​It seems to have happened so quickly! The fields of winter wheat standing tall with their blue-green color caught my eye. Almost overnight the color of the fields of grain turned into a golden tan. This color against the green trees and blue sky drew me in. Harvest time is coming!
 
Winter wheat is planted in the fall so that it can be harvested in the spring and summer. After the harvest, the farmer has several options for his next step. Some farmers choose to leave their fields fallow so that they can rest and nutrients can be replenished before planting another crop. Others will plan a cover crop like rye, vetch, or oats. Their purpose is to improve soil health, prevent erosion, and suppress weeds. Some will decide to double-crop and plant soybeans or sorghum that need to be harvested before the next winter wheat seed is planted.
 
Like physical harvesting, spiritual harvesting has a process. The most important part of seed planting involves preparing the ground. This includes plowing and adding fertilizer and nutrients to the soil. In the spiritual context, seeds of faith are sown when we share the Gospel after the heart is prepared to receive the good news. A farmer nurtures his crop with water and fertilizer and removes the weeds that compete with the crop. A Believer in Jesus should be fed by reading the Word, praying, interacting with other Christians, and resisting negative influences. Just as the farmer must be patient and persevering in tending his crop, a Believer needs these characteristics to grow in Christlikeness.
 
A farmer knows the signs that indicate harvest time is near. Likewise, the community of faith can see a transformed life. Believers are called to be laborers in the harvest. Luke 10:2 tells us, "The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into the harvest field." The parable of the growing seed appears in the book of Mark, verses 26 to 29. "Jesus also told them this parable: God's kingdom realm is like someone spreading seed on the ground. He goes to bed and gets up, day after day, and the seed sprouts and grows tall, though he knows not how. All by itself it sprouts, and the soil produces a crop; first the green stem, then the head on the stalk, and then the fully developed grain in the head. Then, when the grain is ripe, he immediately puts the sickle to the grain, because harvest time has come." (TPT)
 
As we approach end times, we know that the Lord is looking for helpers in the harvest. Mature saints, who continue to grow in wisdom and faith, are needed to sow into the lives of others. It is expected that we will persevere in the process of nurturing those who are newer in the faith. 2 Peter 3:9 tells us that "He does not want any to perish but all to come to repentance." Harvest is a time of celebration. We are reminded of God's faithfulness and that we are part of His plan that we bear fruit. Our challenge is to deepen our relationship with God so that we can share our faith with others. Let's be cognizant of any opportunity to share the good news of the Gospel with those that God brings into our lives.

​These are perilous times that we live in. So many around the world are facing extraordinary trauma along with physical needs. The disciples asked Jesus, "What will be the sign of Your coming and the end of the age?" He told them, "You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famine and earthquakes in various places. All are the beginning of birth pains. Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and deceive people. Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. And this gospel of the Kingdom will be preached in the world as a testimony of all nations, and then the end will come." (Matthew 24:3-14)
 
These verses sound like a description of our times; however, much still needs to be accomplished for the end to come. Primarily, there is an ocean of people who need to hear the gospel of Christ. The Lord's desire is that all humankind be saved so that they can live with Him for eternity. We play a part in the accomplishment of the Lord's end game. As it says in 1 Thessalonians 5:17, "Pray without ceasing." Not only are we to do this, but we are to follow the advice in 1 Timothy 2:1-3. "I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for everyone—for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good and pleases God our Savior who wants all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth."
 
Paul's advice to the believers at the church in Thessalonica and to Timothy as he ministered to the church in Ephesus is for us. No matter how we feel about the leaders of our country, the mandate remains: Pray for them! Mike Huckabee, Ambassador to Israel, recently sent a message of encouragement to President Trump that bears repeating: "Mr. President, God spared you in Butler, PA, to be the most consequential President in a century—maybe ever. The decisions on your shoulders I would not want to be made by anyone else. You have many voices speaking to you, Sir, but there is only ONE voice that matters. HIS voice. I am your appointed servant in this land and am available for you, but I do not try to get in your presence often because I trust your instincts. No president in my lifetime has been in a position like yours. Not since Truman in 1945. I don't reach out to persuade you. Only to encourage you. I believe you will hear from heaven and that voice is far more important than mine or ANYONE else's. You sent me to Israel to be your eyes, ears, and voice and to make sure our flag flies above our embassy. My job is to be the last one to leave. I will not abandon this post. Our flag will NOT come down! You did not seek this moment. This moment sought YOU! It is my honor to serve you!" I am sure that Mike Huckabee realizes the pressure that is on our president and desired to point him in the right direction. The decisions that President Trump must make will not only impact us but the world around us.
 
Praise God that the Holy Spirit is with us to remind us that we are supernaturally empowered to walk in peace. And as it says in James 1:5, we should ask God for wisdom because the "wisdom that comes from God is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere." (James 3:17) As we pray, we must remember the innocent people who are caught in the crosshairs of the battle between Israel and Iran. Ask the Lord to have mercy on them. Pray that God will give victory to the righteous and will take down the evil principalities and powers over the Middle East. We must recognize that President Trump has made and continues to make extremely critical decision about how the United States will help Israel. He and his team need the wisdom of God for ongoing plans on how to engage on the world stage. We want God's will to be done and His Kingdom to come on earth as it is in heaven. When this is done, the door for revival will be opened in the Middle East and around the world.

It is all about seeing if the wind will carry you. I've watched the eagles’ nest in Big Bear Valley with Mom and Dad, Jackie and Shadow, and their two babies almost daily for the last three months. The “cam” has given millions of us a "bird's eye view," so to speak, of the babies, Sunny and Gizmo, growing from grey fuzzy balls into feathered eagles about the same size as their parents. It has been determined that both babies are girls.
 
Practice is what makes any task doable. Such is the case with the eaglets who are now called fledglings as they prepare to fly. Preparation includes jumping up and down, and flapping their wings, and testing the wind currents. I read that birds have an inherent ability to fly that develops during their physical maturation. Daily, Sunny and Gizmo step out onto the large branches around the nest and do wing exercises to help them build up strength and agility. Monday morning, we were all treated to the exciting view of Sunny finally taking her first flight. Her confidence combined with the draw of the wind convinced her to spread her wings and soar. She did not return to the nest until the next day, when she shared a fish with her sister. Gizmo, the younger of the eaglets by a few days, waited until yesterday to take flight from the nest tree.
 
Watching these eagles prepare for their flight showed me that they are made to fly. Like the eagles, Christians are also made to soar in heavenly places. The prophet Isaiah encourages us in our call to fly with the Lord, "But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint." (Isaiah 40:31) When it is time for us to fly, God stirs up our "nests" just as the eaglets’ parents do. He does this so we learn to soar on heights. Like the eaglets, we must learn to fly on our own and feed ourselves daily.
 
Learning to fly can be a metaphor for life. There is a process involved that we must embrace so we reach our destinations. Taking flight releases us from our limitations. As we begin flying, we should recognize that flight presents us with opportunities and challenges. A comforting thought should be that the Holy Spirit is with us to help us make the right decisions about how to negotiate the terrain that is before us. In addition, we have an example that was set by Jesus so we can soar like Him. Recall how He regularly spent time waiting on His Father and resting before "taking flight." As we wait on the Lord, we rest and bind together with Him so that our weakness becomes strength and power.
 
The secret to the flight of eagles is their ability to use air currents to soar. They only flap their wings in preparation to reach the good air currents. God has given them an innate ability to sense the motion of the wind currents. Eagles will intentionally head into the winds of a storm, because the strong winds will take them higher and they will have the ability to see things from an expanded perspective. This is our call. God takes us over the clouds of our difficulties so that we can see life from His perspective.
 
Here is our challenge: We must spread our wings of faith to catch the winds of the Spirit and soar to greater heights to live like Jesus did and realize the destiny God has for us. 

​Some of the old hymns written about the blood of Jesus declare it to be our victory. Likewise, Scriptures proclaim this, such as Ephesians 1:7. "In Him (Jesus) we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace that He lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding." The Church needs to remember that the purchase price for our redemption was the blood of Jesus. "We were bought with a price,” 1 Corinthians 6:20 and 7:23 tell us. The blood of Jesus is the only recognized currency in heaven. It is through faith that we appropriate the blood of Jesus.
 
If we look at the history of the blood covering, we must start with Adam and Eve in the Garden. When they sinned against God their attempt to cover their nakedness with fig leaves was insufficient. It took the slaughtering of animals and shedding of their blood to cover their sin. The blood sacrifice became the atonement or covering of the sin of Adam and Eve. The sacrificing of animals during the time of the Old Covenant was a foreshadow of what would ultimately be fulfilled in Christ at the Cross as He offered us a New Covenant.
 
The Lord spoke to Moses about the blood as he was leading the Israelites to the Promised Land. "For the life of the creature is in the blood, and I have given it to you to make atonement for yourself on the altar..." (Leviticus 17:11) We must understand that it is the blood that carries the gift of life from God. Up until the birth of Jesus, there was no perfect sacrifice for sin. That is why so many animals had to die regularly for the covering of sin. When Jesus went to the Cross, the blood He shed was pure and uncontaminated. 1 Peter 1:19 calls it "precious blood." For this reason, the sacrifice of the shed blood of Jesus only needed to be done once. (Hebrews 9:12) t took away our sins from the past, present, and future.
 
Romans 3:25 and 26 in The Passion Translation explains the sacrifice of God through His Son beautifully: "Jesus' God-given destiny was to be the sacrifice to take away sins and now He is our mercy seat because of His death on the Cross. We come to Him for mercy, for God has made a provision for us to be forgiven by faith in the sacred blood of Jesus. This is the perfect demonstration of God's justice, because until now, He had been so patient—holding back His justice out of tolerance for us. So, He covered over the sins of those who lived prior to Jesus' sacrifice. And when the season of tolerance came to an end, there was only one possible way for God to give away His righteousness and still be true to both His justice and His mercy—to offer up His own Son. So now, because we stand on the faithfulness of Jesus, God declares us righteous in His eyes!"
 
The enemy of our souls does his best to discourage the Church from teaching about the power of the blood, taking communion, and pleading its power. He is helpless against it. The value of the blood as we plead it includes mercy, forgiveness, pardon, healing, protection, deliverance, and peace. The song, "O The Blood" by Gateway Worship and Kari Jobe, has a chorus that explains the power of the blood. "Oh, the blood of Jesus washes me. Oh, the blood of Jesus shed for me. What a sacrifice that saved my life; Yes, the blood, it is my victory." We would do well to keep this in mind.

​ 
There were forty days between the time that Jesus was resurrected until He ascended to heaven. (Acts 1:3) This number, forty, is significant throughout the Bible, and represents the number of spiritual preparation during trials. The number is also linked to purification. A forty-day testing period ends in either victory or defeat. Because the disciples abandoned Jesus at the Cross, they had much to regret. Jesus made it a priority to reengaged with His followers during the forty days after His resurrection to restore and encourage and set the course for their future.
 
When Jesus engaged with two of His followers who were walking to Emmaus, they did not recognize Him until He broke bread with them. They said to one another, "Were not our hearts burning within us while He talked with us on the road and opened Scriptures to us?" (Luke 24:32) In their desire to share what had happened, they went to Jerusalem to join the disciples and confirmed that Jesus had risen. While they were there, Jesus came into the room and said, "Peace be with you." (Luke 24:36) He then reminded them of what He had said before His crucifixion. Eight days later, all eleven of the disciples gathered together with the door locked because of their fear of the Jews. Jesus suddenly stood before them and repeated what He had said before: "Peace be with you." (John 20:27) Thomas, who had not been with the disciples at their last meeting, had an opportunity to place his hands into the wounds of Jesus. His unbelief disappeared, and he declared, "My Lord and my God!" (John 20:28)
 
Another encounter with Jesus came for seven disciples who decided to go fishing at the Sea of Galilee. They forsook their call to fish for men, hoping to find some satisfaction in their old occupation. Jesus stood on the shore and watched their frustration as they caught nothing. He called to them and instructed them to throw their net to the right side of the boat. "When they did, they were unable to haul the net because of the large number of fish. Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, 'It is the Lord.'" (John 21:6, 7) When they came to shore, they found Jesus who had prepared a fire of burning coals with fish on it, and some bread. Jesus took this opportunity to restore Peter. Taking into consideration Peter's three-fold denial of Him, Jesus asked him three times if he truly loved Him. Jesus made it clear that Peter was being restored and that he was to care for His sheep.

The apostle Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 15 that Jesus appeared to many before HIs ascension. "He appeared to Peter, and then the Twelve. After that, He appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all He appeared to me also..." (Verses 5-8) Luke describes the ascension of Jesus in the first chapter of the book of Acts. First, Jesus told His disciples, "Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days, you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit...But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." (Acts 1:4, 5, 8) The disciples needed to have the power of the Holy Spirit come upon them to accomplish the mission that was being set before them.

Ten days after the ascension of Jesus—fifty days from His resurrection—the disciples were filled with the Holy Spirit. They began speaking in other tongues, saw tongues of fire resting on everyone, and heard a mighty wind in their gathering place. Peter boldly spoke a message of repentance and watched as about 3,000 people were added to their number on that day. This was the beginning of a new life for the apostles. Acts 2:43 reports, "Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles." Here we have the beginning of the formation of The Church. The call on our lives has not changed since this day of Pentecost. Fifty is the number of liberty, freedom, and jubilee. God calls us to walk with Him through the Holy Spirit in the power that He has given to us. We are commissioned to reach those in our lives with the truth of the Gospel. We cannot allow anything to distract us from our pursuit of the fullness of all that God has for us and those whose lives we touch.

​Did you ever ask yourself, "What was the purpose of the Cross?" Father God sent His son, Jesus, to redeem mankind so that we could be in right relationship with Him. Father covets fellowship with us, but there was a price that had to be paid for redemption. The price to buy us back from the enemy was the blood of Jesus, the sinless, spotless Son of God. His sacrifice demonstrated His love for us as He became our Passover Lamb. Mathew 27:45, Mark 15:33, and Luke 23:45 all describe how the sky darkened at noontime until three o'clock while Jesus was being crucified. At the very same time, the high priest Caiaphas was slaughtering the pure, spotless Passover lambs that were brought to the Temple. It was the blood that covered sin in the Old Covenant, but under the New Covenant with Jesus, our sins are forever taken away.
 
When the darkness ended Jesus cried out from the cross: "It is finished!" (John 19:30) He accomplished His assignment on earth. The power of what Jesus, our Messiah, did was reflected in what happened next. First, it is recorded in Matthew 27:51 that at the moment Jesus took His last breath "the veil in the Holy of Holies was torn in two from top to bottom." (TPT) Rick Renner, in his book Paid in Full, gives us some staggering information: "The massive, fortified veil that stood before the Holy of Holies was suddenly split in half from top all the way to the bottom!" Rich's research into Jewish writings found that the veil was "60 feet high, 30 feet wide, and an entire handbreadth in thickness." (page 215) In addition, Matthew 27:51 and 52 records: "The earth shook violently, rocks were split apart, and graves were opened. Then many of the holy ones who had died were brought back to life and came out of their graves.” (TPT)
 
Three days later these amazing events were to pale in comparison to what God did. The body of Jesus was placed in a tomb. At the request of the Pharisees and chief priests Pilate agreed to seal the tomb and send soldiers to guard it. The day after the Sabbath, "Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to take a look at the tomb. Suddenly, the earth shook violently beneath their feet as the angel of the Lord Jehovah descended from heaven. Lightening flashed around him and his robe was dazzling white! The guards were stunned and terrified--lying motionless like dead men. Then the angel walked up to the tomb, rolled away the stone, and sat on it!" (Matthew 28:1-4 - TPT) It was impossible for death to hold Jesus in the grave!
 
The angel told the women, "Run and tell His disciples, even Peter, that He is risen. He has gone ahead of you into Galilee, and you will see Him there, just like He told you." (Mark 16:7 - TPT) We can only imagine the excitement of these women as they tried to tell the disciples what had happened. Disciples John and Peter decided to go to the tomb to see for themselves and found things as the women had explained. There are many eyewitness accounts of Jesus appearing to His followers. Mary Magdalene, two disciples walking to Emmaus, and the eleven disciples, to name a few, had the privilege of talking with Him. Before leaving the earth Jesus gathered His disciples together to commission them. He said, "I have given you all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age." (Matthew 28:18-20 - NLT)
 
One day Jesus will return as the victorious King of kings and Lord of lords. In the meantime, as the Body of Christ, we have the responsibility to spread the Good News. At the right hand of God the Father, Jesus sits as our Great High Priest and intercedes for us. He is standing by to give us "help in time of need." (Hebrews 4:16) The resurrection of Jesus is the very hope and foundation of our faith. Let us remember His everlasting sacrifice and love and join our fellow Christians in living a life that reproduces His example.

​Preparation is a necessity when we desire to move forward into a new season. Scriptures talk about preparation for a meal, sacrifice, battle, building project, and life-style change. Much preparation took place for the children of Israel to come out of bondage in Egypt and for the disciples to be ready for life without Jesus. Since we are at the beginning of a new year and new beginnings in the month of Nisan, it would be wise for us to prepare for the journey. We can learn about how to do this from the Israelites and the disciples.
 
God would begin preparing the children of Israel for their journey out of slavery by bringing upon the Egyptians the last of ten plagues—the death of the firstborn. The Israelites were given several instructions. We can read their first one in Exodus 11:2. "Tell the people that men and women alike are to ask their neighbors for articles of silver and gold." God made the Egyptians favorably disposed toward them so that they would not leave Egypt without plunder. The next instruction was for each family to take a pure and spotless male lamb into their home on the tenth day of the month of Nisan. (Exodus 12:3, 5) The lambs were to be slaughtered on the fourteenth of the month and its blood placed on the top and sides of their doorframes. (Exodus 12:7) That night they were to roast the lamb and eat it along with bitter herbs and bread made without yeast.
 
The angel of death passed over the families of the Israelites when he saw the blood and killed the first-born in Egypt, convincing Pharaoh to release God's chosen people. Early in the morning the Israelites left their homes in Rameses (meaning dissolving evil) and headed toward Succoth (meaning booths). Before leaving, the people "...bowed down and worshiped" (Exodus 12:27) when they saw how the Lord passed over their homes. All Israel left Egypt at the end of 430 years. "Because the Lord kept vigil that night, to bring them out of Egypt, on this night all the Israelites are to keep vigil to honor the Lord for the generations to come." (Exodus 12:42)
 
When it was time for Jesus to leave the earth, He had much to tell His disciples to prepare them for their life without Him. At their Passover Feast, Jesus began by washing their feet. This act of humility was to show the disciples that they would be expected to serve others, not to be served. "I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you." (John 13:15) Next Jesus gave them the rule of love. "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." (John 13:34, 36) 
 
Jesus wanted His disciples to know that He was going to leave them to prepare for their futures. "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, trust also in me...I am going to prepare a place for you." (John 14:1, 2) Jesus also needed to explain to them about the Holy Spirit who would take HIs place. "I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Counselor to be with you forever, The Spirit of Truth...You know Him, for He lives with you and will be in you." (John 14:16, 17) Finally, Jesus had to warn His disciples that they would experience great grief, but their sorrow would be transformed to joy. "I tell you the truth, you will weep and mourn while the world rejoices. You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy...Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy." (John 16:20, 22)
 
Life is a journey that includes known and unknown. Our job is to trust in the Lord and to consult with the Holy Spirit on how to prepare for our Promised Lands. "The Lord your God goes with you; He will never leave nor forsake you." (Deuteronomy 31:6, 8, Joshua 1:5, Hebrews 13:5) As we stand at the beginning of the first month of the new year, let's prepare for the season that is ahead.

​What is the central issue of our warfare with the demonic realm? This question can be answered with another question: "Whom will you worship?" Will we be faithful to worship the one true God or will we allow Satan's distractions, diversions, and attacks to pull us toward him and his way of life? Let us be reminded that we were created to have fellowship with the Lord, so we were made in His image. (Genesis 1:27) All of us were designed to have intimacy with God and as His image bearers we were given specific characteristics. A footnote to Genesis 1:26 and 27 in The Passion Translation defines God's image in us like this: "It includes personality, the capacity for worship, the ability to make moral decisions, and the ability to reflect God.”
 
We are three weeks away from Passover. If we looked back in history, we would find Moses and Aaron trying to convince Pharaoh to release the children of Israel. God instructed Moses to say to Pharaoh, "The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has sent me to say to you: 'Let my people go, so that they may worship me in the desert...’" (Exodus 7:16) Why would God want to take His people into the wilderness for this purpose? Perhaps God's desire was to teach His children what true worship looks like. It is true worship that protects us from the enemy of our souls. The Israelites would have a long journey to the Promised Land, one fraught with difficulties and enemy attacks. The soul that is not protected by true worship of the Lord is prime territory for the enemy. True worship of God, not based on circumstances, sets up a barrier against the demonic and gives us victory in warfare.
 
As we draw closer to end times, we can count on increasing warfare. What or who will we worship during these times? Worship is a part of the culture of heaven, and it is God's desire, as expressed in the prayer taught to the disciples, that His "will would be done on earth as it is in heaven." (Matthew 6:10) Revelation 7:11,12 describes what takes place in heaven. "All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures. They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God saying: 'Amen! Praise and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God for ever and ever. Amen!'" But there is a worship that blesses God more than what comes from thousands of angelic hosts. It comes from earth through those who are faithful to worship the Lord amid trials, tribulations, and suffering. When our spirits worship God during our battles, we give God pleasure, and He is drawn toward us.
 
The purity of our worship will dictate its fragrance. I have long desired to have a deeper understanding of the verse in John 4:23. "Yet a time is coming and has now come when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks." May I suggest that when we give God glory in the middle of pain and suffering, our love comes forth as true worship. We must look at every difficulty as an opportunity to become the kind of worshipers God desires.

​God has a position and destiny for every individual on the face of the earth. We are positioned for the purpose that God ordained for us. He consecrates us and sets up apart to influence those around us. The Bible gives us examples of individuals who have had "mantles" placed upon them. A mantle is a calling, an anointing, or transference of spiritual power and authority given to someone by God. We can look at the lives of Abraham, Moses, Joseph, Elijah, David, and Esther, to name a few.
 
One of the great modern-day prophets, Kim Clement, who is now in heaven, made a statement about the ways our lives unfold in alignment with our destinies. He said, "Your destiny dictates your present circumstances." He points to Joseph, Israel's favorite son, and reminds us that his destiny lay in Egypt. Joseph even named his second son Ephraim as a reminder of his call. He declared, "God has made me fruitful in the land of my suffering." (Genesis 41:52) Had Joseph not been in Egypt, he would not have been able to rescue his family from the seven-year famine that came upon the land.
 
Since Purim will be celebrated this week with the telling of the story of Esther, let's investigate how she was called to suffer for the salvation of her people. She and her people had been exiled to the Babylonian empire. Having lost her parents, a cousin named Mordecai took her under his wing to care for her. Esther's birth name, Hadassah, was changed to the Persian name, Esther. In changing her name, Esther's nationality and family background were concealed. God made Esther "lovely in form and features" (Esther 2:7) so that when the king was looking for a new queen, she was chosen as one of the candidates for consideration. As Joseph's destiny lay in Egypt; Esther's destiny lay in the citadel of Susa in the Persian empire. She was positioned for a purpose.
 
The call of Esther was one that would require humility and sacrifice. She would live in the king's palace as part of his harem. For one year she would undergo beauty treatments to prepare for one night with the king. Esther won his favor and was chosen as his queen. But, just as Esther received a promotion, a test would come. The enemy saw her destiny and plotted to destroy her promotion. Candice Smithyman wrote in her book, 365 Prophetic revelations from the Hebrew Calendar, "We are never truly promoted until we are faced with a situation where we have to stand for righteousness."
 
Stand for righteousness Esther did as she was faced with the possibility of death for herself and every Jew in the kingdom because of an evil decree from the king's chief noble, Haman. Mordecai said to her, "...If you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father's family will perish, and who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?" (Esther 4:14) Esther determined to go before the king to save her people.
 
We can see how Esther served God and those around her so that she could attain her God-ordained destiny. She had been appointed by and established in her position by man so that God could use her in her calling at the right time. It was not until Esther had been tested that she received her spiritual promotion, her mantle was secured, and a miraculous turn of events occurred. We too can walk in miracles when we embrace God's call on our lives, live by faith even during times of testing, and position ourselves in the presence of our Lord. We have been commissioned to carry Christ's love. This is confirmed in Ephesians 2:10. "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them." (NKJV)

​Included in the short list of animated films up for an Academy Award is a thirteen-minute film called "The 21." It was put on the Internet for free screening on February 14 - 17, 2025 as a way to honor those who were martyred by ISIS ten years ago. After I viewed the production, I wanted to learn more about the cinematic approach to telling this story.
 
Producer of faith-based Hollywood films, Mark Rodgers, desired to create a film with three objectives: (1) Those who view the film would have "a deeper understanding of our own Christian heritage in this region." (2) "It would be wonderful to see this film be promoted widely so that people inside the Church can see the courage and the faith of the martyrs and be encouraged in their own faith." (3) It is hoped that the film would "promote a freedom of religion that people can practice whatever they want to believe without persecution." He and his team also desired to produce a truthful account of the events from the time the Coptic Christians were captured until they were martyred on a beach in Libya that would counter the propaganda video produced by ISIS.
 
Because of the gruesome nature of the story, Mark Rodgers and his partner Mandi Hart did not think a typical documentary would be appropriate. Through prayer, God gave Mark an idea to make a short, animated film. The animation is done using Egyptian iconography; iconography being the use of visual images, figures, or symbols to represent certain action or objects. One of the benefits to using this type of animation is that its producers could project the spiritual images of angels and Jesus that ISIS terrorists saw intermixed with their captives. It says on the film's website (the21film.com) that seventy artists and animators from over twenty-four countries worked on the film. 
 
The word Copt is an ancient Greek word meaning Egyptian. Copts declare John Mark, author of the Gospel of Mark, as their founder and first bishop sometime between AD 42 and AD 62. They tend to emphasize meritorious works in salvation along with liturgical rituals rather than salvation through a personal relationship with Jesus. They believe that Jesus is God Himself, the Incarnate Word. Copts are the largest Christian denomination in Egypt and the Middle East.
 
When ISIS began their reign of terror their goal was to cleanse North Africa of Christians. In December 2014, they captured twenty-one Copts and placed them in an underground prison. Initially they were offered money to deny their faith. When this did not happen, ISIS began torturing them by making them pull heavy bags of wet sand down the beach. If they fell, they were beaten. Cold water was poured on them regularly so that they could not sleep, and their skin was cut with sharp knives. Their methods of torture only drew the men closer together, and they prayed, "Lord have mercy." When they did this the earth shook, and the terrorists were fearful. Every Copt was fitted with an orange jump suit and marched down the beach. It is reported that the terrorists saw angelic figures with the men and that the sky seemed to change color. One by one every Coptic Christian refused to deny Christ, and one by one they were beheaded.
 
Psalm 116:15 says, "Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His faithful servants." The Passion Translation says it this way: "When one of God's holy lovers dies, it is costly to the Lord, touching His heart." We know that God's heart was touched on this costly day. Pray that the death of these men will not be in vain and that the film will impact many. May we be faithful witnesses to the unbelieving individuals around us and never be tempted to deny our Lord no matter what the consequences.