“For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.”- James 4:15
Someone said,” Life is like a coin. You can spend it any way you want, but you can spend it only once”. How true that is! But most people are like a kid in a candy store – they can’t make up their mind on how they want to spend it. Sadly, most folks end up wasting it. They allow the things of the world to distract them. They allow good things to crowd out the best things. They allow personal pleasures to take them down a path they will regret later. They’ve developed the idea that they can’t find happiness unless they travel to far away places, do exciting things, get expensive stuff, and rub shoulders with the rich and famous. They call it “getting ahead”. But they keep coming up short.
Rather than being content where they are with what they have they are always looking for something else. Solomon tried to warn us when he said “all is vanity”, but hardly anyone listens. Paul spoke about abiding with God in whatever situation we are in ( 1 Cor. 7:20-24), but the flesh resents that idea. Perhaps we ought to consider the example of Christ. Vance Havner gave us this food for thought:
“Wouldn’t you think that Jesus, with only three years to go, would have visited Rome and Athens, would have sought all available publicity, would have called on celebrities and appeared at forums and symposiums, would have rushed from dawn to midnight, making every moment count, would have held public debates and put on healing exhibitions? Instead, He stayed in an obscure little Roman province, talked with a few individuals, mingled with ordinary people, exasperated His brothers by not performing in Jerusalem. It is all so foreign to our American way of doing things. Maybe we had better learn the gait of Galilee!”
I realize that we live in a different time than the days of Christ, but we would be wise to keep our priorities in the proper order. So let’s keep first things first ( Matt. 6:33). Redeem the time and invest your life in that which pays eternal dividends. As the British Missionary C. T. Studd said, “Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.” Do not be distracted by the pleasures of this world, nor discouraged by its problems. Stay focused on what matters most. As the old song says, “It will be worth it all”. -HDS
David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346
