Twenty-Twelve

2012.....
Sounds like something out of the old sci-fi movies I watched as a boy.
By 2012 we would have flying cars and rocket packs.
Man's achievements would stand glistening in rising sun of a new day...a new era.
There would not be anything that mankind could not achieve.

2012.....
Reality shows us that it is a time of great spiritual darkness.
Economies around the world are at the brink of failure.
Great undercurrents of unrest and mistrust sweep the globe.
People are looking for a savior.....
Not for their lives...but for their lifestyle.
Promises never intended to be kept are given to the people in hopes that peace will reign.

Knowing and seeing this spiritual darkness, what does 2012 hold for me?
What is God saying about 2012?
Having had this time off over this past week, I have spent a good deal of it studying and praying over what God wants to do in me and through me over this coming year.
I have been reading Isaiah 61.

V1. - The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me.
This was a reminder that I belong to Him. That He has saved me and chosen me to participate in the Kingdom work here in Attalla. Everyone who has been saved is called to Kingdom work. It doesn't mean that everyone is a pastor or a preacher. It doesn't mean that everyone quits their jobs to pursue what the world refers to as "Full-time Ministry." Truth be known, everyone who claims the name of Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior is in full time ministry. What we do need to remember is that we have been given the most incredible gift in the world. We has been filled...possessed by the third part of the Holy Trinity....God, the Holy Spirit. Wowzers!!

 V1. - To bring good news to the afflicted.
Good news?
The Gospel of Jesus Christ.
This little bit of information is power! It is the power to save.
In order to be saved, you have to be made aware that you are in danger.
In this case, we are born with a major character defect called a "Sin Nature." or a propensity to do very selfish, destructive behaviors that take us outside the will of God. In other words, we kind of thumb our noses at God and say, "Leave me alone and let me live my life!" In my estimation, the Apostle Paul said it best in Romans 7:18-19  -  "For I know nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh (sin nature), for the wishing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not. For the good that I wish, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not wish."  
I told you we were messed up. We are so used to living like this, we think it's normal. Boy have we fallen a long ways from the God tree!

To me, 2012 will be a year of proclamation. Wasn't 2011 a year of proclamation? Sure it was. That is why 2012 must continue on with the message. There are still those out there who haven't heard and do not know that Jesus died to free them from the bondage of sin (which includes addiction). We will continue to share this message here at Greene Street Letters. I hope that you will continue to drop by from time to time and read the postings. I hope that you will share the Greene Street Letters with your family and friends.
God on you......

mb