BBD 08.30.10 We Must Watch (New)

#1 · August 30, 2010, 12:01 pm

Quote from Forum Archives on August 30, 2010, 12:01 pm
Posted by: wrather <wrather@...>

Visit the Burning Bush websites:

www.theburningbush.net
www.theburningbush.org

The Burning Bush websites have received visits from more than 170 countries. Celebrating 11 years online since January 31, 1998. Since June 8, 1998 the Burning Bush Devotional has been spreading the truth of Gods Word to more than 11,000 subscribers across the world.

Please join the Burning Bush Prayer Group. The group began in 1998 and is made up of over 300 prayer warriors. Send prayer requests and receive prayer requests. To join send an email to: bbpg-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

If you love to send and receive inspirational emails then the Burning Bush Inspirational Group is for you. To join send an email to bbinspire-join@welovegod.org

You can now leave comments/feedback about the devotionals at www.theburningbush.net.

The Burning Bush Devotional
Welcome to the 1116 new subscribers since January 1, 2010!!
There were 1367 new subscribers during 2009!!

08.30.10

We Must Watch

He went a little farther and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will. Then He came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, What! Could you not watch with Me one hour? Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. - Matthew 26:39-41.

For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night. For when they say, Peace and safety! then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape. But you, brethren, are not in darkness, so that this Day should overtake you as a thief. You are all sons of light and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep, as others do, but let us watch and be sober. For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk are drunk at night. But let us who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of salvation. - 1 Thessalonians 5:2-8.

The members of the Taiwanese military have a new order to obey, and they are unhappy about them. The new order commands that Servicemen should avoid napping or resting with their eyes closed while taking public transportation to maintain the image of the armed forces. The soldiers are expected to participate in night training and because of that it is not unusual to see them closing their eyes for a little nap while traveling on buses, trains or other public transportation.

We understand why the Taiwanese service members want to close their eyes for a nap. We have been there ourselves when we are so tired and sleepy that before we know it even when in a public place we find that we have nodded off for a moment or more. Our bodies simply need some rest and at some point whether we intend to or not they will shut down to obtain that rest.

In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus was engaged in a great spiritual battle, and He was fighting it through prayer. By this point in time, His disciples should have also understood that there was this battle going on, and they should have been praying for Jesus and for themselves. Instead, they had closed their eyes in sleep.

In the apostle Pauls letter to the Thessalonians, God is telling us something similar. Jesus is coming back and that could happen at any moment or any day, just as He came back to find His disciples asleep. Will He find us asleep too?

There is more here than whether we are sleepy or not because we too are engaged in a colossal spiritual struggle. It is going on all around us, and we are involved in the battle, whether we want to recognize it and join the fight or not. This is not a battle that can wait for when we have some spare time, and we dont happen to have anything else important to do. No, this is a war, and we are in the midst of it. We must keep our eyes open to what is happening! We must be alert to the advances of the enemy! We must be on guard against the temptations and struggles that may be around the next corner.

Jesus knew that ahead lay the cross, and He willingly carried His cross, His instrument of execution to Golgotha. Jesus says in Luke 9:23, If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. Are you watching? Will you put on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of salvation and take up your cross each day following Him into the battle?

Copyright © 2010. Ed Wrather. Permission is given for use of the devotionals on a non-profit basis with source credited. The Burning Bush website has been online since January 31, 1998. On June 8, 1998 the email version of the Burning Bush Devotional was first sent. Ed Wrather began writing devotionals in the early 1990s. The distribution of these first devotionals was primarily through the Burning Bush Newsletter sent to prison facilities throughout the United States and Canada.

For information about how to hear my testimony in your church visit this link: www.theburningbush.net/pages.asp?pageid=22160

Many prayer needs are posted at the Burning Bush website on the Prayer Request page. You can also post your prayer requests there and they will be forwarded to the Burning Bush Prayer Group (Of course, I am always in need of prayer - please pray for me.).

If you are not my friend on facebook or myspace you can be, just add me. The devotionals are posted in my blogs on those two social networks and you can leave comments, feedback about them there. There are other social networks designed just for Christians, however, this is an outreach project to reach those who may not know the Lord or may have wandered away. You can help me reach out to them.

If you enjoy the devotional please recommend it to your friends. They may subscribe by sending a blank email to burningbushhtml-join@welovegod.org

Two videos of my sermons are posted on Godtube at: connect.tangle.com/Wrather

You can listen to services at my son, Clark Wrather's church (First Baptist Church of Broken Bow, Oklahoma) live on Sunday mornings at 10:55am CST www.kkbifm.com/

There is a complete devotional archive at the old Burning Bush website. Here is the URL: www.theburningbush.org/33.html.

You may SUBSCRIBE to the html text group by sending a blank email to burningbushhtml-join@welovegod.org and you may UNSUBSCRIBE by sending a blank email to burningbushhtml-leave@welovegod.org and then respond to the confirmation email. If the link does not work, copy and paste the link.

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Posted by: wrather <wrather@...>

Visit the Burning Bush websites:

http://www.theburningbush.net
http://www.theburningbush.org

The Burning Bush websites have received visits from more than 170 countries. Celebrating 11 years online since January 31, 1998. Since June 8, 1998 the Burning Bush Devotional has been spreading the truth of Gods Word to more than 11,000 subscribers across the world.

Please join the Burning Bush Prayer Group. The group began in 1998 and is made up of over 300 prayer warriors. Send prayer requests and receive prayer requests. To join send an email to: bbpg-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

If you love to send and receive inspirational emails then the Burning Bush Inspirational Group is for you. To join send an email to bbinspire-join@welovegod.org

You can now leave comments/feedback about the devotionals at http://www.theburningbush.net.

The Burning Bush Devotional
Welcome to the 1116 new subscribers since January 1, 2010!!
There were 1367 new subscribers during 2009!!

08.30.10

We Must Watch

He went a little farther and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will. Then He came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, What! Could you not watch with Me one hour? Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. - Matthew 26:39-41.

For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night. For when they say, Peace and safety! then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape. But you, brethren, are not in darkness, so that this Day should overtake you as a thief. You are all sons of light and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep, as others do, but let us watch and be sober. For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk are drunk at night. But let us who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of salvation. - 1 Thessalonians 5:2-8.

The members of the Taiwanese military have a new order to obey, and they are unhappy about them. The new order commands that Servicemen should avoid napping or resting with their eyes closed while taking public transportation to maintain the image of the armed forces. The soldiers are expected to participate in night training and because of that it is not unusual to see them closing their eyes for a little nap while traveling on buses, trains or other public transportation.

We understand why the Taiwanese service members want to close their eyes for a nap. We have been there ourselves when we are so tired and sleepy that before we know it even when in a public place we find that we have nodded off for a moment or more. Our bodies simply need some rest and at some point whether we intend to or not they will shut down to obtain that rest.

In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus was engaged in a great spiritual battle, and He was fighting it through prayer. By this point in time, His disciples should have also understood that there was this battle going on, and they should have been praying for Jesus and for themselves. Instead, they had closed their eyes in sleep.

In the apostle Pauls letter to the Thessalonians, God is telling us something similar. Jesus is coming back and that could happen at any moment or any day, just as He came back to find His disciples asleep. Will He find us asleep too?

There is more here than whether we are sleepy or not because we too are engaged in a colossal spiritual struggle. It is going on all around us, and we are involved in the battle, whether we want to recognize it and join the fight or not. This is not a battle that can wait for when we have some spare time, and we dont happen to have anything else important to do. No, this is a war, and we are in the midst of it. We must keep our eyes open to what is happening! We must be alert to the advances of the enemy! We must be on guard against the temptations and struggles that may be around the next corner.

Jesus knew that ahead lay the cross, and He willingly carried His cross, His instrument of execution to Golgotha. Jesus says in Luke 9:23, If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. Are you watching? Will you put on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of salvation and take up your cross each day following Him into the battle?

Copyright © 2010. Ed Wrather. Permission is given for use of the devotionals on a non-profit basis with source credited. The Burning Bush website has been online since January 31, 1998. On June 8, 1998 the email version of the Burning Bush Devotional was first sent. Ed Wrather began writing devotionals in the early 1990s. The distribution of these first devotionals was primarily through the Burning Bush Newsletter sent to prison facilities throughout the United States and Canada.

For information about how to hear my testimony in your church visit this link: http://www.theburningbush.net/pages.asp?pageid=22160

Many prayer needs are posted at the Burning Bush website on the Prayer Request page. You can also post your prayer requests there and they will be forwarded to the Burning Bush Prayer Group (Of course, I am always in need of prayer - please pray for me.).

If you are not my friend on facebook or myspace you can be, just add me. The devotionals are posted in my blogs on those two social networks and you can leave comments, feedback about them there. There are other social networks designed just for Christians, however, this is an outreach project to reach those who may not know the Lord or may have wandered away. You can help me reach out to them.

If you enjoy the devotional please recommend it to your friends. They may subscribe by sending a blank email to burningbushhtml-join@welovegod.org

Two videos of my sermons are posted on Godtube at: connect.tangle.com/Wrather

You can listen to services at my son, Clark Wrather's church (First Baptist Church of Broken Bow, Oklahoma) live on Sunday mornings at 10:55am CST http://www.kkbifm.com/

There is a complete devotional archive at the old Burning Bush website. Here is the URL: http://www.theburningbush.org/33.html.

You may SUBSCRIBE to the html text group by sending a blank email to burningbushhtml-join@welovegod.org and you may UNSUBSCRIBE by sending a blank email to burningbushhtml-leave@welovegod.org and then respond to the confirmation email. If the link does not work, copy and paste the link.

=======
Email scanned by PC Tools - No viruses or spyware found.
(Email Guard: 7.0.0.18, Virus/Spyware Database: 6.15760)
http://www.pctools.com
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To unsubscribe, send ANY message to: burningbushhtml-unsubscribe@welovegod.org