “first fruits”, and we, you and I, are part of the rest of the harvest! Do a quick search on “hope” in your Bible program. Just scanning the results will build up your hope! It’s reinforced so much: we have a hope. Nothing can take it away. But we can lose it, so we need to continually reinforce it.
It would be great to visit with you in person. Don’t know if that will work out. In the meantime, I count on getting encouragement from you, as I hope to give you encouragement too. Truly, that’s what we’re here for! I bet there’s someone who would really appreciate a letter from you. Write to them! And to me too.
God be with you in every way.
Love, Paul