Waiting is the hard part. It's not that we aren't equipped. It's just that we -- if you're anything like me -- are weak. But, Jesus knew that when He called us. And, He called us anyway.

The temptation is to give up. The temptation is to accept what our hearts sometime tell us about ourselves and drop out. But, Jesus sees us differently. In fact, Jesus sees us in the way that we would like to see ourselves, as something worth loving -- as something worth dying for. That being the case, we go on. We keep doing what the Apostle Paul says. We keep reaching for that higher calling that's ours in Christ Jesus.

Yet, according to my understanding of the Bible, the really hard part may be yet before us. And, if we can't take it now, how will we then? Friends, it's time for us all to pray for endurance. It's time for us to pray for the strength to finish the course. And, if we do, we know that strength will be given. Jesus says to ask for what we need and He will give it.

Another thing we have to do is keep our hearts and eyes on Jesus -- the author and perfecter of our faith. You see, we can be easily deceived. We can be made to think we know things that we don't really know by those who seek to use us for their own agendas. But, if our hearts and eyes remain focused entirely on Jesus, He will guide us safely through. He promises us that He won't lose a single one of His sheep.

Since my job is to report prophecy related news, I spent much of the morning reading about the recent changes in the Israeli/Palestinian dispute and the growing leadership crisis in the EU. There are so many different angles to consider right now that it's easy to get confused. What helps me is to remember where the Bible tells us this all is going. And, with this knowledge in mind, a somewhat sketchy picture appears to emerge.

With the Oslo Accords and the Road Map peace plans both dead and President Bush's entire Middle East policy increasingly looking like a foreign and domestic disaster, Israel has no choice but to once again begin agreeing to things once not considered agreeable -- such as convening another Madrid type international peace conference. And, this provides a historic opportunity for the reunified nations of Europe. The only question is, will these self-seeking nations be able to come together long enough to take advantage of the moment.

The EU's seven-year European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument is to begin funding the European Neighbourhood Policy on January 1, 2007. The idea was to have the EU's new EU Foreign Minister in position to go along with the new funding instrument in order to better achieve it's political goals. And, according to all the reports, until the constitution is finally ratified, the new Foreign Minister post may not happen. 

However, if we're seeing the fulfillment of the prophecies, it is still possible it could. The prophecies seem to indicate that the EU's constitution will not be ratified. The prophecies tell us the nations of the revived Roman Empire will not adhere to each other (Daniel 2: 40-43). If the constitution is ratified, these nations would adhere to each other. That's because the constitution would make the multiple nations of the EU into a single entity. Yet, at the same time, the prophecies still suggest a single Roman prince who will confirm a covenant with many for seven years (Daniel 9: 26-27). So, I wouldn't be surprised to see the EU's new Foreign Minister appear -- in one fashion or another -- without the constitution. And, I wouldn't be surprised to see it happened by January 1, 2007. You see, the EU's new funding instrument was designed to do just what the prophecies suggest -- confirm a previous covenant with many for seven years.

In the meantime, the EU's Javier Solana may have accomplished putting together a Palestinian government of a kind in which a peace deal may be brokered Read about it here  I  And here. Other important moves are now underway by key EU and WEU players -- like Britain's Tony Blair Read about it here.

Yes, waiting is the hard part. But, I don't think we'll be waiting long.

Stay tuned!