The other day listen to one of the secular radio stations I heard a man say it was wise when you built a business one need to know on the first day of opening that business how to open it and how to shut it down. In other words what you start must have a finalee. God had a beginning for our earth and day of final destruction too. Most of what we see is rapid birthing pains of new churches while older churches must die out to bring new life into it. The same process of business dying out to bring forth new and better business. No, not quite the same always. Sin entering the church because of society laws say it okay causing destruction within the church world. Not a new thing or old custom. In fact I post two passage of scripture today, one below and one atop to make a point of the difference in the generation. The difference in time periods, One of Israel being prepared for the journey of going into exile and the other coming out of exile.

Why is the time of exile equally as important as the time of return. God is doing something with his people. Not all that went into exile trusted in God, in fact sin so gross that it take exile to turn the people back to God. The cankerworm eating away at the vine of God. The sin waxing great with in Israel to bring about destruction. Then time of return where even the leaders of the land was listening to God of Israel to say it time for you to return home. Even giving Israel permission to rebuild the temple of their God, believing that God was territorial and needed to go back to his homeland. The Levitical tribe ready to take the journey to saddle up their horses, pack there bags, and those walking, walk back into the promise land of Israel.

God starts with his own people before he works on the heathens, and the reason why he wants to purify his people before he purifies the rest of the people. If His people know the road map and slid off the road, they need to be able to be taken by the shepherds hook and put back on the road of life with God. If God in the process begins to turn even the heathen to him, we know God is doing a work in world. Spiritual growth in a land starting with God speaking first to his people and then to the rest of the world. He speaking to those that know his name and knows his righteousness.

If we remember the time of the wilderness it seem Israel would go faithless at times through the wilderness, to only be brought to their knees by the wrath and word of God. God's word in the time of desolation still works the same as it does in the time of spiritual prosperity of the church. The reason being God in his wisdom proves himself to each generation who he is. Each generation teaching what occured in their life to insure spiritual growth. As miracles decrease and lack of faith occurs then there will be another move of God so people will believe. It is one of the cycles of God that is dully noted in scripture. Yet it seen clearly in the Old Testament and only warned about in the New Testament. Jesus talked about famines and wars, times of destruction and the world getting worse with each tribulation. Yet only God the Father knew the time of final destruction, time of Christ's return. Most people want the signs of the time, which if they just look for a moment at the sin just in our own region and ask, is it bad enough that God will put his people into exile, or only the heathens of our land. God wants to changes the world, but he knows there times when people will not hear him, and times that people will not listen.

No matter the season around us is in do you still have the faith that will stand against the test of time, the test of exile, the time of growth and time of hope. Where are you in your own spiritual life, full of faith, or shelving your faith because you can be bothered with the truth at the present. King Cyrus was the king that would listen to the God of Israel that he believed in because he spoke to the king, but he did not understand God was more then terroritial god. He was Creator and God of the whole Universe, Cyrus would have to learn that this God was a God of his region too. It is important to know the signs of the times we live in, times of faith and times of destruction of both church and communities around us. When God wants to change and shake and area for his glory.

Dear Heavenly Father, move the mountains in the life of each and every generation so they know the reality of your power, that you will transform each generation with the power of Christ, In Jesus precious name, Amen.

Continual Scripture Study: Joel 1:1-20 KJV
1 The word of the LORD that came to Joel the son of Pethuel.
2 Hear this, ye old men, and give ear, all ye inhabitants of the land. Hath this been in your days, or even in the days of your fathers?
3 Tell ye your children of it, and let your children tell their children, and their children another generation.
4 That which the palmerworm hath left hath the locust eaten; and that which the locust hath left hath the cankerworm eaten; and that which the cankerworm hath left hath the caterpiller eaten.
5 Awake, ye drunkards, and weep; and howl, all ye drinkers of wine, because of the new wine; for it is cut off from your mouth.
6 For a nation is come up upon my land, strong, and without number, whose teeth are the teeth of a lion, and he hath the cheek teeth of a great lion.
7 He hath laid my vine waste, and barked my fig tree: he hath made it clean bare, and cast it away; the branches thereof are made white.
8 Lament like a virgin girded with sackcloth for the husband of her youth.
9 The meat offering and the drink offering is cut off from the house of the LORD; the priests, the LORD'S ministers, mourn.
10 The field is wasted, the land mourneth; for the corn is wasted: the new wine is dried up, the oil languisheth.
11 Be ye ashamed, O ye husbandmen; howl, O ye vinedressers, for the wheat and for the barley; because the harvest of the field is perished.
12 The vine is dried up, and the fig tree languisheth; the pomegranate tree, the palm tree also, and the apple tree, even all the trees of the field, are withered: because joy is withered away from the sons of men.
13 Gird yourselves, and lament, ye priests: howl, ye ministers of the altar: come, lie all night in sackcloth, ye ministers of my God: for the meat offering and the drink offering is withholden from the house of your God.
14 Sanctify ye a fast, call a solemn assembly, gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land into the house of the LORD your God, and cry unto the LORD,
15 Alas for the day! for the day of the LORD is at hand, and as a destruction from the Almighty shall it come.
16 Is not the meat cut off before our eyes, yea, joy and gladness from the house of our God?
17 The seed is rotten under their clods, the garners are laid desolate, the barns are broken down; for the corn is withered.
18 How do the beasts groan! the herds of cattle are perplexed, because they have no pasture; yea, the flocks of sheep are made desolate.
19 O LORD, to thee will I cry: for the fire hath devoured the pastures of the wilderness, and the flame hath burned all the trees of the field.
20 The beasts of the field cry also unto thee: for the rivers of waters are dried up, and the fire hath devoured the pastures of the wilderness.