Up till one minute ago, I had no clue what to write today, but as always, when I asked the LORD what to write, He answered.  However, He answered with a question; “What time is it?” Now why in the world would the LORD ask someone what time it is? Is His watch broken?  Or is it WE don’t know what time it is?

As you may or may  not know, we are only a couple weeks away from the FEAST OF TRUMPETS, one of God’s Holy Days.  A trumpet has several purposes; it can make an announcement, like in the old days when trumpets would be sounded before the King came on the scene.  Or, it can sound a warning, or a call to war, to charge or retreat.  If you’ve ever heard the sounding of a ram’s horn trumpet, or a Shofar, it will send shivers down your spine.  One thing is for sure, the sounding of a trumpet will get your attention.

So, what time is it? It’s time for those who have ears to hear what the LORD is about to do.  And it’s time for those who don’t have ears to hear to wake up out of their slumber and pay attention, something is “in the air” and I’m not the only one recognizing it.  God put His Holy Days in place for a reason, not just to have something to put on the calendar.  They each tell a story about God’s plan of redemption and His coming Kingdom, which by the way, shall endure forever, ages without end.

This letter isn’t about the Feast of Trumpets, though.  It’s about trying to get your attention off of the things of the world, and onto the things of God.  He does not want you to miss out on His Kingdom, but if your senses have been dulled by the things of the world, you WILL be asleep until it’s too late, and you’ll be caught unawares, just like someone being awakened in the night by the sound of a burglar in your home.  The burglar is already wide awake, and you’re not.  He is prepared for the invasion, and you’re not, and he already has the advantage over you, and chances are he or they will prevail over you.  Is there a chance you will overcome?  Maybe, maybe not.  Do you like those odds?  I don’t.

People do stupid things when they’re startled, and that’s a proven fact.  Intensive training can help prepare you to react instantly, but it takes constant and vigilant training to get conditioned and STAYING conditioned requires constant maintenance of that training, and only those who are willing to put in that effort diligently will be ready when the time of reckoning comes.  The same can be said of spiritual things:  when the LORD comes back, we won’t have time to get ready, we must BE ready.  I tell people, “I’m like “lunchmeat”, I’m always ready.” But that has taken considerable effort on my part, because I have my eyes on the prize.  And believe me, the prize is well worth the effort.

But what about you? Are you ready for the second coming of the Lord Jesus?  If you are not ready when He comes, you will be shut out.  There is an illustration of that which I will share with you.

Mat 25:1  Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.
Mat 25:2  And five of them were wise, and five were foolish.
Mat 25:3  They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them:
Mat 25:4  But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.
Mat 25:5  While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept.
Mat 25:6  And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him.
Mat 25:7  Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps.
Mat 25:8  And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out.
Mat 25:9  But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves.
Mat 25:10  And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut.
Mat 25:11  Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us.
Mat 25:12  But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not.
Mat 25:13  Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.

You see here, there were ten undefiled, pure virgins invited to the wedding, no fault was found in them, so they were all intended to be part of the wedding celebration.  But five of them did not have the common sense to make the proper preparation for however long the wait would be before the Bridegroom showed up.  Now being pure and having common sense are not one and the same.  You can be pure and still be as dumb as a sack of rocks.  In those days, the Bridegroom often tarried in coming, so you might have to WAIT for an undisclosed period of time.  So….you prepared for the wait and took ample provision.  And if the wait was short?  Good.  But if it wasn’t, then you’d better be able to still be there when the door opened, alert and ready.

Five of these virgins were there unprepared for the long wait, and asked provision from the other five who WERE prepared.  Fortunately, the five prepared ones didn’t share their provision.  That may seem hard and cold to you, but remember, this was an important event, and the five who were prepared were, well, PREPARED and ready to go in and they weren’t taking any chances of missing out.  While the foolish five virgins stepped away to go get more oil for their lamps, the Bridegroom came, and the wise five virgins went in with Him into the house, and the door was LOCKED.  When the five foolish virgins returned, NOW prepared, it was TOO LATE!  Moral of the story? You gotta be like lunchmeat: ALWAYS READY!

How about YOU?  Is the Kingdom of God important enough to you to make yourself ready and STAY ready?  I can’t answer that one for you, that’s one you must settle for yourself.  I will do all I can to urge you to get ready and stay ready, no matter how long the wait.  But it is entirely YOUR decision to do so.  I will not give you my ticket to the wedding feast of the LORD because you got in a hurry and left yours at home, or because you just set yours down somewhere and forgot where you put it.  I am ready for His coming whenever He chooses to come, whether you are or not. But I hope and pray YOU will be ready when He comes, too.

If you don’t already know Christ Jesus, Y’shua Messiah, as your Lord and Savior, don’t put if off another moment.  It’s that important.  And if you DO already know Him, but have been negligent to stay close to Him and have backslidden, “SLIDE BACK!”  It doesn’t matter what you’ve done in the past.  But what you do now, and in the future IS!  It’s time to be ready!