My incredible husband, Rick, is taking me on a special 10-day “destination” trip! He has planned it, made all the reservations, and paid for it. He is doing this because he loves me and wants to spend time with me, especially after we have been apart so much while he has been 24 days out of each of many months working on the opposite coast!

I am to prepare for the trip by shopping for clothing that fits my body (there’s a challenge), is suitable to the climate and lifestyle, but is comfortable. We’ve been to our beloved Maui previously, so I know what I need.

I pack the items that make the trip enjoyable, such as cute jewelry, fun shoes, makeup, and, of course, my camera! But I must not forget the things that make the trip survivable:

My orthopedic pillow, night jaw repositioner, shoe lifts for shorter left leg (since we can’t take my chiropractor with us), and my “pharmacy.”

“Harriet’s Pharmacy”—that’s what my athletic Marine hubby calls what I must carry with me: thyroid pills, sleep aids (because of pain), water pills, antibiotics for bladder infections (just in case), the pain relief pills that turn your pee orange, various homeopathic products for the too frequent painful muscle cramps, dry-eye drops, OTC relief, and CBD oil when fibromyalgia pain is overwhelming, anti-depressant (no explanation needed if you’ve read this far) … and the list goes on. It is extremely discouraging to have to pack all those things just so my physical body won’t ruin our vacation. I’m SO grateful to the Lord for giving me and my care to such a compassionate and understanding husband 36 years ago!

Sadly, this lovely respite will be over in 10 days, and we will have to return to rainy, gloomy, cold Washington State. Oh, how hard it is to rejoin everyday routine; to feel the body complain but get out of bed anyway; to do chores when I’d rather be viewing some of God’s exquisite handiwork in the form of palm trees, Plumeria, and warm blue water with white caps.

Today, however, the Holy Spirit reminded me of all that Jesus has in my future! There will come a day, undoubtedly very soon, when my Savior will whisk me (and the rest of His “Bride”) to meet Him in the air and embark on the promised, never-ending “destination” trip because He loves me and wants to spend eternity with me! And, through the Apostle Paul, God tells us Believers to comfort each other with these facts:

• This fantastic journey will never come to an end! A, B
• Jesus already paid for it…with His life. C
• He made the reservation in my name; all I had to do was believe in Him and accept His invitation. (And so can you, if you haven’t!) C, D
• He has planned all the details. For almost 2,000 years, He has been working on the spectacular place where I will reside. I’ve never been to this place before, but the travel brochure (Bible) tells of its indescribable beauty, indicating it is so great that I can’t even imagine it! E
• I don’t need to provide any special clothing because He has already provided garments for me. F
• My “pharmacy” will be obsolete and left behind because I will have a new body and live where there will be no more death, sorrow, crying or pain—ever! A, G

Take heart as we come to the close of 2020, a year of disappointment, pain, sickness, death, heartache, lawlessness, and uncertainty! Our certainty and hope rest within Hebrews 6:17-19:

“God also bound himself with an oath, so that those who received the promise could be perfectly sure that he would never change his mind. So God has given both his promise and his oath. These two things are unchangeable because it is impossible for God to lie. Therefore, we who have fled to him for refuge can have great confidence as we hold to the hope that lies before us. This hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls. It leads us through the curtain into God’s inner sanctuary.

A

• 1 Corinthians 15:50-53 “What I am saying, dear brothers and sisters, is that our physical bodies cannot inherit the Kingdom of God. These dying bodies cannot inherit what will last forever. But let me reveal to you a wonderful secret. We will not all die, but we will all be transformed! It will happen in a moment, in the blink of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For when the trumpet sounds, those who have died will be raised to live forever. And we who are living will also be transformed. For our dying bodies must be transformed into bodies that will never die; our mortal bodies must be transformed into immortal bodies.”
• Philippians 3:20-21 “For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, Who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself.”

B

• 1 Thessalonians 4:13 “And now, dear brothers and sisters, we want you to know what will happen to the believers who have died so you will not grieve like people who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and was raised to life again, we also believe that when Jesus returns, God will bring back with Him the believers who have died. We tell you this directly from the Lord: We who are still living when the Lord returns will not meet Him ahead of those who have died. For the Lord Himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God.

“First, the Christians who have died will rise from their graves. Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever. So encourage each other with these words.”

C

• John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”
• John 19:30 “So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, ‘It is finished!’ and bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.”

D

• Romans 10:9, 13 “That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved… For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

E

• John 14:2, 3 “There are many rooms in my Father’s home, and I am going to prepare a place for you. If this were not so, I would tell you plainly. When everything is ready, I will come and get you so that you will always be with me where I am.”
• Revelation 21 Verse after verse in chapter 21 describes the size of our eternal home, jewels making up the walls, and God’s light.1 Corinthians 2:9 “However, as it is written: ‘No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him.'”

F

• Revelation 19:7-8 “Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready. And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.”
• Isaiah 61:10 “I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God; For He has clothed me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.”

G

• Romans 8:23 “And we believers also groan, even though we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory, for we long for our bodies to be released from sin and suffering. We, too, wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as His adopted children, including the new bodies He has promised us.”
• Rev 21:4 “And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.”

[Harriet has walked with Jesus 61 years, and with her husband, Rick, serves the Lord in their Foursquare church. Written in 2011 with subsequent editing; the Cooks have since left the colder Northwest climate for Rick’s employment in Florida and are enjoying the warmth!]

grandmabubbie@gmail.com

When we hear the word “despicable,” one or more images come to our minds. One is used in a political sense, where those who have opposing views see the other side as despicable. Another is where someone has actually caused or tried to cause us harm. Another that is popular today is a cartoon series that has small yellow beings that carry on in very odd ways, and they mumble to each other in a language that only they understand. The “Minions,” as they are called, are fun to watch as they interact with certain humans. There’s even a website with single-frame cartoon clips of them. (any emphasis mine)

Sometimes, I imagine that our Heavenly Father would view many of us as “minions” with some of the antics we pull. For anyone who believes that our God does not have a sense of humor, explain to me why He gave us laughter. Even though I have reached my 70’s, I still enjoy a good “clean” cartoon or comedy act, as long as all vulgarity and sexual innuendos are left out. As I mentioned in a previous message, “Dennis the Menace” was always a favorite, followed by the “Peanuts” cartoons. Both artists/authors were good to give us entertainment the whole family could enjoy.

What is not humorous, and is truly despicable, is how many humans believe Jesus is a myth and that what the Bible says about Him being our Savior is a lie. Sadly, the day will come when they will realize Philippians 2:9-11 is absolute truth; “Therefore, God has highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name that is above every name; so that at the name of Jesus, every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” The day is coming where this will even apply to Satan bowing his knee.

As we can plainly see, there’s no mumbling in any way so that no one will misunderstand. True versions of God’s word – King James Version; New King James Version; American Standard Version; New International Version; New English Translation; and English Standard Version – are some of the ones that historically have been very accurate. Whichever version of the true word of God that gives the same information in words that are easy for the reader to understand is what we need to study.

There are some “new – man edited” so-called bibles today that fit the agendas of false prophets and are used to draw people away from the true word of God. One version actually depicts the Heavenly Father as “gender-neutral,” and others change wording to fit teachings designed to fill seats and collection plates, yet are unbiblical.

The “ear-tickling” messages will come back in full force one day for all the false prophets and antichrists, and they will be forced to acknowledge that they blasphemed the true word of God. They will spend eternity in the lake of fire with their leader, Satan. It is possible for them to repent and confess that they have sinned, and call out to Jesus to save them, if they do so before taking their last breath on this earth. However, it’s sad that many would rather be on that long road that places things of this earth ahead of anything pertaining to Jesus. Their “broad pathway” leads to destruction, as given in Matthew 7:13-14.

Paul has told us in his numerous epistles that evil is of this world, and each one must choose for themselves which path we will follow. Jesus said in John 3:16 that the Father loves us so much that He sent His “only Son” to be our perfect sacrifice. John 3:18 sums up what happens to those who don’t believe this; “Whoever believes in Him is not condemned; but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he/she has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.” John 3:36 concludes this chapter with, “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the Wrath of God remains on him/her.”

Ephesians 2:8-9; “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not of your own doing; it is the gift of God; not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”

There will be a large number of people that will receive eternal condemnation, as spoken of by Jesus in Matthew 25:41-46. They will try to say they did many things in the name of Jesus, but their motives were selfish and about themselves, not about Jesus. They are truly despicable. It’s called the “Me” syndrome and is prevalent in today’s world.

Galatians 6:7-8 plainly states that God is not mocked. Satan has done everything in his power to pull souls away from the Father, His Son Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. His self-pride (Ezekiel 28:17) has been his downfall, and he uses pride to convince others they don’t really need a savior but will have heaven through many other ways. We must remember he is the father of all lies (John 8:44).

Here, we need to look at some “Truths.” John 8:32;36 – “and you will know the Truth, and the Truth will set you free… So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” Those who truly seek the Truth and study God’s word will find Him. First and foremost, all who truly call on Jesus to be their Savior will be saved (Joel 2:32; Acts 2:21 and Romans 10:13).

In John 18:37-38a, Pilate was given the opportunity to understand who it was that stood before him. “Then Pilate said to Him, ‘so you are a king?’ Jesus answered, ‘You say I am a king. For this purpose I was born (as a human), and for this purpose I have come into the world – to bear witness to the Truth. Everyone who is of the Truth listens to My voice’. Pilate said to Him, ‘What is Truth?'”

The absolute verse about “Truth” is John 14:6; “Jesus said to him [Philip], I am the Way, the Truth and the Life; no one comes to the Father except through Me.” This verse alone dispels any thoughts that there are “many ways” to Heaven without Jesus.

Twice a voice from Heaven declared that “This is My Beloved Son, with Whom I am well pleased; listen to Him.” First, Matthew 3:17 at the “baptism” of Jesus, and Matthew 17:5 at His transfiguration. This acknowledges that Jesus is a part of the Holy Trinity, and anyone who blasphemes against Him has blasphemed the Holy Spirit. This is the unforgivable sin.

The tribulation’s unforgivable sin will be to take the “mark” of the antichrist, which will be done willingly by those who will worship him (Revelation 13:16-17). All who do so will “drink the wine of God’s wrath,” and for this, they are condemned forever with “fire and sulfur” (Revelation 14:10).

Our Heavenly Father, through His Son Jesus who provided a pure and Holy sacrifice, is willing to forgive all our sins and not remember them again (Psalm 103:12). Jesus bought our “privilege” to ask forgiveness through His pure sinless blood, shed on a cruel cross at Calvary. This punishment should have been ours – Mine! Once again, Joel 2:32, Acts 2:21, and Romans 10:13 all say that all who call on the name of the Lord will be saved.

Those who refuse to seek the gift from our Savior will eventually be required to answer for every sin, large or small, that they ever committed on this earth. Their degree of eternal punishment will be determined by the total of all these. There will be no advocate to stand in their place. God is pure and Holy and can tolerate no sin whatsoever. This is exactly why He had to provide us with a substitute that He could accept. No sin-filled human could ever meet His standard of perfection. Anyone who denies Jesus is truly despicable in God’s sight.

It’s very simple to gain forgiveness and have an eternal home with Jesus. The hard part is to believe it is so, and there’s nothing we can do to earn or buy our own Salvation. First and foremost, Admit we’re all sinners in need of a Savior (Romans 3:23). Second, Believe Jesus died for our sins and was the only sacrifice God could have accepted because of the sinless life He led here (Romans 10:9-12). Finally, Call on the name of the Lord to be saved (Romans 10:13).

It should be the easiest decision we could ever make, but there will be many who will not do so (Matthew 7:13-14). Today, right now, make the best decision, and the most important decision, to become a part of the Savior’s flock. All who truly call on Him will not be turned away, yet He will force no one to accept Him. For those of us who do, we will receive eternal rewards that He paid for in full for us. Go from being “despicable” to “commendable” through the grace and mercy of our Savior.

Come, Lord Jesus!

huebshman46@gmail.com