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Understanding the Times

April 10, 2015

Of the sons of Issachar, men who understood the times, with knowledge of what Israel should do, their chiefs were two hundred; and all their kinsmen were at their command. 1 Chronicles 12:32

1. Lift Up Your Head (Luke 21:28). Just like the sons of Issachar understood their times, we can discern what God is doing in our world and in our lives. By contrast, in the New Testament Jesus told a group of people: “You did not recognize the time of your visitation” (Luke 19:44b). Lift up your head so you can understand and not miss what God is doing!

2. Fear Not. I Am with You (Isaiah 41:10). Nearly one third of the Bible is prophecy. God gives us a heads up about things but He doesn’t want us to be freaked out. What do we do? We don’t ignore the problem. We do keep our feet on the ground, our heads held high and our eyes on Jesus.

3. Pray Without Ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:16). Take time to pull away from the busyness of life to get alone with God. As you spend time with Him, the Holy Spirit will show you what to pray about and how to pray—for your kids, about your job, for your city and your nation.

4. Take Wise Action Steps. If you study biblical teaching on the end times with a spirit of faith, it will activate, energize, inform you, and show you the next steps of obedience. Then you can courageously pray and learn how to take specific, deliberate action.

Pray this Prayer
God, I know that the Gospel will be preached to all the nations and then the end will come (Matthew 24:14). Help me to discern my times and to know what to do. I proclaim You as King of kings. I acknowledge You over all the nations and I believe that my country and the nations of the world will be filled with the Gospel of Jesus. I pray You protect and rescue those who are persecuted. In Jesus’ Name, amen.

un·der·stand, verb
To become aware of the nature and significance of; know or comprehend.

God bless you,
Pastor Jeff

Copyright © 2015 St. Louis Family Church. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reprinted or distributed in any form without prior written permission of St. Louis Family Church. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. “Understand.” The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.