For you yourselves know very well that the Day of the Lord will come just like a thief in the night.  1 Thessalonians 5:2

Do you remember playing hide and seek as a child.  I can remember playing with friends or relatives and one of us would close our eyes and count to 10 or 20 while several others would frantically run around and find a place to hide.  The one counting would always yell “ready or not, here I come” as a warning.

My question today friend, is are you ready?  This scripture passage speaks of the Day of the Lord.  If you have a couple minutes I encourage you to read this entire chapter.  Paul speaks of being children of the light and not belonging to darkness.  As Christians we must be alert and ready to be called home and stand before the white throne of judgement.  We must be prepared to give account of our actions while here on planet earth.

There are always stories on the news where people are murdered by someone who broke into their house while they were sleeping.  Obviously they were not prepared for this type of attack.  I am sure in most cases they had no idea that someone was even planning this type of evil against them.  With today’s drug problem that plagues our nation, I have often heard criminals say that they were just riding around looking for a house to rob and that this house looked like a good one.  They had no regard for who may have been in the house or what they may put these people through.

The devil is like this with us, he prowls around looking for easy prey.  Easy prey is someone who leaves just a tiny crack open that the devil can slither in through.  That tiny crack may be that we don’t pray as often as we should or that we don’t spend as much time reading our Bible as we should.  It may be that we neglect to go to church as often as we should.  Perhaps we refuse to let go of unforgiveness, bitterness, or anger.  Perhaps we have vile language that we can’t let go of.  These things are cracks that allow the devil to come in.

The Bible tells us that the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.  We are cautioned that we must remain sober and alert.  If we remain sober and alert against the devil’s attacks, then we will be sober and alert and ready to meet our Lord.

I am sure that we have all attended the funeral of someone who died very unexpectedly.  I am amazed by the people that say, “you just never know when it will be your time”.  What amazes me is that often people reflect on this while they attend that service but then they live as if they have all the time in the world.  They go about their life as if they have years to decide whether they really want to accept Christ as their savior and follow Him or not. You may as well put a bullet in a revolver and play Russian roulette.

Every second that you spend on this planet without asking Jesus into your heart is another second closer to your death or the resurrection.  It is another second wasted by not experiencing the glory that is found in a life lived with Jesus Christ.  Don’t wait until you think you are “good enough” to accept Christ as your savior.  News flash, none of us are ever good enough.  Romans 3:23 tells us that we all sin and fall short of the glory of God.  This is a come as you are party.  God will clean you up as you go.  Just trust Him.  If you are afraid that you will miss all the “fun” you have now with all your friends, well I just laugh at that.  I used to think that too, but I can honestly tell you that I never experienced joy until I experienced the kind of joy that comes from spending time with my Christian brothers and sisters.  This joy is there whether we are watching a movie, sitting through a sermon, or having a work day at the church.  That is pure joy my friends and nothing compares to it.  I hope that soon you may experience this type of joy.

Now you may read this and say “this doesn’t apply to me. I was saved years ago and I’m good. I am ready to go when the Lord calls me.”  If this is the case I am happy for you.  My question to you would be, “what are you doing while you wait?”  Are you working hard to lead others to Christ?  Are you sharing the love of Christ with those around you?  Are you doing your best to set an example for others to follow?  Are you looking for any opportunity to talk to them about Jesus?  I have learned that when my friends are hurting and upset that this is a good time for me to explain God’s love and His redemption.  This is the best time to encourage them to come to church.  Hurting people want to feel better and those of us who are saved have something that is better than any alcohol or drug.  We have something to take the emotional pain away from those that are hurting.

If your time on earth were to come to an abrupt end at this moment, are you 100% sure that you would spend eternity in heaven with God the Father?  Are you prepared to stand before him and give an account of your life here on earth?  If you answered no to those questions, then right now I encourage you to say the sinner’s prayer.  It’s as easy as ABC.  Accept Christ as your savior, believe in God the Father, Confess your sins and ask Jesus to come into your heart.  Ask God to fill you with His Holy Spirit.  Don’t wait, you have no idea how much time you have.  It could be 1 second or 50 years.  Only God knows how much longer we will live here on earth. Find someone to mentor you and guide you in your decision.  You can contact me or you can speak with a pastor or a trusted friend, but do not neglect to follow through.

If you answered yes to those two questions and you stand ready to face God at the white throne of judgement, then I congratulate you.  The question I would ask of you then, would be are you doing all you can do to lead others to Christ?  We all have loved ones and friends that are not saved.  We all encounter people each and every day that are starving for God’s Word and God’s help.  Take time out of your busy schedule to notice these people and show them the way.

As you go through this day, I encourage you to slow down enough to take note of those who are lost and hurting.  Take just a minute out of your busy schedule to let them know that God loves them and time is short.  Encourage them to get into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ so that they can be ready.

Have a great day!