Today is October 4 

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace through the power of the Holy Spirit.   
 
Take a moment and quiet yourself. Take a deep breath. Welcome God’s presence. And say, “Come Holy Spirit.”   
  
Today’s reading is from the gospel of Matthew, chapter 24.  
 
4 Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. 5 For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many. 6 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. 7 Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are the beginning of birth pains.  
 
9 “Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. 10 At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, 11 and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. 12 Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, 13 but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.  
  
 
These words are weighty, maybe even frightening. They describe a time of war, deception, and natural disaster. They also describe significant persecution, anger, and wickedness. Dark days, indeed. It sort of reminds me of the nightly news, to be honest. I often leave the headlines feeling a sense of overwhelm, or dread. How about you? How do you feel when you consider the events of the world around us?  
  
Jesus doesn’t seem surprised at this litany of bad news. He is warning his disciples, as a matter of fact, to expect it! And he says that the result of all of the chaos and destruction is that ‘love will grow cold’. Why do you think this is the case? Why does our love grow cold in times of upheaval? Does that ring true to you?  
 
What do you think it takes to stand firm? Do have your love stay warm, strong, and vibrant? End this time of prayer considering how it is you might ‘watch out’, as Jesus says in the text... and how you might ‘stand firm’. Ask God to give you His wisdom and His gift of faith for this. 
 
Music: "Breathe In, Sing Out" - Vineyard Worship  
Breathe In, Sing Out | Live from Anchour Studio feat. Kyle Howard | Vineyard Worship