From the time I was a little boy I was made aware that a person
should not put off until tomorrow the things they need to do today. Procrastination can be a person’s biggest
downfall. This certainly applies to
one’s soul. Let me explain.
The relationship that a person has with their maker, God, is most important;
more so than anything or anyone on earth. Your future depends on it.
This connection can be an estranged type involvement or a close one. For many people in the world it isn’t close
or far. It’s more like a middle of the
road existence; neither hot nor cold. It
is a lukewarm association; hotter when an emergency exists and colder when
things are seemingly going their way.
Much of humankind is stuck in their immediate, mundane (four wall
existence); trying to make ends meet, while attempting to enjoy the time they have
on earth with little thought of what tomorrow may bring. Many say, “I’m a good person,” caring less
about God and their relationship with Him.
When God sends someone their way to share about the dividends of
Christianity, and the Holy Spirit beckons them to make things right with God,
they fail or refuse to take the opportunity to open the door and ask
God to forgive them of their sins. They
are saying by their lack of response, “Not today; tomorrow!”
The Bible says that mankind is allotted seventy or eighty years, depending upon
their health. In my younger days I
lived like I wanted to and had the idea that I would give my heart to God on my
deathbed. How foolish! Is this not the general thinking of
non-Christians that burn the candle at both ends? They put off until tomorrow what they should
do today, thinking they have plenty of time to make things right with God. Sometimes it doesn’t work out this way; then
what?
I lost my mom shortly after she turned fifty-eight years old, and my wife lost
two brothers at ages fifty-eight and fifty-nine.
One of my wife’s closest friends just attended her son-in-law’s funeral. He died instantly of a massive heart attack at the
age of thirty-four.
Did they want to die? I’m sure
not, but their appointed time came upon them anyway. Not one person living has the assurance that
they will see the light of tomorrow’s sunrise.
Wow! This is a sobering thought if we
take in its worth and not reject the true importance of the message.
(Psalm 90:10), “The days of our
lives are seventy years; and if by reason of strength they are eighty years,
yet their boast is only labor and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly
away.”
When I was living a cold relationship away from God, I remember becoming
quite angry when anyone spoke of dying. I didn't want to hear it. Like most people without God in their life, I
feared death. I knew that my soul would
end up in hell, because of my sinful lifestyle.
My sins were not forgiven. When
conversations dealing with the demise of people were avoided, it made it easier to not face the inevitable that the future held. I closed my mind to what ‘will be’ and lived
in the ‘now’ rather than taking the opportunity of the ‘present’ to rid myself
of guilt, shame, and a life of sin. I
just put it out of my mind like it would never happen to me.
(Hebrews 9:27-28), “And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment,” vs.28 “so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation.”
One thing is certain. We are all
going to pass from this life into eternity whether we want to or not. With life comes the unavoidable—death; sooner
for some and later for others. Sooner or
later we all must take this final step, alone.
I am confident that Jesus will take my hand and welcome me into heaven
when that hour comes. This is my
hope. My gratitude soars, because God
forgave me of my sins in 1969. I am
thankful that I didn’t yield to the temptation of putting off receiving Jesus
Christ as Lord and Savior of my life until another day. I heard His voice and the knock at my heart’s
door. I took the opportunity and invited
Him in and became a child of God.
(Revelation 3:20), “Behold, I
stand at the door and knock. If anyone
hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him and
he with Me.”
I heard a saying last evening on television that prompted me to write
these thoughts. It went something like
this: “Temptation will lean on the
doorbell, but opportunity may knock only once.”
Today is the day of salvation; tomorrow may never come.
Our life on earth is a dressing room for eternity. How we live this life with the time that we
have and to whom our allegiance lies determine the destiny of our soul; heaven
or hell.
Please take the opportunity, while there is yet time to ask Jesus into
your heart if you don’t know Him as Lord.
I promise that you will not regret it.
This step is the beginning to a happy ending.
Trust God!
Written by,
Papa Boyd
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