Back in the days of the great western cattle ranches in America, a little donkey would sometimes be harnessed to a wild horse and then turned loose onto the range. The wild horse would drag the donkey for miles, throwing him around like a bag of feed. In several days, however, they would return.

The little donkey would be seen first, trotting back toward the ranch with his submissive steed in tow. Somewhere out in the wild, the horse would become exhausted and try to free itself of the donkey. At that moment, the donkey became the master of the two. The slow, patient, unimportant animal became the leader over the faster, more volatile, and more prized one. What made the difference? Having a steadfast purpose! And what was the donkey’s purpose? Going back home to the ranch! So no matter how many times they fought, tugged on the rope, and ended up on their backs kicking and fuming, each time the donkey got back on his feet, he would take a few more steps in the direction of the ranch. It was only a matter of time until the tired and exhausted horse decided to join him. One of the great themes of Scripture is having a steadfast purpose. Samuel told the Israelites: “Do not turn aside; for then you would go after empty things which cannot profit or deliver” (1 Samuel 12:21 NKJV). Isaiah wrote: “I have set My face like a flint, and I know that I will not be ashamed” (Isaiah 50:7 NKJV). Paul wrote: “Be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord.”

VCM

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Winning The Los

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Philippians 4:6

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God

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Lovely Thoughts For Lovely
People Just Like You.
Always Remember
JESUS Loves You . …..
Share this message to all your friends, both Saved and unsaved

THE BRIDGE IS OUT !

GOD BLESS YOU !

Shared from Lori Welch

John 5:24 ~ Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life.

John 14:6 ~ Jesus saith unto him, I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me.

Ricky Jackson, an Ohio man who spent nearly four decades on death row for a crime he did not commit, has been declared innocent after his conviction was overturned in 2014, marking one of the longest wrongful imprisonment cases in United States history.

Jackson was only 18 years old in 1975 when he was arrested and sentenced to death for the murder of a Cleveland money-order salesman. His conviction was based largely on the testimony of a 12-year-old witness, who later admitted that he had been pressured by police to provide false evidence.

Throughout his 39 years behind bars, Jackson maintained his innocence, despite having no physical evidence, DNA evidence, or weapon linking him to the crime. He spent more than 14,000 days in prison while watching life pass by outside his cell.

During his incarceration, Jackson missed decades of personal milestones and major changes in society, including the rise of modern technology and the everyday freedoms most people take for granted. He also lost loved ones, including his mother, while he remained imprisoned.

In 2014, the former child witness came forward and revealed that his testimony had been false and influenced by law enforcement when he was a young boy. Following the revelation, a judge overturned Jackson’s conviction and officially cleared his name.

After walking free at the age of 57, Jackson reflected on the years he lost, describing his release as a moment of relief mixed with deep pain over the life that had been taken from him.

Having entered prison as a teenager and left as a middle-aged man, Ricky Jackson’s case remains a powerful example of the devastating consequences of wrongful convictions and the importance of ensuring justice within the legal system.

[Widespread reactions pour in as man declared innocent after 39-years on death row.]

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Are You Hoping for the Blessed Hope?​

Paul’s letter to the Thessalonians is the clearest scriptural reference to the Rapture, but it is not the only one. The concept of the “Rapture” is contained in 1 Thessalonians 4:17 where the word is typically translated as “caught up.” In the original Greek, the word harpázō was used. That word appears 14 times in Scripture and conveys the idea of being seized, snatched away, plucked up, or carried off by force. For example:

– Matthew 11:12 (take it by force)
– Matthew 12:29 (plunder)
– Matthew 13:19 (snatches away)
– John 6:15 (take Him by force)
– John 10:12 (the wolf catches)
– John 10:28, 29 (neither shall anyone snatch them)
– 2 Corinthians 12:2, 4 (caught up into Paradise)
– Jude 23 (pulling them out of the fire)
– Revelation 12:5 (her Child was caught up to God)

Late in the 4th century, Jerome translated the Greek New Testament into the Latin Vulgate (“vulgar” or common tongue spoken by most Roman citizens). He used the future tense of the Latin verb rapio, rendering it as rapiēmur – meaning “we shall be caught up.”

If Paul’s Spirit-revealed reference to what we call the Rapture was the only one, it would still be a clear and valid prophecy. But other Scriptures reference this promise to the Church: “Jesus said, ‘I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am going (to prepare a place for you) you may be also’“ (John 14:1-4).

Paul revealed, “Behold, I tell you a mystery; we will not all sleep, but we will all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed” (1 Corinthians 15:51-52).

The context of Paul’s statement makes clear that he is referring to “the dead in Christ” (to use the language of 1 Thessalonians 4:16). And, while some get hung up on the nature of the “last trumpet,” it is the final trumpet those who have been redeemed will hear with our mortal ears – even as other trumpets will sound in Heaven and during the Tribulation. I don’t believe the unsaved will hear that particular trumpet, but those with “ears to hear” will hear the wonderful shout of the archangel and blast of that trumpet that will announce Christ Himself descending to collect His Bride.

Jesus is the Bridegroom who is waiting for His Father to say, “Go, and get Your Bride.” Any man who has awaited his wedding day can testify that the sense of anticipation and joyful excitement begins at the engagement and mounts as the wedding day draws near. The same was true with a Jewish betrothal, although the timing of the actual wedding was undetermined (and unknowable) until the father decided it was time.

As she awaits the wedding day, every bride also experiences growing expectation and hope. Her hope is not a forlorn wish, but an assurance of a life to be united and shared with the bridegroom. That is why brides used to gather treasured belongings in a hope chest – readying them for use in her future home and family.

It is almost unimaginable to think of a bride who would be apathetic about her impending wedding. And yet, many in the Bride of Christ seem unconcerned and indifferent about the joy that awaits when our Bridegroom comes to snatch us away, gathering us to Himself in the blink of an eye.

Oh, what a joy-filled day that will be! But that is only the beginning of the glories and joys that await us according to Bible prophecy.

Oh, Glorious Day​

There will be a moment in time when every knee shall bow, and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord of all. There will come another time when all the inhabitants of the world will see Jesus lead an army from Heaven to defeat His enemies and establish His Kingdom on the Earth. I’ve stood in the place where Jesus will return and looked down upon the Eastern Gate and Temple Mount, where He will enter the city and reign from the throne of David. So many prophetic signs point to that glorious day. As described in Matthew 24 and Luke 21, those signs are multiplying. They are increasing in frequency and intensity. And, they are converging like never before – to the point that even the spiritually undiscerning are beginning to realize that something is afoot.

Throughout the book of Revelation, there are repeated glimpses of the blessings that await those Tribulation saints who endure to the end. While most are martyred during that horrific seven-year period, a small minority will witness the end of the Tribulation and be able to enter the Millennial Kingdom in their mortal bodies. But for those of us who have believed in the Lord Jesus Christ during the Church Age unto salvation, there is now no condemnation for us (Romans 8:1) – and no need to be subjected to the outpouring of God’s wrath throughout the Tribulation.

Simply put, Paul’s words to the Church at Thessalonica would ring hollow if we are destined to suffer through the wrath of God. Given the overview of the Rapture he described in the verses immediately preceding, the idea that the Bride of Christ must suffer God’s righteous indignation undermines the sufficiency of Jesus’ blood and His sacrificial propitiation on our behalf. Propitiation: the act of appeasing or absorbing the wrath of God on another’s behalf.

There is no doubt that Jesus’ Second Coming to the Earth will be glorious – and that those who have trusted in Him will be there. I’ve envisioned that scene as described in Scripture so many times that my own heart thrills when I am on the Mount of Olives. Our friend Don Perkins has thought through this prophetic fulfillment so carefully that he has already picked out a name for the horse he’ll ride as part of the heavenly army. But many intervening events must occur before the Second Coming – some wonderful and some tragic.

What Next?​

The next prophetic event on God’s timeline of the End Times is the Rapture. But there are several other prophetic events that every follower of Christ will participate in:

– The Wedding Supper of the Lamb
– The glorious Second Coming
– The Millennial Kingdom
– The New Jerusalem on the New Earth
– The Eternal State

Each one of those has unique blessings. Each one promises glories that are beyond comprehension. Citing Isaiah 64:4, Paul tells us, “Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, and which have not entered the heart of man, ALL that God has prepared for those who love Him” (1 Corinthians 2:9). And yet, those who have the Spirit of God have been given a foretaste of what awaits us in glory (1 Corinthians 2:10).

I am convinced that like a loving parent who cannot fully convey what lies ahead to an eager and excited (but unaware) child, God knows that our minds simply cannot fathom what awaits us. And He does not reveal every glory that awaits us because He expects us to trust Him.

So, with all the wonderful things that lie ahead, the next best prophesied thing is the Rapture of the Church.

The Bridegroom is ready. The Archangel is ready to shout. The trumpeter is ready to sound a blast. John tells us that “the Spirit and the Bride say, ‘Come’“ (Revelation 22:17). Jesus even assured us three times in Revelation 22, “I am coming quickly” (22:7, 12, 20).

If you have a regenerate heart that loves the Lord Jesus Christ then you also have ears to hear. And if you do, I hope you’ll take Jesus at His Word and join the Apostle John and all of us at Lamb & Lion Ministries in responding, “Amen. Come Lord Jesus.” (Revelation 22:20)

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Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. John 10:1

My teacher told me that I was “a little goody-goody,” but all persons, including goody-goodies, were born with sinful hearts which come between them and God and bar them from Heaven. The solution was to seek forgiveness of sins through Jesus the Door, the only way to God and Heaven. I felt my guilt, bowed in prayer with my teacher, confessed my sins to God, and received forgiveness and new life in Jesus. I was now at peace with God.

The Lord Jesus Christ has piloted me throughout my teenage and adult years, sometimes through challenging and unknown situations. I no longer deceive myself by seeking to do good deeds and bypass the Son of God who loved me and died for me and will one day take me to Heaven to be with Him forever.

~Nurkle L. Nottinghamshire, Englan

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Joseph Scriven was born in Ireland in 1819. The night before his wedding, his fiancée drowned in a tragic accident. Devastated, he eventually emigrated to Canada, where he lived a quiet, almost ascetic life — taking on manual labor jobs and giving away much of what he earned to anyone poorer than himself.

Neighbors described him doing physical work for elderly and disabled people without payment, often anonymously, living by a personal conviction that material wealth should be shared rather than kept.

In 1855, Scriven wrote a poem to comfort his mother back in Ireland during a time of illness and sorrow — never intending it for publication. It read, in part: “What a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear.”

The poem reportedly stayed private for years until a friend found it by chance while visiting Scriven during an illness and asked if he had written it. Scriven apparently admitted he had, but insisted the Lord and he had written it together, and that he didn’t care if his name was attached to it at all.

The poem was eventually set to music and became one of the most enduring hymns in church history.

Scriven died in 1886 — by drowning, in a small creek near his home, under circumstances never fully clarified, decades after the same fate took the woman he had planned to marry.

A man who wanted no credit wrote a hymn that has comforted millions for over 150 years.

Share this with someone who needs a reminder that they have a Friend.

“Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.” — John 15:13

Historia Ecclesiae

Starving. Alone. Covered in worms.

His own family had abandoned him — because they believed he was a witch.

A Danish woman named Anja knelt beside him in the dirt, gave him water from a bottle, and whispered a name for him.

Hope.

Because that’s all he had left.

Doctors didn’t think he’d survive the night. Daily blood transfusions. Emergency surgery. A body that weighed barely 3 kilos.

But Hope had other plans.

Fast forward to 2025.

That same little boy — now 12 — walked across a graduation stage and collected his primary school diploma with one of the highest grades in his entire class.

He is deaf. He speaks through sign language and expresses himself through art.

His teachers call him “Little Picasso.”

He has been accepted into a specialist school built around children just like him.

He was reunited with his father.

He is painting. Dancing. Laughing. Dreaming of becoming an artist.

The boy everyone left to d!e on a dirt road…

Is now the boy who makes people believe in miracles.

From Some Amazing Facts

Matthew 5:7

Blessed are the merciful, For they shall obtain mercy.