Then beware lest thou forget the Lord, which brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt,
from the house of bondage. Thou shalt fear the Lord thy God, and serve Him,
and shalt swear by His name. 
Ye shall not go after other gods, of the gods of the people which are round about you; 
(For the Lord thy God is a jealous God among you)
lest the anger of the Lord thy God be kindled against thee,
and destroy thee from off the face of the earth. Deuteronomy 6:12-15

We are to worship the Lord and Him only and yet, all around us is idolatry.
Most of us are not separated from those who worship idols.
They are our neighbors, our friends, our family members. They could even be our fellow brethren.
It can be harder to stand for Christ when there is little to no support to be solid in Christ.
Thus, this command: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together,
as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more,
as ye see the day approaching. Hebrews 10:25

Remembering what the Lord has done in our lives can be difficult when we are bombarded with other things, the evil and idolatry that the world considers just fine.

Our God is a Holy God and He is a jealous God who does not allow for idolatry,
which is serving or giving any one glory
other than The Living God, the Maker of Heaven and Earth, and His Son,
who died and rose from the dead that we could have Eternal Life.
And ye shall be holy unto Me: for I the Lord am holy, and have severed you from other people,
that ye should be Mine. Leviticus 20:26

For the love of money is the root of all evil:
which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith,
and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. 1 Timothy 6:10

Do your best with what you know now and let Jesus teach you more.
We are not to love money, serve money, put money above God in any way.
We know the love of money is the root of all evil.
Anytime we love anything or anyone more than God, even just a little, is idolatry.

Natural Signs and Wonders:
And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences;
and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven. Luke 21:11

And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars:
see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. 
For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom:
and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. 
All these are the beginning of sorrows. Matthew 24:6-8

The absence of love:
And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.  Matthew 24:12

Lawlessness plus moral and spiritual decline:
This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. 
For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers,
disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 
Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce,
despisers of those that are good, 
Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;  2 Timothy 3:1-5

False Christs and Prophets, Deception run amok:
And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. Matthew 24:11

The signs are everywhere, especially in the Bible.
What is manifesting in the world has been written in the Bible many centuries ago.
Some of those words are for today. Read more. Let the words of the Bible permeate your heart.

For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel,
and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds,
to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
Wherefore comfort one another with these words. 1 Thessalonians 4:18

Being still before the Lord intentionally means you are open to hearing from the Lord.
In any relationship, if you talk all the time and don’t let the other person share what they want,
it is a one-sided relationship.
God has a lot to say. He won’t say it all at once. A relationship is continuous.
Sometimes, He has to cause events to happen so that we will listen, like in Elijah’s case.
Elijah was distraught. He was concerned.
God responded.
Taking time to listen to Jesus is an act of reverence before Him,
expecting that He will respond. That is pleasing to God.

I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death,
blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live:
That thou mayest love the Lord thy God, and that thou mayest obey His voice,
and that thou mayest cleave unto Him: for He is thy life, and the length of thy days:
that thou mayest dwell in the land which the Lord sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac,
and to Jacob, to give them. Deuteronomy 30:19-20

God communicated with His people even in the Old Testament, when they’d listen.
Therefore Eli said unto Samuel, Go, lie down: and it shall be, if he call thee, that thou shalt say,
Speak, Lord; for thy servant heareth. So Samuel went and lay down in his place. 1 Samuel 3:9
Find a set apart time in your day to spend with God, quietly, in His presence, listening.
Listening to God’s voice is an important part of our lives as we follow Him.
It’s so easy to get distracted by so many things.
Choose the good portion which shall not be taken away.

From Canadian Prepper, Dr. Jon Padfield on the Invasion of the Cameras

Whether intentional or unintentional, sin separates us from God.
Jesus is our mediator and He has made a way to reconcile us to God.

When David cried unto the Lord, Create in me a clean heart O God and renew a right spirit within me.
He knew there were things inside of him that only God could see.
His heart was in God’s hands and the cleansing was happening as he became aware of his sin.

Remember when Jesus washed the disciples’ feet?
Peter saith unto Him, Thou shalt never wash my feet.
Jesus answered him, If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with Me. John 13:8
God’s cleansing has to happen.
Jesus was saying, without the cleansing process, we cannot be one.
‘If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with Me.’

Who being the brightness of His glory, and the express image of His person,
and upholding all things by the word of His power,
when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high; Hebrews 1:3
The ultimate cleansing by God is by the blood of the Lamb, Jesus the Christ, God’s son,
who came in the flesh to save the world from our sins which separates us from God.

Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:
And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. Psalm 139:23-24

Being saved is a process. As we walk through this world on our journey to the other side.
We will have many distractions and deceptions which will entice us to walk in our own way and not with God.
Keeping in very close connection with Jesus will help us to remain faithfully carrying the cross
we are given every single day and in every single instance.
If we put our cross down for a few moments or days or weeks or years as some have done by their own admission,
God is still there to meet them. The offer of His hand to help them up never goes away.
To give them the strength they need if they choose again to follow Him.

I have a childhood friend who accepted the Lord when he was young.
He still remembers saying the sinners prayer.
He does not walk with the Lord.
He has not learned how important a personal relationship with Jesus is.
He does not read the bible. He is not interested in learning more about Him.
He is ashamed of Jesus at times.

Be reminded that Jesus is not an arrival. You are not finished with your efforts once you accept Him.
It is then when you are to take your cross and follow Him and you will walk through many toils and snares
and He will be there to help you along the way.

And He said to them all, If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself,
and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. Luke 9:23
And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after Me, cannot be My disciple. Luke 14:27

Find out what that means for you. Go before the throne of God.
Ask Jesus to show you what that means for you and your life. He will.
He wants us all to be that close. He will not disappoint.

Since God looks on the heart, He is always seeing things differently than humans see.
Humans see what they know, what they are able to see.
They come to conclusions based on the natural occurrences that they know about.
Not so with God. He sees far deeper, far more clearly, well, He sees absolutely everything.
He sees the why someone did something, so rest assured, if you had good intentions, God knows.
Nobody else in the entire world may know, but God knows.

All that to say, God’s Judgments are righteous and true.
TZADDI. Righteous art Thou, O Lord, and upright are Thy judgments. Psalm 119:137

God can hear spilt blood.
And He said,
What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother’s blood crieth unto Me from the ground. Genesis 4:10

God has a sensitivity to the poor and He expects the same from us.
Whoso stoppeth his ears at the cry of the poor, he also shall cry himself, but shall not be heard. Proverbs 21:13

Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this,
To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world. James 1:27

God cared about how Hagar felt when she cried out to Him.
And the angel of the Lord said unto her, Behold, thou art with child,
and shalt bear a son, and shalt call his name Ishmael; because the Lord hath heard thy affliction.
And he will be a wild man; his hand will be against every man,
and every man’s hand against him; and he shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren.
And she called the name of the Lord that spake unto her,
Thou God seest me: for she said, Have I also here looked after Him that seeth me? Genesis 16:11-13
God saw her and understood her.

God also understood Hannah when she cried out to God because she was barren.
And Elijah when he was being stalked by Jezebel.
And Elisha when God filled all the vessels with oil.
And the woman who had suffered 12 long years with an issue of blood.
And the blind man who wanted to see.
And Zacheus who was taking the vantage from a tree.
And the man who prayed, Lord, I believe, help thou mine unbelief.
He heard them all and many more and cared about their troubles and responded to their pleas.

We could go on an on about all sorts of situations where God was sensitive to those who followed Him,
whether they were almost perfect (like King Josiah) or nowhere near (like the prodigal),
or everywhere in between (like most of us).

He already knew what it was like to be a man. We are created in His image.
Jesus wanted us to know that He was tempted as a man so He could be an example to humans.
Let us accept His sensitivity and extend what we are able to to others, whether it’s the poor, the broken,
the downtrodden, the miserable, the unlovable, the rich or the poor.
Jesus has given us a bit of His sensitivity to others.
We can ask Him to grow that trait within us if we so desire.

A dose of sensitivity from God might make us be more kind, more understanding of others.

And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. 
Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking,
be put away from you, with all malice:
And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another,
even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you. Ephesians 4:30-32

We hear about us singing to God. There is only one reference I can find in the whole bible where God sings.
In that scripture, it also means He is greatly rejoicing.
The scripture above gives us a few clues:
He is with them, He is rejoicing over them with joy,
He is resting in His love for them and is joyous and sings over them.
What did these people do that made God so happy that He would sing?
How can we make Him that happy that He’d want to sing and rejoice over us?

In Zephaniah 3, the people have turned back to God and allowed Him to purify them.
It is a most beautiful thing in God’s sight. God can now rest in His love. He can rejoice over them.
He has them once again under the shadow of His wings, in His arms, comforted.
And He can rest in His love.

For as a young man marrieth a virgin, so shall thy sons marry thee:
and as the bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride, so shall thy God rejoice over thee. Isaiah 62:5

God rejoices over those who allow Him to cleanse them and return back to Him after a time of folly.

As one whom his mother comforteth, so will I comfort you; and ye shall be comforted in Jerusalem.
Isaiah 66:13

Not every one that saith unto Me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven;
but he that doeth the will of My Father which is in heaven. Matthew 7:21

The fear of the Lord is a little hard to grasp.
Let all the earth fear the Lord: let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him. Psalm 33:8
Jesus created us for His pleasure.
He did not create us to be His buddy.
To lose the fear of God and think of Him as just like any friend is not the ultimate goal.
His holiness gives us a bar. We are to revere Him at all times, at all costs. He is God. We are not.

Losing the fear of God and moving into entitlement is a gigantic mistake.
Fearing that He can cast us into Hell is not to be forgotten.
If we realize that He can doesn’t mean we should be worried that He will.
He also wants us to know of His bountiful grace and mercy.
Jesus has given us promises.
He has formed us and shaped us and molded us into who we are and will continue that work.
The entitlement is where it can be a danger.
The attitude of: ‘I can do anything I want and He will forgive me.’ ‘I have my ticket. I’m getting into heaven.’

King Solomon lost his fear of the Lord.
He forgot. He didn’t care anymore. He refused the warnings of how he would get there.
King David was operating without the fear of God when he had the adulterous relationship with Bathsheba
and then killed her husband so he could take his wife.
He also regained the fear of God after repentance.
To continue to walk without the fear of God in our lives will lead us nowhere good.

Paul who was called Saul did not gain the fear of God until he was struck blind.
He had to repent time and time again and be brought back to the throne where he could realize that Jesus was his Lord and He offered to Paul mercy and grace as a gift, not as an entitlement.
We cannot demand that the Lord God give us mercy and grace.
It is with great humility and reverence that we will be reconciled to the Father.
There is no in between. You have the fear of God or you don’t. It is either a part of your foundation or it isn’t.
Can you learn it? Absolutely.
If, when you read the word, you continue to excuse yourself, you are not operating in the fear of the Lord.
There is much humility with the fear of the Lord.
You cannot have the fear of the Lord without humility.
Those who think they will get to the throne of God on the last day and tell Jesus how great they are
and all the accomplishments they have made will cause them to fall flat.

No human has the right to demand anything from God.
God’s will, God’s timing, God’s way.
You think you have the best way to walk with Jesus? Think again. It is we who follow Him.
It is the cross He has given us that we carry.
We are the clay, He is the potter.

I hear it thousands of times from all angles of thought with that spirit of entitlement.
It is in Christian songs on the radio, even at church sometimes.
The fear of God is not taught much in the church of today.
For some Christians, the fear of God is a long forgotten part of their walk with God.
Who needs the fear of God when the bible clearly tells us that we are saved?
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.
The fear of the Lord keeps us on the straight and narrow.
it is not something we can turn on and off. It is a core attribute, a foundational part of Christianity.
Those people who will hear from Jesus ‘I never knew you,’
either never knew or have forgotten the fear of God.
They were doing things in their own strength, without God, using God for their glory.
God will always be true to Himself.

To become great in the Kingdom of Heaven, we must become less.
We must exalt Jesus with everything we do and say, in our thoughts, exalting Him
and helping others to see Him as He truly is: The Saviour of the world.

The problems will go away at some point.
Then new ones will be there to take their place.
Sometimes the problems are so big, so huge, they take up so much room in our hearts, in our minds.
It is very very difficult to keep Jesus at the center of our existence
when these other things come into our lives like a flood.
Remember Job?
He scraped his boils with a potsherd.
Oh, yes and then you remind yourself that your problems are nothing like Job’s.
None of that matters when you are suffering or toiling.
You know what you’re supposed to do, it’s just hard to do it.
You’re supposed to rise above the circumstances, not fret, cast your cares on Him.
You’re supposed to lift up the name of Jesus above all your thoughts.
His thoughts are higher.
it doesn’t help when you can’t even do that.
Things just seem to circle and fretting can take over.

If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.
Keep doing what you know you are supposed to do.
Spend some time with Jesus, in His word, in His presence. That will help.
It can get you through for a little while.
Then, spend some more time with Him and more time in His word
and that will get you through a little more.
Keep carrying that cross.
When it’s heavy and you have to take a break, Jesus is right there with you.
Pretty soon, you’ll be on the other side of all this and His presence will be a greater part of you.
Less flesh. More Jesus. That’s the goal.
Knowing that He will work all things together for good:
And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God,
to them who are the called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28

God can and does take the most difficult circumstances and turn them for good.
He has and will continue to do just that, sort out the difficulties and put everything in its rightful place.
This walk with Jesus is a process.
If anyone points a finger at you and tells you how to better do it,
they should quickly be put into that category of struggles.
Relinquish their judgments to the Lord to either learn from or dismiss.
Sometimes people who point out your faults or struggles are wrong even when they are right.
Let it go and keep close to Jesus and let Him have His way in all things concerning yourself.
You will only answer to Jesus in the end, so to keep checking with Him is optimal.

When you are at your breaking point, I am there.
When you need My help, I am there.
When you do not yet know I will come through for you,
when you are unsure of My direction in your life, I am there.
I am always leading you and guiding you.
This is not the blind leading the blind. I know exactly what I am doing.
I know precisely what I am doing.
Through your failures you have triumphs in Me.
When I lead you through difficult times, you will see My hand,
sometimes, not until the end of the trials.
Just know I am working. I will see you through.
I care for you. You are part of My body.
I will continue to draw you closer through your trials.
I know what I am doing and the outcome will be given as a crown of glory so you can reflect My light.
Stay close to Me, child. I have much more for you to accomplish.
I am with you always even unto the end of the world.
I am here.
I am near.
I shall not leave you nor forsake you.
Draw upon My well.
Listen closely to My word. I will keep you and you will triumph in Me.
Thus saith the Lord.