Are You Running Late?

Matthew 24:42 – “Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.”

Something happened to me the other day that has only happened one other time. I was late to church. I am allergic to being late. If you mention the “L” word, I start to itch. So as not to be late, I will add 20 minutes to the travel time to allow for problems. I also plan on being at the church 45 minutes before the service starts so that I can meet the Pastor, set up our display, and speak with people. For example, if a church is 30 minutes away and starts at 6 pm. I will leave for the church between 4:25 and 4:30. This plan has served me well over the years. But the only way it works is if I know what time church starts.

Recently, Tara and I were scheduled to be at church that was 30 minutes away. According to my Google calendar, services started at 6 pm. I did my regular plan and left for church at 4:25 pm. Tara and I spent the time talking about the service, checking in with our parents, and laughing about that we were going to be early. That all changed when I pulled into the parking lot at 4:55 pm.

As I turned in, the parking lot was full and my heart stopped. When I looked at the sign, it said services started at 5 pm. I skidded the truck into a parking spot and bailed out of it with my Bible and notes in hand. As I ran into the church, I left Tara to carry in the display. I met the Pastor and got myself ready to preach.

Many people treat spiritual decisions the same way that caused me to be late at that church. They are determined to wait to the last minute to accept Christ as their Savior or serve Him. That would be great except no one knows when they will die or when the Lord will return. 2 Corinthians 6:2 tells us – “For he saith…behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” That passage teaches us that we need to come to Christ today! Are you waiting to accept Christ as your Savior? Are you waiting to start serving Him, tithing, or reading your Bible? I would encourage you to make your decisions for Christ now before it is eternally too late.