Warning – Are You Choosing to Listen?

Prayer ~ By Your divine power, God, You have given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know You and Your Son, Jesus, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. And because of his glory and excellence, You have given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable us to share his divine nature and escape the world's corruption caused by human desires. In view of all this, we need to make every effort to respond to Your promises, Lord. Supplement our faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone. From 2 Peter 1:3-7

I am warning you ahead of time, dear friends. Be on guard so that you will not be carried away by the errors of these wicked people and lose your own secure footing. Rather, you must grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. All glory to him, both now and forever! Amen. 2 Peter 3:17-18

 

Meditate.

 

Have you ever been walking or hiking and lost your secure footing? Once when I was trying to take a photo of a 50-foot high waterfall I kept stepping back to get the whole waterfall in the photo, and whoosh! The loose gravel and sand that I stepped into gave way and down I went…slowly, but I twisted my knee. Ugh! I got the shot, although it was not as award winning as I was picturing. I hobbled back to our car with the help of my husband. I spent the rest of our weekend camping trip stretched out in a lounge chair, leg up, iced and applying essential oils that a friend had along with her. Be on guard. Don’t get carried away by loose gravel or the errors of wicked people and lose your secure footing. Just as the loose rocks deceived me, loose people can deceive any of us. They may not look like wicked people, but are they following God’s commands, rules, and guidance? Judge for yourself—using the Bible and your own Christian mentors for direction.  Jesus answered His disciples when they asked Him about the end times. We’ve been warned. (Read Mark 13:3-37 and Luke 21:7-36.)

Later, Jesus sat on the Mount of Olives across the valley from the Temple. Peter, James, John, and Andrew came to him privately and asked him, "Tell us, when will all this happen? What sign will show us that these things are about to be fulfilled?" Jesus replied, "Don't let anyone mislead you, for many will come in my name, claiming, 'I am the Messiah.' They will deceive many. And you will hear of wars and threats of wars, but don't panic. Yes, these things must take place, but the end won't follow immediately. …Watch out! I have warned you about this ahead of time!” Mark 13:3-7, 23

 

What are wicked people like?

What are worthless and wicked people like? They are constant liars, signaling their deceit with a wink of the eye, a nudge of the foot, or the wiggle of fingers. Their perverted hearts plot evil, and they constantly stir up trouble. But they will be destroyed suddenly, broken in an instant beyond all hope of healing. There are six things the LORD hates—no seven things he detests: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that kill the innocent, a heart that plots evil, feet that race to do wrong, a false witness who pours out lies, a person who sows discord in a family. Proverbs 6:12-19

Here are some encouraging words that God gave to Paul to write to the church at Thessalonica. We can take these words to heart today.

Pray, too, that we will be rescued from wicked and evil people, for not everyone is a believer. But the Lord is faithful; he will strengthen you and guard you from the evil one. And we are confident in the Lord that you are doing and will continue to do the things we commanded you. May the Lord lead your hearts into a full understanding and expression of the love of God and the patient endurance that comes from Christ. 2 Thessalonians 3:2-5

Jesus and Peter have given us a warning…Be on guard…Don’t be misled…Be ready. Will you choose to listen to the warning? I am.

 

Verses of Salvation ~ While Jesus was here on earth, he offered prayers and pleadings, with a loud cry and tears, to the one who could rescue him from death. And God heard his prayers because of his deep reverence for God. Even though Jesus was God's Son, he learned obedience from the things he suffered. In this way, God qualified him as a perfect High Priest, and he became the source of eternal salvation for all those who obey him. Hebrews 5:7-9

 

Jesus is the source of our salvation.

 

Friday’s Feast at the King’s Table

It is time to celebrate during this Feast of Tabernacles. Jewish people for centuries have built little shelters using three, four or more natural and fresh branches. Then they eat at least one meal a day under their “shelter” serving foods they prepare in their kitchen. What foods are usually served in sukkahs?

 

According to sites on the internet, people celebrating Sukkot, or Feast of Tabernacles, serve harvest foods like butternut squash soup, tossed green salad, apple salad, stuffed veggies like peppers, zucchini, or cabbage. I'll be serving those along with naan and hummus. One of my favorite fall soups is apple butternut soup. Whatever you serve during this holiday do it with joy in your heart. God has richly blessed us all… spiritually and physically.

 

This soup is good for fighting off the flu or just combatting a chill on a cool fall evening. Enjoy anytime!

 

Apple Butternut Soup    6-8 servings

1 tablespoon unsalted butter or olive oil

2 medium leeks, white part only, diced

1 red onion, chopped finely

1 green chili chopped finely couple

4 cloves garlic, grated

2 inch piece of fresh ginger, grated

1 butternut squash (about 2 pounds), peeled, seeded, and chopped

4 golden or Jonathan apples, peeled, cored, and chopped

2 teaspoons coarse salt

1½ teaspoons ground cumin

½ teaspoon ground coriander

¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 cups homemade chicken or vegetable stock

2 ½ cups water, plus more if needed

Toasted pecans, for garnish (optional)

Sour cream, for garnish (optional)

 

Melt butter or heat olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add leeks, onion, garlic, ginger, and chili; cook, stirring occasionally, until it becomes soft, about 4 minutes. Add squash, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 10 minutes. Add apples, salt, cumin, coriander, cayenne, black pepper, stock, and water, just enough to cover. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, and cook about 30 minutes, until squash and apples are very soft.

This apple didn't make it into the soup!

Puree in batches in a food processor or blender until smooth, and return to saucepan. Heat over low, thinning with more water if necessary. To serve, ladle into shallow bowls; garnish with sliced apples, toasted pecans, and sour cream if desired.

 

Happy Birthday ~ Linda M.

May God continue to bless you with an abundance of His clarity as you live for Him.

 

© 2024 Text, photos, and illustrations by Mickey M. Hunacek. All rights reserved. 

Recycled October 30, 2020 Banquet With The King blog.

All scripture quoted from the New Living Translation (NLT) unless otherwise noted. 

New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. 

Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Biblical search from Blue Letter Bible - http://v3.blueletterbible.org/search.cfm. 

 

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