A Scribe on the Wall

Several years ago now, I believe that God gave me a message, He would be telling me things and it was up to me to tell others. To me, it's much like the Watchman on the Wall as described in the Old Testament. The Watchman was told that it was on him to warn others about any approaching dangers. God's apparently gifted me with being able to type and write. So I put the old definition of a writer along with the concept of a watchman together. Jesus is coming soon...are you ready?

Thursday, May 14, 2026

The Checks and Balances of the Christian Life

by David Brenneman

"In the early morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house, and went away to a secluded place, and was praying there." Mark 1:35.

Intimacy with God is one of the most essential elements of the

Christian life. A profound, abiding relationship with Him is the key to a lifelong journey filled with joy contentment, significance, and fruitfulness. Of course, learning to love the Lord takes time, diligence, and willingness This is why Jesus

demonstrated the importance of being alone with the Father by consistently rising early and going to a solitary place where He could pray without interruption.

Do you need a place where you can find refuge, hope, strength,

and a greater love than anything this world has to offer? If so, your soul is longing for God's presence. Thankfully, He is always available to you. He gives you profound wisdom, unfailing strength, and unshakable hope for even the toughest situations,

But as complicated as your life is, how do you start-especially

if you've never scheduled regular time to be alone with God? Begin

this very minute, close your eyes and sit for a moment without

saying anything. Simply focus your heart on the Lord and the fact

that He loves you unconditionally. Then pray, asking Him for the desire to know Him better. That's a prayer He loves to answer.

Jesus, teach me to draw closer to You in every way. Amen.

- Trusting God with Today. Dr. Charles Stanley.

How personal is your relationship with Jesus?

Your answer and mine is THE answer in the checks and balances of our lives.

Not to lift "Trusting God with Today" too high on a pedestal, but there's just some days the short devotional seems to be written with me in mind. So much so that I have bought copies for my Mom and 2 friends.

In our society we measure things in order to determine gains or losses. We measure to determine repeatability. We measure to determine health. We measure to determine duration of time. Measure, measure, measure.

A thing that is certainly different about a life in Christ is what is shown to be important to measure and what all the Bible says to stop measuring. We are to examine, aka measure, ourselves to see if we are in Christ. We are to examine, measure, our hearts to see if there be any hurtful way in them. We are to be looking to see if we are indeed growing in Christ or if we've deceived ourselves and have been backsliding...again through measuring.

I have countless ways to measure physical things. Innumerable rulers, gages, tape measures, yard sticks, folding rulers, calipers. Yet the only standard of measurement for the heart is Christ Himself. The only set of standards to follow are Christ Himself and what He did, what He said, and what He's done.

We start down the path of Intimacy with God by the very measuring stick of the Scriptures...Jesus. Scripture says that He is the Way, the Truth and the Life. We'll start with Truth.

We must be truthful with Jesus in order to start an intimate relationship with Jesus. There can be no falsehoods, no egos, nothing but the truth. An we must listen to Him in truth. He's not going to lie to us. He WILL tell us, show us, lead us, through what appears to be difficult, different, hard, complicated, times in our lives.

It's on us to "Trust in the Lord with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight." Proverbs 3:5-6.

It's on us to pray for ourselves to be more like Jesus Christ. An for us to look, aka measure, our lives to see if we're making choices that uplift that path.

If we're uplifting anyone or anything else, the measurement is off.

We begin with honesty and truth. We stay in that. We then must make the choice to do what must be thought, said and done that is right in God's eyes, according to God's Word. Only then will the results show a path of righteousness that aligns with Jesus Christ.

Where is your intimacy with Jesus these days? Do you 'find time' to read, to pray, to think about God's Word or are you intentional about meeting with Him as with your most intimate friend?

Do you neglect to do any of these things? If so then for sure your measurements are going to be off.

You will not measure up to your calling in Christ Jesus.

You can make appointments to watch television or streaming or video games.

You can make appointments to be places and meet with people.

An you then and only then try to squeeze in a few moments with the One who saved you?

See how those priorities are wholly backwards?

Check your priorities.

Realign your ways.

Start measuring with Godly measurements...the Word of God, which: "All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work." 2 Timothy 3:16-17.

And think about "Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve. For he who does wrong will receive the consequences of the wrong which he has done, and that without partiality." Colossians 3:23-25.

Because remember: “Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to render to every man according to what he has done. [13] I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.” Revelation 22:12-13.

How intimate, how close are you with Jesus?

All NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission.

New American Standard Bible

A corporation not for profit.

www.lockman.org

Wednesday, May 13, 2026

Get into It

by David Brenneman

"How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, Nor stand in the path of sinners, Nor sit in the seat of scoffers! But his delight is in the law of the Lord, And in His law he meditates day and night. He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, Which yields its fruit in its season And its leaf does not wither; And in whatever he does, he prospers." Psalms 1:1-3.

How often do really consider the ramifications of your actions in light of God's calling for you and your purpose in His plan for mankind? My Dear Reader, if indeed you are saved, you are on the clock concerning your part in God's plan for humanity. You were gifted with a gift or more from the Spirit of God upon coming to Christ for salvation. Do you take whatever you're called to be and do seriously?

The small phrase "meditates night and day" only appears twice in the NASB Bible. Here and in Joshua chapter 1.

It's going to mean not doing other things in order to create a new, good, wholesome, habit of being in the Word of God daily.

It's also our privilege to do so!

He who called you has not left you alone to figure it out or to fight the good fight by yourself. There's to be your desire to live a life pleasing, approved, of by God in Christ Jesus.

Our world puts every effort into trying to get people to put selfish desires first and foremost in life.

To put off perceived 'unpleasant' things. Especially to make spending time in your Bible as something either for those 'closer to God' or for when you can 'squeeze it in'.

Our happiness, our joy, should be found in Christ. Should be in doing what pleased Him to give to us to be doing.

We're not going to know if we're not in His Word to find out are we?

Do you not want to live a life pleasing to Jesus who bled and died for you? His obedience to His Father meant our salvation, so should we not make every effort to live in Christ in a way that shows it?

It may mean not pursuing certain things and in turn pursuing something we never considered. It may mean choices we never thought we would make. It's not about our personal comfort.

Sanctification is what our lives are rooted in.

Doing everything necessary to become fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ.

Doing everything in such a way that people see our good works and glorify our Father in Heaven.

The light of Jesus Christ in us should never be hidden or silenced.

Are you giving your best effort towards living for Jesus or have you been trying to skate by because you don't want to give up something or someone? Be very careful about what you hold on too tightly to. Sooner or later it will turn to ashes. If it's in the way of your life in Christ as He intended, it ought to go.

7 plus years and I am daily amazed at what God's doing with this blog. I pray over it, He does the global distribution. Remaining faithful is when we see the power of God in even the little things.

Are you like Isaiah and are eagerly wanting to serve and be who you are to be in Christ or are you going with a mistaken notion that if you don't raise your hand that maybe God won't notice you and volunteer you for anything? All who are in Christ are going to have things to go through in life in order to grow in Christ. It's never going to be all sunshine and rainbows.

Start with a set time, daily-not skipping days-and a set place. A chapter a day is a good pace. Be consistent. Pray before you start that the Spirit would talk to you about it. You have to start somewhere.

Personally I was afraid to read it at first many decades ago. An one day came where I realized that there would indeed be a day to stand before Jesus to give an account of my life and how was I going to explain never having read my Bible?

Today, I can't recall how many times I have read my entire Bible. Every time something new pops up from a page.

You need to start somewhere. Do YOU really want to explain your lack of being in your Bible?

Start today.

All NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission.

New American Standard Bible

A corporation not for profit.

www.lockman.org

Tuesday, May 12, 2026

Obedience Starts with a Single Step

by David Brenneman

"Then his servants came near and spoke to him and said, “My father, had the prophet told you to do some great thing, would you not have done it? How much more then, when he says to you, ‘Wash, and be clean’?” 2 Kings 5:13.

Sometimes our greatest acts of faith will come through small steps of obedience. This was certainly true for the highly respected captain of the Syrian army named Naaman. He traveled to Israel and sought the prophet Elisha to be cured of his leprosy. However, Naaman felt insulted when Elisha sent a lowly servant to

instruct him to wash in the Jordan seven times.

Naaman was so outraged that he refused to perform the one act

that would save him from his very painful disease. Thankfully, his

servants confronted him in his pride and pointed out that the Lord had promised healing through that small step of faith. Naaman

realized that if he refused to humble himself before God, it could cost him his life. So he obeyed, and his flesh was made whole.

You may not pay attention to the little things God calls you to

do because they seem insignificant. However, you don't know the amazing way He may want to work through your obedience. Say yes to the Lord regardless of how small, mundane, dull, or inferior the task seems He will reward your humble steps of faith.

Jesus, whatever You command is great and worthy of my obedience, I will do as You ask, Amen.

Trusting God with Today. Dr. Charles Stanley.

Many, many...many times in life we go forward in perseverance only by the taking of a single step.

We don't know what that single step will accomplish but when that step is for us to do because the Spirit says to take it...then you take it.

I can tell you all about what the day looked like when I was outside of my last employer. What's more important was that step outside was a step towards something not away from something. A step towards what was to be a time of growth in Christ that couldn't come any other way.

We can and will get confused by some of or maybe most of the steps that the Spirit directs us to take.

I can tell you most emphatically...do the right thing and respond with a heart of obedience to God regardless of how it appears to the world.

For many months leading up to that step into an unknown future, the passage that the Spirit brought time and time again was "Trust in the Lord with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight." Proverbs 3:5-6.

Each day after June 12th was a day of just asking God what was there for me to be doing. Whether or not I had an earthly employer or not all my work was to be done as unto the Lord. Colossians 3:23-24.

For you my Dear Reader it's never for you nor I to stand still in our walk with Jesus. Re-read Psalms 23. He leads, we follow. Where He says to rest, we rest. When He says it's time to move, we move.

We are to walk by faith and not by sight. Trusting God with all your heart. Not trusting what we perceive of our circumstances. There's no circumstances we can be in that God was ever unaware of.

We can choose to either trust Him and take whatever steps He's directing us to take or we choose to live with the consequences.

There's always consequences for obedience and consequences for disobedience. We reap what we sow more than we sow and much later than we sow. We either reap the benefits of God in our obedience or more lessons from God until we do.

The size of the step makes no difference. Just trust and obey.

Just do and be thankful.

My Dear Reader you're going to go through even a solid life in Christ and yet will spend eternity having what was really happening with you and others explained to you. In this here this now we can't comprehend it.

I found myself either just doing housework or fixing things. Found myself cleaning and organizing. Found myself working for people. Found myself resting. Found myself in various circumstances that otherwise I never would have had the chance to be in had I been employed. Found myself strengthening relationships. Found myself starting a few new ones. Found joy in just doing little things for strangers when out and about the city.

God's not going to lead you in some way that's not going to be in your best interests. He allows many things in order to grow us in Christ. Storms, not fairweather days, cause deep roots for a tree.

It's the storms that turn a man into a sailor and not just someone who can steer a ship. It's the battlefield that makes all the training given make sense to the soldier.

Listen and obey the Spirit of God when He tells you or takes you in the way you should go. Trust in the Lord with all your heart. Walking by faith and not by sight.

Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness and all these things will be added to you.

Listen and obey. Don't let your feelings get in the way. Truth is your feelings are responsible for many a failure of living out what Jesus wants for you. Look at the Disciples and how often they missed out because they let their feelings dictate their actions.

Pray, listen, obey. Repeat.

All NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission.

New American Standard Bible

A corporation not for profit.

www.lockman.org

Monday, May 11, 2026

What is Your Desire of Your Heart?

by David Brenneman

"Delight yourself in the Lord; And He will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, and He will do it. He will bring forth your righteousness as the light And your judgment as the noonday. Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him; Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, Because of the man who carries out wicked schemes. Cease from anger and forsake wrath; Do not fret; it leads only to evildoing." Psalms 37:4-8.

"Commit your works to the Lord And your plans will be established." Proverbs 16:3

"The mind of man plans his way, But the Lord directs his steps." Proverbs 16:9.

What is the desire of your heart? Is it things, or people or perhaps experiences? What do you spend your time with thinking or doing?

What do you spend your money on?

These will give clues as to what your heart is preoccupied with.

How much of your time do you spend desiring to obey God?

How much of your time do you spend that has nothing to do with obeying God?

You're going to be intentional about one or the other.

These thoughts come on the heels of reading in Deuteronomy this morning. Moses was instructed in what to write for the current and future generations of the children of Israel. He was also told, and they heard in hearing it themselves, that not soon after they would enter into the Promised land that they would be enticed to turn away from the Lord and would indeed fall away from God. The desires of their hearts would be for anything and everything that was before their eyes. Various gods of the nations they were sent to destroy would become the desire of their hearts.

In our world idols and false gods are everywhere. Christians are not immune to the siren songs of these.

This is particularly why Paul, Peter, James, the writer of Hebrews, all point people to being steadfast in the Lord. Standing firm in the Lord.

Living a life of diligence, perseverance, in the Lord.

Moses entreated the children of Israel to not do what was foretold they would do. What we also see in those closing chapters of Deuteronomy were what the prophet Daniel saw of how and what to pray after the days of the 70 years were completed.

You, my Dear Reader, have before you both life and death. Living what the Bible teaches as a true life in Christ and that of living for self.

You, my Dear Reader, will give an account of your life before Jesus.

Of how you either lived for Him or lived for you.

Nothing in that account will be sugar coated. There will be no grading on a curve. There will be nothing but the truth of what our hearts were desiring while in our bodies.

We will see how we were deceived and how we deceived ourselves. In that moment we will see everything from the light of His truth.

There will be nothing hidden anymore.

We only think we get away with the lies we tell ourselves and tell others. We only think that there's no consequences.

Examine your desires. Examine your heart. Ask the Spirit of God to reveal the truth that we aren't telling ourselves.

Yes it keeps coming back to that. Our lying to ourselves.

“The heart is more deceitful than all else And is desperately sick; Who can understand it? I, the Lord, search the heart, I test the mind, Even to give to each man according to his ways, According to the results of his deeds." Jeremiah 17:9-10.

"He who trusts in his own heart is a fool, But he who walks wisely will be delivered." Proverbs 28:26.

Pray for:

"Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me." Psalms 51:10.

At the end of the day we cannot trust ourselves but we can trust Him with whom we have to do.

Our lives are to reflect Christ to the world. If we're so wrapped up in fulfilling our desires for us the world will never see Jesus.

Think about that.

“Pray, then, in this way: ‘Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.’" Matthew 6:9-13.

"Lord, empty me of me, and fill me with more of you."

All NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission.

New American Standard Bible

A corporation not for profit.

www.lockman.org

Sunday, May 10, 2026

Obedience by Being In God's Word

by David Brenneman

"All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work." 2 Timothy 3:16-17.

"I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths." 2 Timothy 4:1-4.

When we come to Christ for salvation there's a work began in us by our Savior Jesus Christ. We become his workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works that we might walk in them.

We are given tasks and assignments that are for us to do that are going to both exercise and grow our faith.

The man of God...read that well if you, my Dear Reader happen to be a born again man. This isn't directed towards those Dear Readers who are born again women. As we read in his letters to Timothy and to Titus and can find in his many other letters...men are called to lead in the Church. Men are supposed to be the Godly teachers of the Word of God. Both in the home and in the Church. In his letter to Timothy Paul explains why.

So the thoughts to you, the men reading this this morning...what are you doing to live up to this God-given responsibility?

Are you striving to make what He wants of you your highest priority?

Are you intentional about learning from the Word of God so that you may be adequate, equipped for every good work?

Are you studying the Word of God to show yourself approved by Jesus?

The men of God are supposed to be at the heart of the growing Church.

We're not to be bench warmers.

We're not to leave it to others.

We're not to ever abdicate our role and responsibility that has been given to us in Christ.

Are you seeking to know and to understand God's Word? We read all of its benefits in that it is "profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness;".

In reading verse 17 read it slowly. Note what it isn't saying. It's not referring specifically to Pastors or Elders. The man of God. The men of God.

We're to invest in the Word of God as if not only our lives but the lives we will encounter depend on our efforts.

If other extra-curricular activities are in your way then you really are not putting God first in your life.

All things that we put in higher importance than our relationship with Jesus can be removed by Him in an instant if we persist in them.

A Life Principle of Dr. Stanley's is that anything we hold too tightly to will turn to ashes.

The Spirit promises to teach us men if we commit the time and effort to learn.

Women aren't entirely left out of the learning. Women, as Paul wrote, are to teach other women as well as children...and only those two groups of people.

They too, by being in the Word of God daily, can grow with respect to their salvation and be prepared to teach other women and children.

We seem to, as you look at humanity as a whole, have no difficulty in committing to anything that we allow ourselves to desire.

In the life of a Christian our commitment ought to always be in obedience to God's Word.

Those who try to uphold any doctrines other than what is upheld by Scripture are, according to God's Word, cursed. Let them be accursed it says. These accursed people will be those whom Jesus says to "depart from Me for I never knew you".

The twisting of the doctrine of the Scriptures, the destruction of God's intention for marriage, family, and individuals is what Satan and his minions are all about.

We must be in the Word of God to learn how to live out our salvation in Christ and to be able to refute such lies with the Word of God.

Get with God's plan and purpose for you. Quit running from it if you have been. Do all that you do as unto the Lord as we read in these same life giving Scriptures.

Seek to be found obedient to God's Word and not be among the disobedient.

Do you want to be giving an account of your life whereby Jesus says "Well done!" or will you hear of how your ways were not what He wanted of you? That you wasted your lifetime of opportunities to do what you were called to be doing?

Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness. First, not after you get what you want.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight.

"I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you should go; I will counsel you with My eye upon you." Psalms 32:8.

All NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission.

New American Standard Bible

A corporation not for profit.

www.lockman.org

Saturday, May 9, 2026

Expectant Perspective

The Expectant Perspective

by David Brenneman

"But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come. For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; Avoid such men as these." 2 Timothy 3:1-5.

"But know this: Hard times will come in the last days. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, proud, demeaning, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, without love for what is good, traitors, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding to the form of godliness but denying its power. Avoid these people." 2 Timothy 3:1-5 CSB.

"But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!" II Timothy 3:1-5. NKJV

Take a really good look at this passage from 3 translation perspectives.

As several of the Study Bibles that I read last night attest to, these kinds of people that were there in Timothy's time are certainly in ours as well. Again, the Churches were taught to be expectant of the possibility of Jesus Christ returning.

That expectant perspective should be ours today.

How much more focused are you on cleaning up your home when someone you haven't seen in a long time is supposed to be stopping for a visit?

How much more presentable will you be in that moment?

When you know of someone you look up to is going to be nearby and the opportunity presents itself for you to meet them. How much more attention are you going to pay to your appearance?

When you have been entrusted with completing something and you know that you're going to be checked concerning it, how much extra effort will you make to ensure its as perfect as it can be?

Jesus is certainly returning for His Church, just as assuredly as He arose from the dead to sit at the right hand of the Father in Heaven.

We're warned of the kinds of people we will encounter and what we ought to do concerning them. We also ought to be on the alert if such people try to infiltrate the Church to disrupt the proper teaching of God's Word. Regardless of if you agree or not, women who think they can be called to preach over a congregation are listening to the doctrines of demons. These ideas of this were happening at Ephesus. It's nothing new to our age.

Earlier in these letters to Timothy we read of the qualifications for men to be the only ones called to be preachers of the Word of God.

At the end of Chapter 3 we likewise read "All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work." 2 Timothy 3:16-17. Paul's instructions were for Timothy to seek out and find approved men of God to be the future preachers of the Word of God. Using the Bible as the standard of measurement.

In our days we are seeing an explosion of false teachers and women who think they can be a preacher over a congregation. We see the Name of Jesus Christ removed from being essential to salvation. We see the Bible not even referred to during church services. We see Jesus not honored in worship music.

Look at Paul's next words to Timothy. "I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths." 2 Timothy 4:1-4.

Right there is the headlines of today's world.

Me, personally, I am excited and expecting Jesus to return. I am wanting to be found by Him ready to go and be with Him. I am not about to mince words and am not writing what He has me write to spare feelings. He instructed me over 7 years ago that He would give me things to write and it was upon me to write them. If I didn't then I would be needing to give an account as to why. Just as the Watchman on the Wall of Jerusalem was accountable for the warning of dangers to the people, so am I with this ministry.

You may not agree, but that's between you and Jesus. Take it up with Jesus. Get out your Bible, and go to Him in prayer.

As for me and my house we will serve the Lord. My expectation of His return is to be obedient to His Word to me for me. Doing whatever I do as unto the Lord. You, my Dear Reader ought to do the same. Being sure of your salvation. Being in the Word of God daily. Being in prayer as consistently as possible. Being in the whole armor of God at all times. Seeking first His Kingdom and His righteousness. Living a transformed life that honors Jesus Christ and is eager to be found obedient to your calling in Christ Jesus.

Someone once said that if we ignore the past we will be doomed to repeat our mistakes in the future. Various denominations have ignored the past that Paul, Timothy, Luke, Titus, and others lived through at Ephesus, Philadelphia, Corinth and other such places and here we have those mistakes repeated today.

Are you going to be found faithful to the Word of God or to the myths of mankind? Are you going to be shocked and ashamed at Jesus returning or are you going to explode with joy at His appearing?

As Timothy was so charged by Paul to live up to, so are all men of God that are to be the spiritual leaders of the Church.

Be about the work of God in Christ Jesus that's yours to accomplish. Be sure that what you are doing is God's plan and purpose for you and give it your everything.

Be obedient to God's Word and not the mere speculations of this world.

Be found to be ready by living a faithful life in Christ Jesus.

Be ready for that shout that will call us out of this world!

All NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission.

New American Standard Bible

A corporation not for profit.

www.lockman.org

Friday, May 8, 2026

The Coming Son of God

by David Brenneman

We ought to pay close attention to the reading of the Scriptures every day. It's with much intentionality that regardless of the days events that I have developed a persistence in this endeavor. It requires persistence. You cannot, of your own volition, trust you to complete such a task. Each one of us would turn our own way and choose anything but time in the Word of God without a certain level of persistence in doing it.

Think of Paul's analogy of the runner preparing for a race. Without persistence in that, there would be no preparation. They would most assuredly fail to come close to a winning time among the others in that particular race.

Without persistence in taking the time for the meaningful reading of the Scriptures, how would one know what the promises of God really were?

Without persistence in taking time to be in the Word of God, how would you know what to look for with regards to what Jesus said of returning for His Church?

Personally I have lost track of how many times that I have read through my Bible. Which is an excellent problem to have.

Right now I am reading the Old Testament in a year in the mornings along with a chapter in Proverbs a day that matches the day of the month. In the evenings there is devotional books and 4 study Bibles with their notes. A few months back I changed it up a little. While two of my study Bibles are the same translation, I listen to that night's chapter when I get to that particular Bible rather than read it twice.

You too must persist in making the time to be in God's Word. I, as well as others in Christ, will tell you that you will never come away from the experience unchanged. You will always, no matter how many times you read through it, will find something new.

As someone once said how often can you read a book where the Author is right there with you?

You also honor Jesus Christ when you obey in this.

Decades ago it hit me hard. How could I have come to Him for salvation and yet had neglected to read His love letter to the world? How could I stand before Jesus and had never spent time in God's Word?

"For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do." Hebrews 4:12-13.

Without the Word of God we wouldn't know the truths of God to transform our lives, wouldn't know what to look for concerning His return either.

Paul wrote a lot about the return of Jesus Christ, did you know that? He taught those he preached to as well as exhorted those he wrote to, to live as though today were THAT day of His return.

Will you add to your problems when you stand before Jesus to give an account of your life by not having made your time in God's Word an important part of your life?

My Dear Reader God's Word gives us everything pertaining to life and Godliness. "Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ." 2 Peter 1:5-8.

How would you know of what I just shared if you weren't reading your Bible?

I encourage you all the more as the day of the Rapture of the Church draws near to get into the Word of God. For those of you who can, memorize it. For those who struggle with memorization just persist in reading it anyway. I take great comfort in "Your word I have treasured in my heart, That I may not sin against You." Psalms 119:11. Some translations say "hidden in my heart".

The all important thing is to get it in your heart.

A physical analogy is that while you don't understand fully how, all the food and drink you take in transforms your body with regards to growing...you just know that it does. You must feed your spirit and soul with the Word of God in order to grow in Christ.

You also honor all that Jesus did on the cross for you when you do your best to live out your salvation in this way.

God's Word says that it a right and good thing to be ready for when the Lord Jesus will appear. To not be taken by surprise.

Make it your mission in life to be including time in God's Word as your highest priority.

He IS coming back soon and my hope and prayer is that you and I would be both looking and prepared for that day.

All NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission.

New American Standard Bible

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