From that time on Jesus began to preach, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near. - Matthew 4:17
Jesus preached that the Kingdom of heaven had come near, that it was at hand...but when we look around at the state our world is in, sometimes it is hard to see evidence of the kingdom of heaven.
Where is the Kingdom??
Whenever a young child opens his/her heart to God and trusts in Jesus...there is the kingdom!
Whenever a man gets off of the couch to climb the stairs to his child’s room in order to kneel and pray... there is the kingdom!
When a family adopts an unwanted child and raises that child in the knowledge of a loving God... there is the kingdom!
When a a woman who has been abused and tossed aside her whole life learns to trust again through the love of Christ... there is the kingdom!
When a person battling addiction discovers that in Christ there really is hope for recovery and freedom... there is the kingdom!
When a young executive refuses to cut corners in his career because he desires to please God more than men... there is the kingdom!
When an older man reaches out to a teenage boy who has lost his father, to encourage him and pray with him, and be a father figure to him... there is the kingdom!
When a couple on the verge of ending their marriage after 15 years discovers that Christ can put the broken pieces of their marriage back together... there is the kingdom!
When a child with special needs is played with, laughed with and loved on by a volunteer... there is the kingdom!
When a teenage girl decides to be baptized in the jungles of Ecuador in front of all her friends, because that is where she first learn to trust God... there is the kingdom!
When a single mother, struggling to make ends meet, finds that someone from her church has paid her rent for the next 2 months... there is the kingdom!
When a man brings $500 worth of Meijer gift cards to the church every few months so that families in need can go shopping... there is the kingdom!
When a suburban family sells their home and their business to follow the call of God to move to Ecuador and start a skate church for street kids... there is the kingdom!
When 700 people give up a few hours on a Sunday to pack thousands of meals for hungry children... there is the kingdom!
Wherever sin is confessed,
relationships are reconciled,
the hurting are comforted,
marriages are restored,
praises are sung,
prayers are offered,
God’s word is applied,
captives are set free,
God is worshipped,
the Gospel is preached,
and Christ is glorified...There is the Kingdom!!
Jeff Frazier
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