9/24/2026
"But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, whose minds
the god of this age has blended, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the
glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on Them."
2 Corinthians 4:3-4
As I sit in my rocker looking out across the yard all appears tranquil and at rest. The skies are blue with a slight overcast, yet the promise of sunshine smiles across the horizon. Outside a young carpenter is busy at his trade erecting the much-anticipated enclosure for my lawn mower and other yard toys. We are finally checking off projects on our list, and it's a good feeling, a sense of accomplishment. My son and I will place the finishing touches on the structure, as I wanted to do the honor of painting it myself. Perhaps that will ignite the fire of enthusiasm that has laid dormant for too long in this body of mine. I need another jump-start! A burst of exuberance so great that it overrides the pain in my body that has been the root of my malaise.
This afternoon I tuned into the United Nations General Assembly intent on listening to the comments made by Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In spite of the disrespect he was shown by dignitaries from the Middle East, Africa, and some Western nations, he addressed a half-filled room, speaking with courage and conviction. He came to set the record straight, and for those who actually see and understand the truth, he accomplished his goal. While he was speaking, however, there was an anti-Zionism crowd protesting against him and against our nation. Celebrities were joining in with chants of freeing Palestine when they have no true understanding of what actually happened or continues to go on. It's a shameful thing to watch people behave so childishly and unhonorably. I'm not surprised that no one cares about the horrendous murder and mutilation of babies, men and women, all innocent civilians, in Israel on 10/7/2023 which included Americans. It is not surprising to me, because we live in a nation that murders and viciously mutilates babies every day without a hint of regret, until one day the scales fall from their eyes, and their lives are eaten away by guilt and shame. But the ones who are arrested for praying outside of abortion clinics are the only ones to offer them love and support after the dirty deed has been done. They are the ones who offer love and compassion and assistance to begin again. Why is it that killing an animal is a worse travesty than murdering an infant? The world is full of moral cowards as Netanyahu called those who walked out in defiance not desiring to hear the truth, content on making accusations and pointing fingers. This is what we have become, and it breaks my heart.
Tomorrow evening the Feast of Tabernacles, one of the Lord's appointed feasts, will begin in Israel, lasting seven days. It is a time of celebration as the people come up to Jerusalem from all over to live in temporary dwellings - sukkah (singular) or sukkot (plural) - tabernacles, remembering the time the people journeyed through the wilderness. There will be many planned events, and I will be attending the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem's activities virtually along with many other online pilgrims who are unable to make the journey to Israel. We have been praying that this year many locals will attend the festivities to hear the message of Jesus Christ proclaiming the truth of our Lord and soon coming King. We are waiting in expectation of the prophet Joel's words from the Lord to come to fruition:
"And it shall come to pass afterward that I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions. And also on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days" (Joel 2:28-29).
The Lord says that there will be many shows of wonders in the skies and on the earth, and He promises that all who call upon the name of the Lord will be saved:
"And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth: blood and fire and pillars of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the coming of the great and awesome day of the LORD. And it shall come to pass that whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved. For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be deliverance, as the LORD has said, among the remnant whom the LORD calls" (Joel 2:30-32).
The Lord always fulfills His promises, as He is a covenant keeping God, a Father who loves His children and desires abundant life with them. Sadly not all will accept this great gift but will remain stuck in their own desires, own opinions of the way things should be, all the while further used by the enemy to blind the eyes and deafen the ears to the truth of the Gospel to those who carelessly follow them, like sheep to the slaughter. So we pray, and we trust, and we place our hope in our God.
"Seek the LORD while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the LORD, and He will have mercy on him; and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon. 'For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,' says the LORD. 'For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts'" (Isaiah 55:6-9).

