I visited women in prison recently. Since Christmas is coming I wished them a Merry Christmas but then I thought, Can they really have a Merry Christmas in prison, away from their family? Were my words that were  intended to be kind, insulting or depressing them? I hope not. Next year I will just say a few quick Merry Christmases and not expound any more than that.

This verse is my prayer for these women. May they be set free in their souls and minds from that which overwhelms them before they are ever set free from their concrete prison walls.

In the book of Revelation, an angel carried the Gospel,  telling of Jesus, to the world.

Revelation 14:

6 And I saw another angel flying through the sky, carrying the eternal Good News to proclaim to the people who belong to this world—to every nation, tribe, language, and people. 7 “Fear God,” he shouted. “Give glory to him. For the time has come when he will sit as judge. Worship him who made the heavens, the earth, the sea, and all the springs of water.”

i turn the words of the Psalm into a prayer for my family in 2018.

Praise the Lord!
How joyful are those who fear the Lord
and delight in obeying his commands.
2 Their children will be successful everywhere;
an entire generation of godly people will be blessed.
3 They themselves will be wealthy,
and their good deeds will last forever.
4 Light shines in the darkness for the godly.
They are generous, compassionate, and righteous.
5 Good comes to those who lend money generously
and conduct their business fairly.
6 Such people will not be overcome by evil.
Those who are righteous will be long remembered.
7 They do not fear bad news;
they confidently trust the Lord to care for them.
8 They are confident and fearless
and can face their foes triumphantly.
9 They share freely and give generously to those in need.
Their good deeds will be remembered forever.
They will have influence and honor.
10 The wicked will see this and be infuriated.
They will grind their teeth in anger;
they will slink away, their hopes thwarted

When I was around nine years old the book The Late Great Planet Earth by Hal Lindsey was a best seller. It was about how the world would come to an end according to the Bible. Everyone was talking about it including kids like me. My family didn’t go to church regularly but my friend did. I wanted to become a Christian because I was so scared and I knew I couldn’t run from God.

Today I have been a Christian for many years. I have a One Year Bible that helps me read it through in a year. The great thing about my Bible is I’m reading the last book, Revelation, at Christmas time. I like the combination of focusing on Jesus’ birth and the scary details of Revelation. The truth is God provided Jesus, and even told about His birth in the Old Testament book of Isaiah , hundreds of years before He came to earth. I no longer worry about the troublesome times that will come upon the earth like I did when I was young. I look to Jesus, the Son of God. He’s my Savior.

It seems everyone gains interest in the Bible when the mark of the beast is talked about.  When I was young it scared me hearing about the prophecies yet to be fulfilled from the book of Revelation. I was just a kid but wanted to become a Christian because it all sounded so scary to me.

Revelation 13:

16 He required everyone—small and great, rich and poor, free and slave—to be given a mark on the right hand or on the forehead. 17 And no one could buy or sell anything without that mark, which was either the name of the beast or the number representing his name. 18 Wisdom is needed here. Let the one with understanding solve the meaning of the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man. His number is 666.

Gorgeous and peaceful

In Revelation these words describe Jesus’ reign on earth.

Revelation 12:

7 war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. 8But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. 9The great dragon was hurled down-that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him. 10Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: “Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Messiah. For the accuser of our brothers and sisters, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down. 11They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death. 12Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you! He is filled with fury, because he knows that his time is short.” 13When the dragon saw that he had been hurled to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child.

Dear God, thank you for forgiving the wrong in my life as fast as a microsecond. You have removed the sin from my life as far as the east is from the west. I can start again and do better because your mercies are new every morning.

God cares for all.  He deserves praise from the mighty to the lowly.

Psalm 138:

4 May all the kings of the earth praise you, LORD, when they hear what you have decreed. 5 May they sing of the ways of the LORD, for the glory of the LORD is great. 6 Though the LORD is exalted, he looks kindly on the lowly; though lofty, he sees them from afar.

There is only one true God, God Almighty Himself.

Habakkuk 2:

18″Of what value is an idol carved by a craftsman? Or an image that teaches lies? For the one who makes it trusts in his own creation; he makes idols that cannot speak. 19Woe to him who says to wood, ‘Come to life!’ Or to lifeless stone, ‘Wake up!’ Can it give guidance? It is covered with gold and silver; there is no breath in it.” 20The LORD is in his holy temple; let all the earth be silent before him.