If I had been the one choosing, I would have lived my entire lifespan in far less interesting times. However, since I am not God and He is (and the world is\u00a0much better off for it), God saw fit to plop me down in what began as a more\u00a0quiet time in history. During my life, however, as I progressed from Mary Janes and saddle shoes to Go Go boots to dirty bare feet to waffle stompers to Nikes to sensible Clarks (I\u2019ve always preferred comfort for my feet),\u00a0the\u00a0history I\u00a0experienced\u00a0 raced from placidly boring to hyper-multi-dimensional to the point of\u00a0violating all boundaries.<\/p>\n
The Body of Christ is finding herself in an unusual time in history. I believe we are seated on the precipice of history and the return of Jesus Christ; but if not, we\u00a0are certainly\u00a0in interestingly extreme times, nonetheless.<\/p>\n
And I believe two things. Both of them give me great hope.<\/p>\n
1.)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Acts 17:26-27 lets us in on an important secret about our lives. \u201c\u2026<\/i>He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation,\u00a0<\/sup>that they would seek God, if perhaps they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us.<\/i>\u201d<\/p>\n God Himself determined the time and nation of your birth. He chose<\/i> this year, 2013, and the particular age you now are\u00a0to intersect; He chose you<\/em> for this time. Are you uncomfortable about what\u2019s going on in the world in 2013? It was God\u2019s <\/i>decision to put you here now; could it be that He did so because He knew that by His grace you would be able to rise above the chaos and fulfill all His purposes? I know that He did not place you here to destroy you. Neither did He bring you forth at this time for you to live timidly, hoping to be bland enough to escape the disapproval of a godless culture. Could it be that God has a specific purpose for you<\/i> to fulfill in this hour? According to the Bible, the answer to that question is YES.<\/p>\n 2.)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Bible scholars have referenced a \u201cscarlet thread\u201d running through prophecies, types, and shadows in the Old Testament, pointing to the Messiah to come. In a similar way, throughout the centuries since Jesus walked the earth, God has woven a strong cord of testimony to His faithfulness, power, and kind intervention.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n It is\u00a0that rich heritage we have received from those who have gone before us\u00a0which makes me believe that surely God has prepared us for such a time as this, even now, even at this time in history. He has equipped us\u2014through\u00a0those who have gone before us, through His Word, and by His wonderful Holy Spirit\u2014to face with bold integrity and resolute faith anything this\u00a0world might throw our way.<\/p>\n My conviction is this. Just like the scarlet thread\u00a0woven through the pages of the Old Testament pointed to fulfillment and salvation in Christ, so too does the strong cord of testimony to God\u2019s faithfulness, power, and kind intervention running throughout Church history point to the summation—possibly during our very time—of all things in Christ.\u00a0 And if God poured out His wonders during those past\u00a0dark times,\u00a0I can’t help but believe that to prayerfully contend for\u00a0anything less than the\u00a0supernatural intervention and outpouring of God\u00a0during our own dark time would be a slap in the face of the Author and Finisher of our faith.<\/p>\n He who has called you is<\/em> faithful and He will also bring it to pass!<\/p>\n Dorothy <\/p>\n\n
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