[Faith-talk] Good Night Message for Tuesday, March 19, 2013

[Paul]

Hello and good day to all of you, whatever time in this world it is in your area.  I hope that, by God's matchless grace and His providential care, that your day is going well or went well.  Here in the Americas it's almost time to think of going to bed, at least for those of us in the eastern part of our hemisphere, whereas you in the central, mountain and western states and provinces still have a way to go.

Before I give you the article selected for today, this column will not appear tomorrow because of the fact that the undersigned has to prepare for a Thursday colonoscopy and, because of circumstances surrounding that preparation, I won't be able to sit at my computer.  However, for those of you who receive them, the pearls of wisdom for tomorrow will be sent.  Thanks for your understanding in this matter.

Some years ago an unnamed author wrote something for the Faith, Prayer and Tract League entitled "In God We Trust," rendered as follows:

"It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and the Bible" (George Washington).

We've come a long way from the old days when our government and its institutions openly admitted that we needed God to have this nation work.

In our public life, we either ignore God or are openly hostile to Him.  Symbols that remind us of God are not allowed in public places.  Our teachers may not say His name.  TV names Him frequently, but usually as a curse.

It's not unusual for a nation to ignore God.  The story of nations is a story of unbelief.  Usually, as a nation prospers, the people ignore God and, as it falls on bad times, the people return to God.

We ignore God and His commandments at our peril.  Families, institutions, and whole cultures crumble when they ignore God.  Our complex problems of crime, drug abuse, broken homes, teenage pregnancy, AIDS, abortion, child abuse, homelessness .... all are rooted in our choice to ignore God.

God is going to have the last word on our nation.  God will destroy us if we continue in our sin.  His desire throughout the history of nations and for our nation today is that we repent, turn to Him and truly trust Him.  To trust God is to take Him at His Word, accept His Son, Jesus Christ, and obey His commandments.

God, in His mercy, has provided a solution to our personal and national sins.  He sent His only Son, Jesus, to come and die for us so that everyone who believes in Him has his sins washed clean and becomes a permanent member of the family of God.

And when we are God's children, we learn what a relief it is to trust in God.  Living by God's desires, we learn how to govern ourselves, our families, and our nation.

If you are ready to trust God with your life, here is a prayer to get you started:

Dear God, forgive me and forgive our nation for trying to live without You.  I accept and believe that Your Son, Jesus Christ, came to earth to pay the penalty for our sins.  I repent of my sins and ask that you will help our nation to also repent.  Please make me a member of Your family in the name of Jesus Christ.  Amen.

"Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord; Behold, the eye of the Lord is upon them that fear Him, upon them that hope in His mercy" (Psalm 33:12, 18).

"He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life:  and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him" (John 3:36).

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life" (John 3:16).

And there you have it for today.  Until Thursday evening when, Lord willing another good night message will be presented, may the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob just keep us safe, individually and collectively, throughout this night or day and especially in these last days in which we live.  Your Christian friend and brother, Paul