A few weeks ago when Pastor Don arrived at church, he made the comment that he had thought of bringing doughnuts that morning. We were having our Covenant Church Annual Business Meeting right after church that day and Pastor Don thought that folks might appreciate doughnuts and coffee to attend the business meeting. However, he then changed his mind and didn’t bring doughnuts to church. Both Joe Morgan and Frank Dolwick commented to Don that you should always go with your first thought and carry through with it.
That led me to think of how we make decisions in our lives and decide which direction to go when we are pondering a choice we can, or have, to make. The verse below is from the only Psalm that is attributed to Moses.
Psalm 90:12 – So teach us to number our days, that we may present to You a heart of wisdom.
This verse suggests to us that we should evaluate the use of our time in light of the brevity of life. We should reject the opportunity to make our own worldly decisions and instead lean on God to provide us wisdom based on His sovereignty and revelation to us. Hopefully, we will all have used our time on earth wisely, and focused our time being in service to God’s Kingdom.
Of course, we all need a break to relax with our favorite TV shows, or the computer games we love to play, or the sporting events we love to watch especially if they involve our favorite Gators! But this verse of scripture tells us to not get caught up in all these activities, and not lose sight of studying God’s Word regularly or serving God through our support of those in need.
James 4:13-17 – Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit.” 14 Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. For you are just a vapor that appears for a little while, and then vanishes away. 15 Instead, you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that.” 16 But as it is, you boast in your arrogance; all such boasting is evil. 17 So for one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, for him it is sin.
In this scripture, James is not condemning wise business planning, but rather planning that does not include God. Such people live their lives making plans as if God does not exist. Such planning is inconsistent with genuine saving faith, which submits to God.
Proverbs 27:1 – Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring.
We all hope we will live longer to accomplish all that we want to do in our lives. However, only fools think they know the future or can affect its outcome, but the future rests with our sovereign God. We live day by day, and hope and pray that we make Godly decisions when they are presented to us.
Cindy and I recently had such a decision to make. We have had great friends in Miami for the last 43 years, named Hal and Sylvia. A few years ago Hal was diagnosed with lung cancer, which he dealt with for a few years without it greatly impacting their lives. However, recently Hal learned that it had spread to the wall of his abdomen, and he needed much stronger treatments. Hal did not tolerate the first treatment well, and he had to be hospitalized. When it appeared that his days left on earth might be few, we told his wife Sylvia that we would be down there to see them both as soon as she said we should come. When she called us a few days later, we packed up the car and immediately headed to Miami, arriving that evening. We then had a 3-day visit with Sylvia, which we all needed, and got to see Hal briefly on both Saturday and Sunday. I can only describe our visit as God-inspired, as we felt His presence with us the entire visit, but especially as we all visited with Hal on Sunday before leaving to come home. Hal entered his eternal rest the following Sunday and we returned to Miami one week later for Hal’s Celebration of Life. That was also a very inspiring visit to celebrate the life of a very inspiring man, and God was clearly among all of us in attendance throughout that 4-hour celebration.
Ephesians 5:15-17 – So then, be careful how you walk, not as unwise people but as wise, 16 making the most of your time, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.
I have already made a note to make sure we have doughnuts for next year’s Covenant Church Annual Business Meeting. Who knows, we may even get a few more attendees if they know breakfast is being served! We will also make sure Pastor Don gets all the credit