Sky was dark with black clouds as we got up in our neck of the woods, now I am looking out at blue skies and sunshine!  While it is a tad ‘breezy’ I just love this Fall weather!

It is so hard to believe it is FALL, I am still thinking back in Spring as far as my mindset goes.  The last day of September, three-fourths of our year has passed me and I don’t remember half of it going by.  Oh, well.

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Psalm 25:2-6  KJV  “O my God, I trust in thee: let me not be ashamed, let not mine enemies triumph over me.

³ Yea, let none that wait on thee be ashamed: let them be ashamed which transgress without cause.

⁴ Shew me thy ways, O Lord; teach me thy paths.

⁵ Lead me in thy truth, and teach me: for thou art the God of my salvation; on thee do I wait all the day.”

God has always been there for His Believers, and while many have gone through terrible ordeals and tribulations, they could stand tall and not hang their head in shame – they were and are part of God’s family.

Satan strives to make us ashamed of our commitment to God.  He wants to use the hatred of the world to shame us into hiding our faith and thus becoming ineffective for God.

AND of course many of us have succumbed to temptations and have shamed our testimony. 

Fortunately, God IS forgiving and while we may not have fulfilled our earlier promises of service, we can still be of service if we ask forgiveness and once again live for Him.

Jesus was well aware of this happening.

John 17:14-17 KJV  “I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.

¹⁵ I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil.

¹⁶ They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.

¹⁷ Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.”

I don’t know about others, but I do confess that there have been times that I just asked God why not relieve me from the pain and bring me home?

Evidently He still has some things He wants me to do before He does that, so, I must refocus, not bemoan my circumstances but wait for Him to show me what He wants me to do, searching my surroundings, His Word and asking His Holy Spirit to guide me.

“I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil.”

I have heard the comments that if God saved us, then why didn’t He take us into heaven at that time – indeed, sometimes I ask myself that same question.

But if He did that, who would have been around to tell me of God’s sacrificing His Son that I might live?

Maybe, just maybe, God does know what He is doing!!

Acts 10:42-43  KJV  “And he commanded us to preach unto the people, and to testify that it is he which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead.

⁴³ To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins.”

What a glorious message we have to share with others.  That is why he prayed:

“I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil.”

Later, Art (-: