You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. John 8:32 NKJV.

This is so beautiful from You Are The Beloved by Henri Nouwen: Dear God, As You draw me ever deeper into Your heart, I discover that my companions on the journey are women and men loved by You as fully and as intimately as I am. In Your compassionate heart, there is a place for all of them. No one is excluded. Give me a share in Your compassion, dear God, so that Your unlimited love may become visible in the way I love my brothers and sisters. Amen.”

I keep thinking about how fast events are happening now in these final days that Jesus was with His disciples. It had to be disorienting for them. And in our chapter, Mark 13, the disciples have just talked about the temple itself. As Jesus was leaving the temple, one of His disciples said to Him, “Look, Teacher! What massive stones! What magnificent buildings!” “Do you see all these great buildings?” replied Jesus. “Not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.” v. 1-2. In the notes below it said that about 15 years before Jesus was born, Herod the Great began to remodel and rebuild it and that it had been 500 years since Ezra and the rebuilding of this, the 2nd temple building; and it wouldn’t be completely finished until A.D. 64. And yet some of the disciples would live to see this temple and all of Jerusalem destroyed in A.D. 70. That was a huge statement! As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter, James, John and Andrew asked Him privately, “Tell us, when will these things happen? And what will be the sign that they are all about to be fulfilled?” Jesus said to them: “Watch out that no one deceives you. Many will come in My name, claiming ‘I am he,’ and will deceive many. When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places, and famines. These are the beginning of birth pains. You must be on your guard. You will be handed over to the local councils and flogged in the synagogues. On account of Me you will stand before governors and kings as witnesses to them. And the gospel must first be preached to all nations. Whenever you are arrested and brought to trial, do not worry beforehand about what to say. Just say whatever is given you at the time, for it is not you speaking, but the Holy Spirit. Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child. Children will rebel against their parents and have them put to death. Everyone will hate you because of Me, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved. When you see ‘the abomination that causes desolation’ (Daniel 9:27, 11:31, 12:11) standing where it does not belong – let the reader understand – then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let no one on the housetop go down or enter the house to take anything out. Let no one in the field go back to get their cloak. How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! Pray that this will not take place in winter, because those will be days of distress unequaled from the beginning, when God created the world, until now – and never to be equaled again. If the Lord had not cut short those days, no one would survive. But for the sake of the elect, whom He has chosen, He has shortened them. At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or, ‘Look, there He is!’ do not believe it. For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. So be on your guard; I have told you everything ahead of time. But in those days, following that distress, ‘the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.’ (Isaiah 13:10, 34:4). At that time people will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. And He will send His angels and gather His elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens. Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that it is near, right at the door. Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away. But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Be on your guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come. It’s like a man going away: He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with their assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch. Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back – whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn. If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping. What I say to you, I say to everyone: ‘Watch!’” v. 3-37.

Sobering words. The disciples experienced those and more. As I contemplated the accelerated pace of this world and all of the troubles one after another, He reminded me the sun will still rise and set and days will pass into weeks and seasons of change. The world will change at ever faster paces and it will be disorienting and confusing. But Hold Fast To God! He is the same. And He is with us always. And He helped me remember that He has been with me since before I could remember or even know…but He knew! Creator God – Father, Son, Spirit, is steady! I have chafed at that steadiness so often, but He is right to be steady and His steadiness is needed always! God’s love and truth are – and always will be – our anchor of stability and hope. What He says to us He says to everyone – Watch! This world does its best to disorient and distract us. But when we stop and be still and turn to Him, He is there. He is our hope, and our joy, and our greatest need! One day we will truly understand! It will take every step of our journey with Him to put everything into perspective. But oh what a journey that will be!