“And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the LORD, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.”
--Joshua 24:15
You may remember an advertising campaign back in the 1990s by a popular running shoe with the tagline, “Life is short; play hard.” I remember thinking, when I first saw those commercials that most people probably want to live that way. Life is short; play hard! Have a blast while you last!
But I have a better theme I think everyone should follow: Life is short; think hard. Think hard because once you get to the end of your life, all your excuses will break down. That’s why we must all break down today and say, “Lord Jesus, you are my only hope and it’s You or nothing!” As you and I face the end of our ropes and the endless eternity that is before us, we must trust in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior.
While the world will say we need to live it up today because it’s all over once we die, the truth is that the decisions we make today will have eternal ramifications.
Yes, our life on earth is short. But our life in eternity will last forever. So choose today whom you will serve, because the choices you make today will impact where you will spend eternity. Life is short, so think hard about serving Jesus, the only One who can give you eternal life with God!
LIFE IS SHORT, BUT THINK HARD AND CHOOSE TO SERVE JESUS, THE ONLY ONE WHO CAN GIVE YOU ETERNAL LIFE!
“He Is Profitable”
Thursday, February 27, 2020
by Dr. Paul Chappell
“Do thy diligence to come shortly unto me: For Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed unto Thessalonica; Crescens to Galatia, Titus unto Dalmatia. Only Luke is with me. Take Mark, and bring him with thee: for he is profitable to me for the ministry.”
2 Timothy 4:9–11
Working with Paul was anything but easy. He and his companions faced the hardship and danger of travel in the ancient world, persecution from those both secular and religious who opposed the gospel, and the opposition of Satan himself. Shipwreck and beatings as well as stoning and imprisonment were part of the package. So it is perhaps not that surprising that when Paul and Barnabas were on their first missionary trip, Mark quit in the middle. When Barnabas wanted to give Mark a second chance, Paul didn’t think it wise. The disgreement broke up their partnership. “And the contention was so sharp between them, that they departed asunder one from the other: and so Barnabas took Mark, and sailed unto Cyprus; And Paul chose Silas, and departed, being recommended by the brethren unto the grace of God” (Acts 15:39–40).
Yet at the end of his life, in his final letter to Timothy, Paul recognized that Mark had indeed changed. He asked Timothy to bring Mark to Rome because he would be useful in Paul’s ministry there. God does not throw us away when we fail. We may do things that have lasting consequences that impact our service, but we can still be profitable to Him. We should not give up because we have fallen short. Oswald Sanders said, “Most Bible characters met with failure and survived. Even when the failure was immense, those who [rebounded] refused to lie in the dust and bemoan their tragedy. In fact, their failure and repentance led to a greater conception of God’s grace. They came to know the God of the second chance, and sometimes the third and fourth.”
Today's Growth Principle:
Rather than living with guilt and regret about past failures, we should strive to be profitable servants of God.
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