Sound the Alarm All Over the World

Noises surround us in this swift and fast world. We have made some of them useful — for example, the sound of a cell phone’s alarm to wake us up or remind us to exercise. Even the microwave beeps when the food is ready and warm. Noise alerts are those noises that help us live well. What would become of us without these alarms? 

The Word of God warns us about and gives the value of alarms, both to the one who sends the message and the one who receives it: 

Then if those who hear the alarm refuse to take action, it is their own fault if they die. They heard the alarm but ignored it, so the responsibility is theirs. If they had listened to the warning, they could have saved their lives (Ezekiel 33:4-6 NLT).

God has given us the opportunity to be those living alarms, those alarms that encourage the helpless, that raise the fallen. God has put His Word in our mouths for salvation for this time. By His mercy, we have been chosen as watchmen.  Because of this, we have the responsibility to use any means to issue the alert: messages, images, voice notes, movies and songs—anything goes to carry the loving and encouraging message of God, as it says in Ezekiel: 

…You are saying, ‘Our sins are heavy upon us; we are wasting away! How can we survive?’  As surely as I live, says the Sovereign Lord, I take no pleasure in the death of wicked people. I only want them to turn from their wicked ways so they can live (Ezekiel 33:10-11).

The word “alarm” can scare us, but the noble work of an alarm is just to keep us safe. The Bible invites us to change, to leave our sinful lives behind. 

Today, we have television and mass media within reach to broadcast the message. As it says in 1 Peter 5:8-10:

Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him and be strong in your faith. Remember that your family of believers all over the world is going through the same kind of suffering you are. In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So, after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation. 

In Mexico, we live in a culture of disaster prevention due to our history with earthquakes. Seismic alarms and alerts are part of our society. I was born on September 19, 1985, and have survived the Mexican earthquakes of 1985 and 2017. My life was spared and I believe it is my duty to raise my voice, sound the alert, and activate the greatest alarm in history: Christ is the way, the truth, the life —and He will return soon for everyone who loves him. 

As an editor of Christian programming, I am currently experiencing the exciting honor of sharing this message of hope with Latin America. From CBN México Studios, we sound the trumpets and pray that everyone can hear the alarm and stay safe while it is sounding. 

Oh Lord, please sound the alarm in our souls and wake us up! We are Your messengers. Fill us with the urgency to share Your good news in any and every way that we can. 

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Scripture is quoted from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.