Afterwards!

The following arrived in my Inbox, last week. This is a translation of the original French, and required some modification, but I hope that it gets the main idea across! It doesn't just apply to the 'oldies' among us. Even the younger folk may benefit from reading - and applying - it.

« The day has barely started and ... it is already six in the evening.

Monday has barely arrived ... and it's already Friday ... and the month is already over ... and the year is almost over ... and already 40, 50 or 70 years of our lives have passed ... and we realise that we have lost our parents, friends ... and we realise that it is too late to go back ... !!

So ... let's try anyway, to make the most of the time we have left ...

Let's not stop trying to participate in the activities that we like ...

Let's put some colour into our greyness.

Let’s smile at the little things in life that bring peace to our hearts.

And, despite everything, we must continue to take advantage of the time that remains to us with serenity. Let's try to eliminate the "after" ...

I will do it after ...

I will say something after ...

I'll think about it later ...

We leave everything for later as if "after" was ours.

Because what we do not understand is that:

afterwards, the coffee cools down ...

afterwards, the priorities change ...

afterwards, the spell is broken ...

after, health passes ...

afterwards, the children grow up ...

afterwards, the parents get old ...

afterwards, the promises are forgotten ...

afterwards, day becomes night ...

afterwards, life ends ...

And that "after" is often too late!

So ... let's leave nothing until after ...

Because by always waiting until after, we may lose 

the best moments,

the best experiences,

the best friends,

the best family!

The day is today ... The moment is now ...

Not one of us is at an age when we can afford to postpone what needs to be done right away until tomorrow.

Perhaps if you have read this post you will wish to share it.

Or maybe you will leave it for ... "after"!

And, then, you will never share it. »

All of that reminded me of a poem that I have also used when speaking about procrastination (putting off until 'tomorrow' what should have been done today). It reads like this:

‘Tomorrow’, he promised his conscience,
‘Tomorrow, I mean to believe.
Tomorrow, I'll think as I ought to,
Tomorrow, the Saviour receive.                                                                                                Tomorrow, I'll conquer the habits                                                                                                                That hold me from Heaven away.’                                                                                                                But ever his conscience repeated                                                                                                          One word, and one only – ‘Today!’

Tomorrow! Tomorrow! Tomorrow!
Thus, day after day, it went on.
Tomorrow! Tomorrow! Tomorrow!
’Til youth, like a vision, had gone;
’Til age, and his passions, had written
The message of fate on his brow;
And forth from the shadows came Death,
With the pitiless syllable, ‘Now!’”                      (Author unknown)

Paul wrote, very simply: "... we entreat you not to accept the grace of God in vain. For He says, "At the acceptable time I have listened to you, and helped you on the day of salvation." Behold, now is the acceptable time ; behold, now is the day of salvation." (II Cor. 6:1-3; emphases added).

While I was still teaching, I attended the funeral service of one of my pupils - a lad of about 16 years of age. Shortly after I retired, I attended the funeral service for a former pupil - a lad of about 18/19 years of age. Earlier this year, I was informed of the death of another former pupil - a young man of about 40 years of age. Death, sadly, is no respecter of age. For any one of us - including me - today may be our last day in the mortal bodies we currently inhabit.

This is why there is an urgency in the Gospel message. This life is not merely a 'rehearsal'. This is "it"! Those who die without the Lord Jesus as their personal Saviour, go to a lost eternity. It is only thse who are "in Him" who are assured eternal life in His presence. 

Don't leave it until "tomorrow", or "after". Do to now! If I may be of any help, please feel free to contact me by e-mail, at the address given at the top of the page. 

Sowing seed; presenting Jesus.

This morning, I was able to tune in to the online worship service provided by the Harvest Church in Hamilton (Lanarkshire!). The pastor,Willie Watt, was speaking on the well-known parable of Jesus: The sower and the seed. His main point, if I understood him correctly, was that the responsibility of the believer to sow that seed - the Gospel message. However, it is only a work of God the Holy Spirit in the heart of the individual, that will bring about that change known as 'conversion'.

In John 7, the apostle records that Jesus had gone up to Jerusalem for the Feast of Tabernacles. He went to the Temple, and was teaching openly. Some of the people wondered if the authorities really knew that He was the Christ - the Messiah. The Pharisees heard these questions and, with the chief priests, sent Temple officers to arrest Jesus. These men listened to Jesus, and returned to the chief priests and the Pharisees - without Him! We read, in vs.45-46: "The officers then went back to the chief priests and Pharisees, who said to them, "Why did you not bring Him?" The officers answered, "No man ever spoke like this Man!"

The testimony of the Temple police to the matchless power of Jesus' teaching is most telling! Sent to arrest Him, they were so impressed by Him that they could not do so - risking the fury of their masters! If people will take the time and trouble to really look at Jesus - not, as my former minister, the Rev. George B Duncan often said, at the church; or at Christians; or at the clergy - but at what He said, and what He did, they cannot be anything but impressed! T.R.Glover, a Cambridge University lecturer in Classical Literature, wrote: "Jesus remains the very heart and soul of the Christian movement, still controlling men, still capturing men - against their will, often - changing men's lives,and using them for ends they never dreamed of." 

The challenge of this to present-day disciples of Jesus seems to be: Be uncompromising in presenting the Lord Jesus! Or, as Pastor Watt might have put it ths morning - Be bold in sowing the seed of the Gospel! Perhaps some of us are so side-tracked into "doing good works in His Name" that we forget to mention the Name itself - sometimes because of a mistaken idea that we may embarrass people; sometimes, to our shame, to spare our own embarrassment.

It is the business of the disciple of Jesus to present Him to the world. "... Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age." (Matt 28:18-20). It is the business of the disciple of Jesus to make it clear that He has a rightful claim on our lives. No amount of "do-gooding" will, by itself, achieve that. Paul wrote to the early believers in Rome: "... But how are men to call upon Him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in Him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without a preacher?" (Rom 10:14).

Whilst there is no record of any of the Temple police having become followers of the Nazarene because of what they had heard, their reaction is impressive. Our own bold, and unhesitating offer of the Saviour to our contempraries might well have surprising results! And, if we are not yet, ourselves, His disciples, then looking to Him, and to Him alone, may be sufficient to lead us to full salvation.

The camera never lies!!

When we see a photograph, or watch a video, today we may be excused for asking: "Is it real?" When I was a younger man, it was often said that "the camera never lies"! However, even if, in our day, the camera itself never lies - the resulting photograph/video may be manipulated by the use of computer software (and it doesn't have to be the expensive programmes!) to show something that is, in fact, totally false.

For example, this well-known photograph (it appears on many web-sites) indicates that a young girl has climbed to the top of a very high tower of some sort, and is taking a "selfie"! However, if we look more carefully, we see that she is portrayed in very high contrast, whereas the surroundings are just the opposite. There is no shadow on the platform on which she appears to be standing. Even on an otherwise calm day, the wind at that height would, I suggest, have both her hair and her skirt blowing a lot more than is shown in the photograph. Indeed, I find it difficult to believe that anyone would manage to climb to that height in a skirt! 

I may be wrong - but I am certainly not convinced that this is a genuine photograph! 

Centuries before even the basic box-camera had been invented, the apostle Paul warned his young "son in the faith", Timothy, about counterfeit reality (if that is not an oxymoron!) in the church. He said that, in the last days, people would be self-absorbed: "... holding the form of religion but denying the power of it." (II Tim 3:5). He repeatedly emphasised the need to live a godly life, warning that "... evil men and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceivers and deceived." (II Tim 3:13).

Paul charged Timothy to "... continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings which are able to instruct you for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus." (II Tim 3:14-15). True godliness honours, and obeys, God; while its counterfeit seeks pleasure, and personal gain. One seeeks to please the Lord; the other gratifies natural desire. Each one is identified by its actions.

When others hear us say that we are "Christian" (although I prefer to say "disciple of Jesus", as the word "Christian" has, sadly, become greatly devalued in our modern society and culture!), they may wonder about the reality of our claim, and of our faith. Our lives will answer that question by reflecting the reality of the Christ!

How real am I making the Lord Jesus to others? And you?!

Testing, testing!

When I was very young, public address systems were not very common. Then as the years passed, it seemed to be the case that every public building had to have such a system installed. At the beginning of the programme - be it a Variety Show in the Town Hall, or a worship service in a church building - someone would always be heard, speaking into the microphone the words "Testing, testing" in order to ensure that all of the equipment was operating correctly.

Many years later, as a schoolteacher, I was required to test my pupils on their knowledge of my subject - be it Religious Studies, or History. Although there were set times for the formal examinations, I would also throw in a test or two as we worked our way through a topic. Some pupils didn't like such additional tests, but they knew that they would be coming, and that they should be prepared for them by completing homework, and staying abreast of classwork.

Almighty God, we might say, works on a similar principle. His Word says: "... do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, ..." (I Peter 4:12; NASB). Of course, God's tests aren't necessarily ones that we would have chosen for ourselves, because they never seem to come at 'the right time', and they invariably test us in our weakest areas! However, there is a reason for this. The tests of life are designed to sharpen us mentally, and strengthen us spiritually. They are not for the benefit of the teacher - they're for our own benefit! 

When tests come - and they will! - we have two possible reactions. We may act the victim, complaining that we have been singled out, and are being unfairly treated. Alternatively, we may allow them to teach us more about ourselves, and the Father God we claim to serve. 

For a number of years, I regularly 'worked out' at a gym. I had a choice. I could use the various pieces of apparatus as resistance, and push myself to grow physically stronger. Or I could have walked around, feeling sorry for myself, and remaining flabby! The same is true in the spiritual realm - and we have to make the choice!

Commenting on the temptations of the Christ, William Barclay has this to say: "In this life it is impossible that we should escape the assault of temptation; but one thing is sure - temptations are not sent to us to make us fail; they are sent to us to strengthen the nerve and the sinew of our minds, and hearts, and souls. They are not meant for our ruin, but for our good. They are meant to be tests from which we emerge better warriors and athletes of God. ... ... Jesus was not left to fight His battle alone - and neither are we." (D.S.B. on Mark; in loc).

Here's a comforting (i.e.strengthening) thought - Father God will never give you more than you can handle, or give you a test that you cannot pass.Listen to these words of Paul, from his first letter to the disciples of Jesus in Corinth: "But remember this - the wrong desires that come into your life aren't anything new and different. Many others have faced exactly the same problems before you. And no temptation is irresistible. You can trust God to keep the temptation from becoming so strong that you can't stand up against it, for He has promised this and will do what He says. He will show you how to escape temptation's power so that you can bear up patiently against it." (I Cor 10:13; TLB).

But be prepared. The test may come at any time. We prepare by the faithful, daily, practices of reading His Word, and of communing with Him in prayer. Are you prepared?!

Coping with fear.

It was only recently that I discovered that my younger daughter - a fully-grown adult! - has a fear of flying. In this, she is certainly not alone. Many people share that particular fear. The very thought of being airborne fills them with anxiety. For that reason, certain techniques have been recommended:

1. Avoid sugar, and caffeine, before and during a flight.

2. Lean back at take-off; allow your muscles to relax as much as possible.

3. Rate your anxiety, on a scale of 1 to 10. Then think positive thoughts, and note how much your fear decreases.

4. Breathe deeply; close your eyes; stretch your arms.

5. Wear a rubber band on your wrist, and 'snap' it to break unpleasant thoughts.

Now I am unable to verify any of these suggestions, as I don't have a problem with flying. That is, perhaps, because I have a sixth suggestion that I know does work - not only for the fear of flying, but for all fears. In fact, I would claim that it is the most important of all! It is simply to put your trust in Father God. When I have to fly, I always pray, before take-off, asking for God's protection for the flight. I am then able to relax, safe in the knowledge that He is in control, and that "underneath are the everlasting arms" (Deut. 33:27).

That is certainly what David did, as he records in Psalm 31. The background to the psalm is that a conspiracy had arisen against him. His friends had abandoned him. "Yea, I hear the whispering of many - terror on every side! - as they scheme together against me, as they plot to take my life." (v.13). Not just fear, but terror! But David made a choice, and declared: "But I trust in Thee, O Lord; I say, "Thou art my God." (v.14).

When you're afraid, it may help to breathe deeply, or snap a rubber band. But don't leave out the best way to cope with the fear of flying - or any other fear. Follow David's example and put your trust in God. He is the One Who never lets us down if we are truly His, born again through God the Holy Spirit, and claiming the atoning sacrifice of Jesus the Son - Who often said "Fear not"! (cf. Matt.10:31; Lk.12:7, 32; Rev.1:17). "... perfect love casts out fear." (I John 4:18) - and the only perfect love, is the love of Almighty God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.