But what are we waiting for? Are we waiting to be "Un-tired?" Are we waiting for our ship to come in? Perhaps we are waiting for our health to improve. Are we waiting to be offered that perfect job?Are we waiting for that cup of instant coffee to be ready to drink? Are we waiting for the coming of Christ?
There is so much that we can wait for. The excuses are limitless! Remember the "Left Behind" series of books that was such a big hit several years ago? I do. I read each one, and each sentence was read with excitement and wonder. I am not a fast reader. I read slowly and savor each phrase and paragraph. Right away I got the message of that "story". It is a story book series . . . plain and simple. Don't get me wrong. I thoroughly enjoyed the series. "Why is that?" you may ask. Because it got me thinking about how prepared I really was for the coming of Jesus the Christ. I was pretty much coming up short on the preparation aspect. Now isn't that strange. A person goes to church all their life. They sing the songs, read the Word, serve on the church committee's, say all the pretty things expected, and all of a sudden, realize there is something missing. That something is RELATIONSHIP.
Left Behind series IS an interesting extrapolation from the Bible, in my opinion. But here is the problem that is bugging me today. There are folks that are so rapped up in the "RAPTURE" that they can't enjoy the WAIT! I see folks that are so tuned into what they are seeing as the "Signs of the end times" all around them with what is going on with the world, and seems like they are so worried and almost to "tearing of their garments" time, that they are missing the RELATIONSHIP of knowing Jesus the Christ, with all the assurances and peace that it brings.
Even the Disciples thought that Jesus was going to return in a couple weeks or so. Some folk refuse to understand a simple verse of the Bible: 1 Thessalonians 5:1-2 "Now you do not need to have anything written to you about times and dates, brother, for you yourselves know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a tier in the night." and then Paul goes on to encourage them with these words: "For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us in order that, whether we are awake or asleep, we might live together with him." THEN Paul finishes up with these wonderful words of verse 11: "So then, encourage one another and build each other up, as you are doing."
QUIT fretting and being anxious about the "Signs of the times". You are spending too much energy worrying about or anticipating the Coming of the Lord. Wasting all that energy and wasting all that time when you could be deepening your relationship with Jesus instead. Getting others around you all wound up as tight as a clock spring is not healthy, when what is needed is what God wants of us and that is to LOVE our brothers and sisters as HE LOVE US. To me that is not making your brothers and sisters anxious and fretful about a rapture and loved ones being left behind, and bad people taking over the world for years while the newly faithful are struggling to survive. But it does make for exciting reading though . . . for a storybook.
The time now is to develop your relationship with Jesus Christ. Don't wait for any signs . . . don't wait for tomorrow . . . don't wait until there are bunches of empty clothes (like in the book) It has been over 2000 years of waiting so far. I think it is about time to be in a deep and meaningful relationship with our Lord and Savior, Jesus the Christ.
It reminds me of when I was coming home on advanced party leave from Viet Nam. We were flown into Clark Air Base in the Philippine Islands to fly home. We waited for two days and couldn't get a flight to Travis AB, Ca. So we went to Subic Bay Air Base (bussing through rough jungle dirt roads) to wait there for two days. Then we bussed back (in the night again, on those rough jungle dirt roads) to Clark AB. All of a sudden it came to us. Catch a plane to Hickham Field in Hawaii and fly commercial the rest of the way home! That is what the other folks that we saw come and fly away were doing! So we did that and it wasn't long and we WERE home. We were waiting, but not talking, or establishing relationships to get the right answer to our needs. When we found out "the secret", our anxiety was over, and we were HOME!
Point of the story is: Establish a relationship with Jesus. Stop fretting. Stop WAITING! Stop thinking your are smart enough to figure out the SIGNS...the Bible tells us we aren''t going to know the "WHEN" so why worry? End of story.
Blessings,
Gary
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