Where Are We?

The invader will do as he pleases; no one will be able to stand against him. He will establish himself in the Beautiful Land and will have the power to destroy it. He will determine to come with the might of his entire kingdom and will make an alliance with the king of the South. And he will give him a daughter in marriage in order to overthrow the kingdom, but his plans will not succeed or help him. Then he will turn his attention to the coastlands and will take many of them, but a commander will put an end to his insolence and will turn his insolence back on him. After this, he will turn back toward the fortresses of his own country but will stumble and fall, to be seen no more. “His successor will send out a tax collector to maintain the royal splendor. In a few years, however, he will be destroyed, yet not in anger or in battle. “He will be succeeded by a contemptible person who has not been given the honor of royalty. He will invade the kingdom when its people feel secure, and he will seize it through intrigue. Then an overwhelming army will be swept away before him; both it and a prince of the covenant will be destroyed. After coming to an agreement with him, he will act deceitfully, and with only a few people he will rise to power. When the richest provinces feel secure, he will invade them and will achieve what neither his fathers nor his forefathers did. He will distribute plunder, loot and wealth among his followers. He will plot the overthrow of fortresses—but only for a time. “With a large army he will stir up his strength and courage against the king of the South. The king of the South will wage war with a large and very powerful army, but he will not be able to stand because of the plots devised against him. Those who eat from the king’s provisions will try to destroy him; his army will be swept away, and many will fall in battle. The two kings, with their hearts bent on evil, will sit at the same table and lie to each other, but to no avail, because an end will still come at the appointed time. With flattery he will corrupt those who have violated the covenant, but the people who know their God will firmly resist him. “Those who are wise will instruct many, though for a time they will fall by the sword or be burned or captured or plundered. When they fall, they will receive a little help, and many who are not sincere will join them. Some of the wise will stumble, so that they may be refined, purified and made spotless until the time of the end, for it will still come at the appointed time. “The king will do as he pleases. He will exalt and magnify himself above every god and will say unheard-of things against the God of gods. He will be successful until the time of wrath is completed, for what has been determined must take place. Daniel 11:16-29, 32-36 NIV  (Read the entire book of Daniel)

The Word of The Lord, Our God!

Our Future Is Not Constrained!

This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says to all those I carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: “Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce. Marry and have sons and daughters; find wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they too may have sons and daughters. Increase in number there; do not decrease. Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the LORD for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper.” Yes, this is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: “Do not let the prophets and diviners among you deceive you. Do not listen to the dreams you encourage them to have. They are prophesying lies to you in my name. I have not sent them,” declares the LORD. This is what the LORD says: “When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my good promise to bring you back to this place. For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 23:4-11 NIV

No matter what has happened or what is happening in our world, our future is secure when we know God's plans will come to pass. We have nothing to fear in the battle and we shall win!

There though be dark clouds of doubt,
Shadows creeping into the crevices of our minds,
We defeat the enemy and burst his bubble,
Of fame and glory with praise to Our God!

Never think for a moment we are forgotten,
For our God is not man and He never forgets,
Those who love Him and just Believe
He is and He will carry us through to victory,
In Jesus, our banner, and standard for living.

When we know who we are and who He is,
Nothing the enemy does can shake our faith,
In the One who created all things and without Him,
Nothing was ever created--without a purpose for His glory!
Be strong in His might and know
Wherever we go, He is always with us! We're never alone!

Prophecies!

I know why the prophets sighed
Seeing future events unfold
Knowing, yet hesitant to tell
Of dark days and bright nights
Rising from earth, the hell
Unleashed on scorners from
All corners of life. No respect
For titles, position or wealth,
The gray, the lean, and in-between
Must now accept deed's fate
Foretold hundreds of years ago,
By one who dared to speak
The Truth, yet remained not long
For fruit to bear its burden,
Sickness, disease, calamities
For truth's tale felled prophets galore,
Until they would not speak much more,
But silently watched truth awake,
The skies,  and the earth, while they just sighed.

(c) 2002 Mary M. Hall-Rayford

For All Our Tomorrows!

Father, in the name of Jesus,
Look upon us kindly, correcting us, guiding us and loving us.
Have mercy upon all who have yet to acknowledge You.
Don't remove from Your Spirit from this place, but keep us mindful of Your presence.
Create in us a desire to please You and to be a model to others in doing so.
Help us to understand Your plans--plans to prosper us and not to harm any--and to live according to Your Word.
Keep us prayerful--always looking to You for answers and solutions--always considerate of others.
As our number in age increases--grant us increased wisdom and knowledge in abundance.
Help us O God to not judge matters that only You can judge since we have neither heaven or hell for anyone.
Help us to keep our minds stayed on You, no matter what our circumstances may be.
Speak to our hearts, Lord and help us to understand that loving You and loving others is the only way we can affect change in our lives.
We look to You, the only Wise God of all creation, for everything we need and desire and we thank You for keeping us in position to receive every blessing our eyes have not seen because of our obedience to You and Your love towards us.
Never let us forget to proclaim just how awesome You are!
Amen!