My friend, John Shorey, has just spent several days here with us taping shows. I appreciate John because he always keeps me in mind when he thinks about preparing for Times of Trouble. It’s not unusual to get an email from him advising Lori and me that we need to do X, Y and Z to update our preps, always for our own good and in our own best interests. John is a master at prepping, and I’m glad to have him in my circle of friends.
It’s important who you have around you in these Last Days when we can almost count on going through at least some kind of difficulties as the prophecies of Matthew 24 come to pass. Good friends and family (including Church family) should come together and support each other with prayer and practical things.
Two people are better than one, because they get more done by working together. If one falls down, the other can help him up. But it is bad for the person who is alone and falls, because no one is there to help. Ecclesiastes 4:10
In my book, The Refuge, I outline the importance of the Church in the Last Days. Believe it or not, many people have abandoned the Church in droves in the last 10 years. Just when the Church needs to come alive, it appears to be dying.
But the Church is not going to die – but it may be rebuilt! Jesus said “I will build My Church, and the gates of hell will not prevail against her!” Now it doesn’t get any clearer than that. Has it ever occurred to you that much of what has been built may not have been built by Jesus!?
Yet, the disappointment or disillusionment in today’s churches does not justify the “Lone Ranger” syndrome. You cannot make it on your own – you need the help and the fellowship of other believers!
If two lie down together, they will be warm, but a person alone will not be warm. Ecclesiastes 4:11
Accept it. You need others and they need you. No Lone Rangers! Neglect not the assembly!
An enemy might defeat one person, but two people together can defend themselves; a rope that is woven of three strings is hard to break. Ecclesiastes 4:12
I’m not a fan of violent movies, but I remember one scene in the movie Gladiator from which I drew some great spiritual wisdom. It was in the arena when all the gladiators were surrounded by the chariots. The leader shouted three things to the others: “stay together, raise your shields, move as one!” Their formation was a virtually impenetrable fortress against the enemy.
You may think you are strong enough to stand against anything that comes against you, and we know that the devil and his minions are very busy trying to steal, kill and destroy everything and everyone they can in these Last Days. But you are not as strong alone as you could be together with others who can help you fight. When you fight together, you can watch each other’s backs, so to speak. And when Jesus is in your midst, the three-fold defense is undefeatable!
Don’t be found alone in the Last Days. Jesus didn’t intend for you to have to go it alone. Not only will we have increased spiritual warfare, we will have increases in natural calamities as well.
God knew you would be born and live in these perilous times – and He designed it that way and gave you a special assignment. Don’t disappoint Him. Pray that God will align you with good people – people who love the Lord and are called according to His purposes. And while we’re at it, we should probably pray that we ourselves are found faithful!
Love,
I have been studying and writing about prepping (I call it Deepening the Pantry) since the 1990s but I make certain I stop what I am doing and watch when John Shorey is on. He definitely has God given insights that I never thought of before. Our son and his wife just bought their first house and we were thrilled they found one just two miles from us!
I ve learned so much on survial during the last days , and thank you Bro Jim and you all are in my prayers love ya
Pastor Jim,
This “individual” or “lone-ranger” thing in the Church originated from the over-all American male’s cultural subconscious MINDSET for the need to constantly demonstrate – and romanticize – his mythical American “rugged-independent-male” image – i.e., that old macho testosterone-filled “Marlboro-man” or “cowboy” independent “lone-ranger” culturally-stereotyped image of masculinity; that is, the historical American-male cultural need for making themselves “feel” supposedly like “real men” – like applying the pseudo-macho American western-movie desert-town local-sheriff expression, “Wanted, Dead or Alive”; applying this same old Hollywood cliché, to searching out and finding the infamous “outlaws”. That is, romanticizing the mythological pseudo-macho image of the daring adventurous gun-slinging “lone cowboy” of the American West of the 1800’s. [Please read related books, such as the famous “Democracy In America”, by Alexis de Tocqueville, © 1835].
This same cultural mindset of “American individualism”, which originated from the Founding Fathers’ desire for the Jeffersonian ideal of “individual freedom”, has been PERVERTED to mean being individually being “on one’s own”; or being “stingy” or “selfish”; and thus, with this same DISTORTED Jeffersonian ideal for “freedom” for the “pursuit of happiness” having fallen prey to American society at large, and the American Church in particular; and with this same selfish “individualistic” mentality actually characteristic of the AMERICAN church only – and not found in OTHER churches in other countries, where there is constant “religious persecution”; which unfortunately is actually “NEEDED” in the Body of Christ, to forever keep us “on our knees”; forcing us to have to constantly “cry out” – and DEPEND – on “The Lord our God”; and depending on “one another”; given the very hostile (and sometimes “deadly) climate of “FEAR” for constantly being persecuted, for being a “Christian”. But very soon, Pastor Jim, in the United States, God’s gonna change all that!! Very soon, the churches in America are going to “find out” just WHAT their fellow brothers and sisters, in the faith, have all along had to “go through” – for years (or centuries), in being heavily PERSECUTED for being a “Christian”. And as a matter of fact, Pastor Jim, it’s ALREADY beginning to “creep” upon us RIGHT NOW, in our own country. And this is only the BEGINNING of modern-day persecution of Christians in America! And we ain’t seen nothin’ yet!!
Pastor Jim, the Devil is definitely on a roll! And we have to be SPIRITUALLY prepared for this “new day” of great INCREASE in Christian persecution throughout this wicked morally-defiled LAND of ours!! And we’re definitely gonna “need” each other to OVERCOME the Devil, as he is busy heating up persecution. So, indeed, for the American Church, the “lone-ranger” days are finally over!! The Lord is deliberately allowing the Devil to create such extremely harsh circumstances to force us to “come together” – and LOVE each other – as ONE in Christ!
The Lord, right now, is in the PROCESS of using the Devil’s increasing persecutions to PURGE the American Church of all of her hedonism, materialism, individualism, selfishness, greed, covetousness, envy, petty jealousies, resentments, hatred, bitterness, contentions, sexual uncleanness, divinations, and whatever else that needs to be “eliminated” out of the Body of Christ; to make us a perfect “bride” for the coming “bridegroom”, Jesus Christ, on his second appearing. A bride, without spot or wrinkle!!!
So, Pastor Jim, expect persecution to “heat up” in America. It’s all the Lord’s will to PERFECT us in Christ. And yes, part of that same “perfection” process includes us NO LONGER trying to “make it” on our own. Harsh political and economic realities in the United States will FORCE us to “come together” anyway – be we “Christian” or not. And again, this is all the Lord’s doing, to PREPARE us to meet Jesus when he comes back to Earth, to rule the planet forever and ever!!! AMEN!!!
GLORY BE TO HIM AND TO HIS DEAR SON
MESSIAH YESHUA!!!
I totally with Jim
This is a needed word for the Body of Christ…Thank you, Jim….Love you