The Time is Right

Seven years ago on a dark Saturday night, a sense of urgency came over me. I knew exactly what I must do.

Let me back up. I was raised in the church. As a kid and a teenager, I attended class and worship every weekend and Wednesday night. However, I constantly put off accepting the Lord as my Savior. As I attended college, I strayed and rarely attended church. I went occasionally with my roommates and friends. As I began to date my wife, I again began to attend and participate in church and church activities. But, all I did was participate. I studied and grew closer to the Lord. However, I was stubborn and a procrastinator. I knew that I should be baptized and accept Jesus as my Lord and Savior. Yet, I always thought tomorrow, next week, or sometime in the future would be better than today. I planned on accepting him on my time. But, that night I got in my old beat up ford truck, and left northern Oklahoma. I arrived in Lubbock, Texas early the next morning. I went to church at the congregation we had been worshiped with for the last two years. I could hardly wait until service was over. I drove all night and knew what I must do. That Sunday seven years ago, I accepted the Lord’s calling, and took him on in baptism.

Prior to that decision I had lived according to my terms. I decided everything. I calculated, planned, and organized my life. But, that night a sense of urgency came over me. I knew there was no tomorrow unless I accepted Our Lord and Savior in baptism. I know that many of you reading this have had or will have this same feeling. A feeling that cannot wait to proclaim to everyone; Jesus is our Lord and Savior. He died on the cross for our sins. He rose from the dead. He will come back again!

We must be willing to live our daily life with this same intensity and urgency. We all need to have a heightened awareness of God’s plan for us as He reveals opportunities for us to serve him. Sometimes I am passive about these opportunities and I shouldn’t be. Are you? It isn’t for us to decide the outcome of each experience. We simply must decide to make the decision and trust that our Father’s plan is fulfilled. We must choose to live our life with zeal and a sense of urgency for helping others find Christ as their Savior! There is not a tomorrow. We must seize the day!

Matthew 24:42-44 reads:
“Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.”

As Mathew describes, we do not know when the Lord will come back. We must be ready today! We must spread his word and hope to bring the good news today to His kingdom. There might not be a tomorrow. For some, there will not be a second chance. Seize every opportunity to spread His word like a light in this dark world.

Father, thank you for sending your son to be our Savior. Help us, Lord, to live each day with a greater zeal for you and the growth of your kingdom. Allow us to regain the sense of urgency and soften our hearts so that we are receptive to your plan for us. Please help us to never take tomorrow for granted. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Adam Tittor
Cleburne, Texas