Archive for the ‘Planning’ Category

22 Feb

Making Reservations

Posted by sandhillspastor in Assurance, Eternal Life, Eternity, God's Word, Gospel, Planning, Salvation, The Good News, Uncategorized.

We are looking at a few days of relatively nice weather. While we have some nice days, we have begun the process of transitioning to our lake house. I was asked recently why we wanted to move out of the parsonage. My reply was this; we moved the house down here to live in. We will continue to serve at the church, while the search committee works to find my replacement. Prayers would be appreciated.

Our devotional thought this week concerns the tendency of many of us to put things off until the last minute, and how it applies to our eternal destination. A disclaimer is needed here: Some may think I’m targeting individuals, but I am as guilty as anyone of procrastination.

When an event requires reservations to be made before a specific time, many folks will delay until after the cut-off date, then ask for an exception. There are instances when exceptions can be made without any difficulty, but there will be a stopping point.

Jesus offers the gift of salvation to those who believe in, and trust him. His invitation is “come to me and receive my salvation.” However, like those who delay making reservations for a hotel room, an airline flight, or maybe a formal dinner, many people delay in making a decision to trust Christ. In fact, they sometimes put it off until it is too late.

In Matthew 25:1-13, Jesus tells the story of ten virgins waiting for a wedding banquet. As they waited, darkness came. The five wise virgins had taken extra oil for their lamps, and five who the Lord called foolish had their lamps, but no oil for them. As the story goes, at some point the wedding party arrived, and the five who had no oil went to purchase oil, but by the time they returned to the banquet, it was too late, the door was locked. By failing to be prepared, they were denied entrance. He ended the story with these words. “Keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.”

Jesus’ point was this: No one knows when it will be too late to accept his offer. We don’t get a second chance at salvation. No one is guaranteed tomorrow. “Man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment” (Hebrews 9:27). Be prepared. Do not delay.

In Him,
Pastor Jerry

2 Mar

Plans: Fail

Posted by sandhillspastor in Blessings, Change, Christian Living, Faith, God, God's Word, Planning, Work.

Dear friends,
It is a bit cloudy this morning. There is a threat of winter precipitation in the forecast, but looking ahead we see signs of a warming trend. I am so ready for spring, and all that it brings. As I talk to people, I know I’m not alone in this.

We all have days when our plans for the future take unexpected turns. Saturday, we decided to go to Grand Island to get some more material for our lake house project. It seemed pretty simple; go get the things on our list, come home early and get some work done. As we pulled out on the highway, I noticed black smoke coming from the pickup exhaust. For a diesel, this is not a total surprise, but it continued all the way to the city, then as I stopped for a light, the smoke turned from black to white. This is not a good thing.

I knew son Ryan and Alex were somewhere south of York on another mission, so I called and they came to our rescue. I got someone to tow the pickup to the shop, Ryan and Alex met us at Menard’s, and with our purchases, took us back home. Now we will wait for the ‘good news’ concerning the pickup engine. As the poet said, “the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry.”

This all reminds me of what the Bible says about our making plans, and what God makes of our plans. Here are a few: “In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps” (Proverbs 16:9). “Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails” (Proverbs 19:21).

This one from James about says it all: “Now listen, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.’ Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, ‘If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that’” (James 4:13-15).

Someone once said, “If you want to make the Lord laugh, just tell him your plans.” To this I can only say, “Amen!”

In His grip,
Pastor Jerry

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