Watch! Be Ready!

How often do we read these words in the Bible! It IS a warning but it is also a command! Jesus gave us the parable of the 6 wise and 6 foolish virgins. I think that part of the reason is because the focus of the 'watch' and 'be ready' is that our enemy wishes to derail and destroy us. He hates it when we change our allegiance and accept the free gift of salvation through Jesus, but he gets ballistic and absolutely livid when we begin to grow and become who we are designed and created to be. And he gets even more angered when we share Who has saved us, Who we witness about - the devil does not want us to act as the saved person Jesus has made us. And when you think about it... when EVER has satan given anything to anyone, especially free? Precisely. If anything, he wants us to bring all to him and serve him... and pay a steep price for this 'privilege'.

And our actions are to act... but sometimes there are times of waiting. If waiting, we probably should be doing 'something' like study, like prayer - it's not a time of inactivity - that's not rest... Yes, we have seasons of renewal when we are momentarily out of the fight. That doesn't mean satan is quiet - he will now shift his focus to make us feel guilty that we're not doing 'something'.

From a different perspective, if the title has a slight 'end times' flavor - not a mistake. Personally I do believe the time is short when I look at the world. It's getting uglier, violent and perverse. I do suspect, though, that God is looking at the people and never wants to be precipitous 

   "The Lord does not delay [as though He were unable to act] and is not slow

    about His promise, as some count slowness, but is [extraordinarily] patient

    toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance." 

    [2 Peter 3:9]

So what should we be doing. Hopefully what we already are doing: bringing hope to the hopeless, a Savior to the unsaved, studying to show ourselves approved, sharing the gifting the Holy Spirit has given us... and that's only the beginning. We need to be aware of what our enemy is doing and combat it with the weapons we've been given. Scripture tells us the signs and our preparation - idleness cannot be acceptable. This scratches the surface on what we should be about. It may be close but the trumpet hasn't sounded yet.

So until we hear the trumpet call... Watch! Be Ready! Occupy! And do your part in Matthew 28: 19-20 remembering that some plant, some water, and some harvest.