I am sure you will recognize the phrase, "strike while the iron is hot". The metaphor is borrowed from the trade of the Blacksmith, and it pictures the metal that the has been heated by the fire to right temperature so the it will yield to the fashioning of the his hammer. It is a vivid reminder that we can wait too long to act! Procrastination is one of the besetting sins our church today. We know what we should do, but never get around to it. When I was a child, the politicians in our rural Southern Oklahoma town would visit house to house during election season soliciting for votes. Often they would get a response from folk that something like this," I will vote if I can get around to it". Those shrewd country politicians carried a round wooden disc about the size of a half-dollar that was called a "TUIT". As you can guess it was a round TUIT! They gave them to everyone so they would not have the excuse of trying to getting around to it because they had a round TUIT. I think we should had out "ROUND TUITS" at beginning of ever worship service so that we will have no excuse for not responding to the Word!
Paul reminds the Church at Rome in his Epistle to them, "do not be lacking in diligence" (Romans 12:11) as a prescription for the sin of procrastination. How the church needs this message today! We need to be to be "doers" of Word as James reminds us. Mr. Good Intentions never witnesses, never prays, never teaches, never goes on mission or never digs deep into the Word. It is not that Mr. Good Intentions does not have time, but rather the things pertaining to the Kingdom of God are not a priority! It is time for us to come face with our sin of wasting time and repent before our Lord! We are reminded to "redeem the time" in Ephesians 5:16 which means buy up the opportunities that the Lord has brought into our lives fro His service. I like the word "opportunity"; it came it the English language from the Latin language. It has an amazing word picture. It is a navigational word which met to know when weather conditions, such the winds and tides were favorable for a ship to enter a port. God is at work in the circumstances in your church and community creating favorable conditions! Let us pray for discernment to see the opportunities He has planned for us and church and join Him! Let's not procrastinate! Window of opportunity can close! Let us start praying faithfully today; let us start witnessing today; let us start seeking where the Lord would have us serve today; let us pray fro revival today!
Paul reminds the Church at Rome in his Epistle to them, "do not be lacking in diligence" (Romans 12:11) as a prescription for the sin of procrastination. How the church needs this message today! We need to be to be "doers" of Word as James reminds us. Mr. Good Intentions never witnesses, never prays, never teaches, never goes on mission or never digs deep into the Word. It is not that Mr. Good Intentions does not have time, but rather the things pertaining to the Kingdom of God are not a priority! It is time for us to come face with our sin of wasting time and repent before our Lord! We are reminded to "redeem the time" in Ephesians 5:16 which means buy up the opportunities that the Lord has brought into our lives fro His service. I like the word "opportunity"; it came it the English language from the Latin language. It has an amazing word picture. It is a navigational word which met to know when weather conditions, such the winds and tides were favorable for a ship to enter a port. God is at work in the circumstances in your church and community creating favorable conditions! Let us pray for discernment to see the opportunities He has planned for us and church and join Him! Let's not procrastinate! Window of opportunity can close! Let us start praying faithfully today; let us start witnessing today; let us start seeking where the Lord would have us serve today; let us pray fro revival today!