The last month has been like a whirlwind. It seems like there is not a moment to catch your breath—busy, busy, busy! There is a lot going on and more to come. But, that is ok. Hey—aren’t we supposed to do more than just sit back, watching sunrises and sunsets? God has us here for a reason. He has given each a work to do and we will never find satisfaction in life until we get busy doing it.

The word “bored” should not be in the Christian’s vocabulary. Tired? Yes! Bored? Never! It is no wonder that so many people are miserable. They spend all their time thinking about ways to make themselves happy. But, when all is said and done, they never do. It’s impossible for a Christian to be truly at peace until they are pursuing God’s purpose for their life. It’s sad that most people never see that.

Listen, there is no reason why your life can’t be fun, exciting, and fulfilled. The desire for those things is God given. And, if He put the desire in us, He also provides the means to fulfill them. You just have to do it God’s way. That’s the only way that works. As I’ve said many times—Success is discovering the will of God and doing it. So, what are you doing? Yes, God wants you to be happy, but He wants you to find your happiness in Him. Think about it!

I am impatient by nature. That doesn’t make it right–I’m just stating a fact. I hate long lines, railroad crossings, stop lights, haircuts, etc. Most of you know what I mean–it is a common problem. People just don’t like to wait.

However, there is an area where we have a right to be duly concerned about having to wait. I’m talking about waiting because of procrastination. Why does take so long to get things done? I can understand it if it is a  government project–the word “government” says it all. We expect red tape when we deal with something so inept as the government. But we ought to expect more out of those who labor in the vineyard of the Lord.

Sadly “foot-dragging” is a common problem in church ministry. It seems to take forever to get the simplest things done. And don’t give me that balony about “that’s all you can expect out of volunteers”. That’s no excuse. Those same volunteers have no problem getting to work on time and finishing their secular assignments. They do what they want to do without any delay. It’s the ministry that always gets put on the back-burner. Why should God’s work always be last on the list?

This is one reason why churches limp along at a snail’s pace. People just keep dragging their feet. Simple projects seem to take forever. It can take weeks to change a burned out light bulb! After it is finally noticed someone makes mention of it, but nobody does anything. Next week somebody enquires if there are any bulbs, but nobody takes action. Finally after another week has passed someone decides to take action and the bulb is replaced. By now there is another bulb burned out and the process starts all over again.

The sad fact is that most people are selfish, undisciplined, and unorganized. We simply do not have a sense of urgency when it comes to Christian ministry. We need to correct that. We’ve all heard the saying,”Little things mean a lot”, there is even a song to that effect. Well it is true. If we would start doing the little things that need to be done it would make a big difference in the effectiveness of the church. We should have the attitude that there are no little things when it comes to serving God.

My mother used to say,”If a job is worth doing it is worth doing right.” You’ve probably heard that. Well if we’re going to do it right we need to do it without delay. We need to break the habit of procrastinating. It is like a ball and chain on the church. If there is a job to do don’t put it off. Do it without delay and you will be amazed at how much more is accomplished. Think about it!

I recently received an email that said,” Forgive me, I just needed to vent.” That got me thinking—we all need to “vent” at times. Life is tough and our burdens can get hard to bear. It helps when we can talk about it with someone who cares.

After spending five years teaching the book of Psalms, I was amazed at how patient God is with His people. It startled me to learn that God is not offended when we open up and pour our heart out to Him. In case you didn’t know it, some of the writers said some shocking things about their relationship with God. Some even expressed their feeling that God was treating them as an enemy. That study encouraged me by reminding me that God cares about all our troubles. He knows what is in our heart and He encourages us to express it to Him, appropriately of course.

Friends should feel the same way about each other. One of the advantages of having friends is being able to share our mutual woes, as well as our blessings. While we don’t want to get in the habit of constantly bombarding others with our troubles, it is good to have a friend with whom we can share our feelings. Friends like that are of great value.

Some have made the mistake of taking the “tough guy” approach to their problems. The “I can do it without anybody’s help” attitude isn’t very smart. We do need others, and they need us. That’s why we should work at cultivating friendships. Count yourself fortunate if you have a friend to whom you can “vent”. If you don’t, it would be a good idea for you to become that kind of friend to someone. Remember,” A man that hath friends must shew himself friendly-“(Proverbs 18:24). Think about it!

Over and over I remind people that we must depend on God’s Word rather than our feelings. That is a fact—one that I have to remind myself of repeatedly.

Years ago one of the deacons in the church I pastored insisted that he had seen an angel. I heard him tell the story on several occasions and each time it was very convinicing. Now, I can’t say I’ve seen an angel (I may have seen some devils though–lol), but many people insist they have. That’s not a point I’m going to debate. I don’t know. How could I know?

However, I have no difficulty believing that angels exist and are in some way associated with me. I know this is true because the Bible declares it is so, not because I’ve seen them. If I went solely on my feelings I would conclude that angels do not exist, or at least there is no connection between them and me. God’s Word alone gives me the assurance that my feelings are wrong, and that is a great encouragment.

God is at work in our lives even when it does not seem to be so. He is present with me even when it seems that I am all alone. He hears my prayer, even when the heavens seem as brass. He is helping me, even when it seems that everything depends on me. He has the answer, even when there seems to be none. Since all this is true I have good reason not to despair.

Maybe this is one of those days when you “feel” that everything is wrong, but you are wrong! Everything is not wrong. God is good all the time and , contrary to your feelings, He has some good planned for you if you will but trust Him. So, go with the facts, not your feelings! THINK ABOUT IT!

Isn’t technology great! I just finished sending hundreds of emails in a matter of a few minutes. It’s amazing what we can do today. With IM we can have instant communication with folks on the other side of the world. We can also store tons of information on our computer and have access to vast amounts of info right at our finger tips. We can even track down people we’ve lost touch with.

Just last week I received an email from the daughter of a dear preacher friend of mine that I haven’t seen in over twenty years. That served to remind me how easily we lose touch with others. Instead of cursing all this “confounded” new stuff, I believe we ought to embrace it and be thankful for it. True, it’s not as personal as a handshake or a hug, but that kind of contact isn’t always possible. Thank God we are now able to maintain contact with our loved ones through the means of modern technology.

But there is another important factor regarding this matter. We can also use this this technology to spread the gospel and edify fellow Christians. Sadly most of us, individuals and churches, aren’t doing a very good job of this. I realize that many of us are just learning, and that slows things down a bit, but most people don’t even make an effort. That’s unfortunate.

Even if you are not a preacher or teacher, you can have a ministry to others. You don’t even have to be a good writer. There’s lots of great material available that you could send to folks. Why not start a mailing list of your friends and relatives and send them an article related to salvation on a regular basis? Or you might want to make it really personal by sharing with them what God is doing in your life. Sometimes a personal testimony can be a great way to help others. Give it a try.

Here is an avenue of ministry that is open to everyone who owns a computer, regardless of age or physical condition. You don’t even have to leave your home to do it. Think about it—from your own home you can reach people around the world. If you just use your computer for recreational purposes you are missing a great opportunity. Reach out to someone today–God has put it in your power to do it. Do it!