labourpain

Shalom dear brothers and sisters,

After 2 weeks of the May-holidays, I am back writing again. One by one I am reading all the Gospels and last weekend I red in Luke. I immediately thought of the ForYouYeshua blog. That's why I read from Luke 12:35-40. After reading I will read it again, but in my own words.

• Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning; And ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their lord, when he will return from the wedding; that when he cometh and knocketh, they may open unto him immediately. Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he cometh shall find watching: verily I say unto you, that he shall gird himself, and make them to sit down to meat, and will come forth and serve them. And if he shall come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those servants. And this know, that if the goodman of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched, and not have suffered his house to be broken through. Be ye therefore ready also: for the Son of man cometh at an hour when ye think not.

Luke 12:35-40

“Always be alert to be ready at a twinkling of an eye’s moment for the coming of Jesus. Be like servants waiting for their Master's return from a wedding feast. They will be ready in no time to unlock and open the door for Jesus. What great joy awaits us as we remain spiritually awake and await the return of our Master! Jesus Himself will welcome us and be our Servant. The Lord Jesus may appear at midnight or even later, but what great joy for those who are spiritually awaken when He comes! If we knew in advance when our Master would appear, we would naturally be alert, just as we would be ready if we knew in advance that a thief was coming to break into our house. So always stay alert and ready. For I promise you that the Son of Man will surprise us and appear when we least expect Him.”

Luke 12:35-40 in my own words

We know that we must be ready at any moment for the coming of the Lord Jesus. Given the current developments in the world, it will probably not last another 10 years before He comes in my opinion. The time when we will meet the Lord Jesus on the clouds in the sky is at hand.

That is why I want to encourage you to remain alert in every situation we find ourselves in. I notice that the pressure on many brothers and sisters is quite high and it sometimes seems too heavy for us to have to 'deal' with our circumstances.

Be comforted by the words of the Lord Jesus, and know that His coming is soon.

• He which testifies these things says, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.

Revelation 22:20

We know the saying “the last mile is the heaviest”. This is also how it is for a pregnant woman when the contractions come. At first the contractions seem like “peanuts”. I remember myself thinking “oh, if these are the contractions then giving birth to a child is very easy” but as the hours ticked by I noticed that the contractions were getting stronger, but also more and more painful. The last hours before my son was born were unbearable for me. Normally you have a short break between contractions where you can catch your breath. In my case this was not the case at all, they continued for hours and I became completely exhausted. Thanks to the enormous support of my son's father, I got through it. Finally, I was released from the pain and trouble, and our son was born.

Truly, the moment my son was placed on my stomach I forgot all my pain completely. How happy I was, so happy!

I read from John:

• A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow, because her hour is come: but as soon as she is delivered of the child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for joy that a man is born into the world. And ye now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you.

John 16:21-22

Jesus Himself also quotes the comparison with a woman in labor in the Gospels. And it's such a good parable! Once your child is born, all your misery is completely gone. That applies exactly to us! As soon as the contractions that are becoming increasingly intense in the world causes Jesus (symbol of the Child who is being born) to come and pick us up, to meet Him in the air on the cloud (just like your first meeting after giving birth to your child who is placed on your belly) we get rid of all our pain and misery. Keep this encouragement in mind.

• The LORD Himself goes before you, He will be with you and will not leave your side for a moment. Don't be afraid and don't let anything discourage you.

Deuteronomy 31:8

Awaiting His return,

Natasja

AWAITING HIS RETURN