“There is no salvation through anyone else,
nor is there any other name under heaven
given to the human race
by which we are to be saved.”
(Acts 4:12)
Dear Friends -
Of all the horrible effects of living through this pandemic brought on with required staying at home, there is included the stress and anxiety over the loss of income, scarcity of necessities, and the possibility of contracting a most painful sickness which can result in sudden death… and that is what breaks my heart the most… sudden death for hundreds of thousands unprepared
to meet their maker. All those poor souls dying alone or in quarantine, hardly able by time or being coherent enough to make a death-bed conversion… how painful their last thoughts might have been realizing they missed their chance to set things right with Almighty God.
I also wonder how many young and old nonbelievers have used this time of isolation to contemplate their own final end… if they are ready for it… if not, isn’t this the time of rude awakening to make that critical decision whether or not there is a God, and could they face Him tomorrow? Christians have always known the reality of facing heaven or hell at death, and faithfully try to always be ready to go home to an Almighty God they are anxious to meet. Being Christian implies a belief in Jesus Christ, whom God The Father has mandated is the only way and is the absolute requirement for entrance into heaven. The Apostle Peter had just cured a lame man when he uttered those words above to validate that his questioned power to cure was not of his own doing, but from Jesus Christ. Peter, whose faith failed at Christ’s crucifixion, had it zealously renewed only days later by witnessing the resurrection of Jesus from death… thereafter, Peter was compelled to earnestly proclaim his experienced magnificence and power of Almighty God, even unto his own martyrdom for such preaching. The reality of Christ’s life, His being a supreme teacher, and Savior 
of the world by His death and resurrection have all been well documented with more than sufficient proof… the conflict arises over His being the ONLY means to salvation as the words above state. None of the other founders of the various religions of the world redeemed mankind of its’ sins… only Jesus Christ did that… thus, non-Christians overtly and covertly reject the need for salvation by Almighty God’s mandate to believe in His one and only Son. Christians are saved, non-Christians are not; Christians can go to heaven, non-Christians cannot; Christians are baptized into the family of God, non-Christians are doomed children of the world. THIS BLACK AND WHITE EDICT COMES FROM ALMIGHTY GOD, NOT CHURCH LEADERS, so please don’t slay the messenger, and yet secularists decry this as elitism to be openly and contentiously ridiculed.
When you can’t believe God’s edicts and refuse to be educated to His truths, that closed-minded ignorance should impel you to keep your mouth shut, however, the rebellious often can’t wait to show off their non-conformity to authority so they will defy and boast untruths to profane and discredit that authority… they will not be told what to do… by anybody, including God. Remember the students on Easter break that defied pandemic orders to stay off the beaches and naturally they ended up getting sick, well, that’s just like those individuals who won't be told to believe in Jesus… well, they WILL end up in the fiery pit of hell for their rebellious defiance. God is truly an authority to be believed; He is the Creator of life, the Divine Intelligence and Power behind all existence, and the least recognized or promoted characteristic of His being, is that He is motivated by unimaginable love! No, He is definitely not some distant unknowable potentate that arbitrarily issues unreasonable commands as nonbelievers ignorantly and erroneously spout forth. He is our Creator that Jesus called Our Father, and that 
Heavenly Father is very proud of His handiwork which He has never abandoned, and constantly, throughout all the pages of Biblical history, had diligently educated and guided peoples to righteous life. As the ever-persistent caring Father God, He finally sent His Son, Jesus Christ, who visibly made evident the reality of God. All of God’s supreme wisdom, miraculous power, and merciful love was on display in Christ, the God-Man, who was God’s final gift to humanity for their salvation and education to righteous life, because without living His creeds, mankind is doomed to eternal death. So you see, The Father and The Son, out of the greatest acts of love, not dominance, gave it Their all to reveal the rightness to faith in God, and that it pays off in the receipt of The Holy Spirit at Baptism, the time of Rebirth. That Holy Spirit gives each soul the better chance, by way of a connection to a cognizant intervening God, to live the best life possible, for the material world in all its ignorance, selfishness, and evil wrongdoing will do everything possible to complicate, victimize, and pull you down to devilish damnation. Consequently, ONLY Jesus Christ, the gift of love from Almighty God The Father, is the one who you willingly give a place to reside and grow in your being, will lead you to Heaven. Live with Jesus or die with the devil… God endowed you with a free will and education to make that choice… decide, before it’s too late.
WORDS TO MAKE YOUR OWN
(Biblical history is repeated worldwide every day; the utterances and acts of the ancients are no different from that which the hearts and minds of peoples today speak or do… learn from history. What they said or did in their relationship with God could be precisely the same churnings in your own soul, and what God said or did with them may very well be the exact words you need to hear… make them your own.)
God hears the panic in our voice, and regardless of the words we utter to describe the fear eating away at us, He responds to what we need knowing precisely what outcome our spiritual being actually requires. We may plead for something that is entirely wrong for the situation, so it’s best to ask in generalities and leave the details to Him… then wait and watch to see the changes happening according to His plan. It’s hard to imagine that God has a plan for each and every one of us, but He does, and because He knows our current natural and supernatural talents, and the ones of the future,
He will always guide us down the right path. He often plants a desire in our hearts and sees it through to fruition while we think it was all of our own doing! As His child, with The Holy Spirit maturing in our soul, we press on achieving goals with His help, for if they were from wrong ideals, they would not succeed for He has the power to stop and hinder His child from any and all harm. Recall what Saint Paul said in that regard: “Not that I have already been made perfect, but I press on hoping that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has laid hold of me.” (Philippians 3:12) We know our weaknesses and what a poor image of Jesus we may relay from time-to-time, but ever hopeful and striving to do what He wants, we press on. With the dependence and humility of a child we trust Him, even in the darkness we hold on tighter knowing He will lead us onto our eternal home.
Sometimes the darkness of evil enters our life and we are powerless to defend ourselves. We haven’t the money to hire professional assistance or even friends who would like to help but can’t, thus, there is no recourse left to us but submission, and so we cry out just like Queen Ester: “You alone are God. Help me, who am alone and have no help but You.” (Esther C:14) Crosses come to us in all sizes, and we bear them just as Jesus did, and with His help. Survival also comes in all sizes, for sometimes we escape death by inches, Thanks be to God, while other times we go all the way to a natural or supernatural death wondering where was God until the end. Whatever the outcome, we have been able to experience the full image of Jesus that makes us heirs to the Kingdom of God… we are His children that He brings forth to a resemblance of Jesus.
The more we cooperate with God’s plan the fuller our life.
When you have built a personal relationship with Almighty God, expect to see His favor bestowed upon you in the most unimaginable ways… that’s the way you know the benefit was from Him! Sometimes it comes in the form of grace to help you complete a difficulty, or it may be a material blessing given you by another, urged on by God because it comes at just the appropriate moment, that the other could not have known! All those lucky moments and windfalls of sheer coincidence, learn to recognize them as gifts from God, because that’s exactly what they are. If you have any doubt about that, keep in mind Saint Paul’s words: “Eye has not seen nor ear heard, nor has it entered into the heart of man what things God has prepared for those who love Him.” (1 Corinthians 2:9) God meant for life to be good, so when you try to be the best copy of Christ possible, and you love God with all your heart, soul and being, expect His affection for that NOW, and when you eventually get to heaven!
