Dear Friends,
Does BUSY means B-eing U-nder S-atan’s Y-oke? That’s the question
I ask myself this morning as I sit in front of my computer pondering what to
write.
Yesterday was a blur. It started early in the morning at my
computer hammering out a daily “Leadership Thought”-can’t even remember the
topic. Then on to our weekly staff meeting, then to our U Turn for Christ
weekly luncheon to meet with some guys struggling with addiction during which I
shared a message on the importance of friendships in battling addiction. Then,
it was on to a funeral home to visit one of our church family members who had
lost his dad, followed by a trip back to church for “Recovery Life,” our weekly
addiction ministry, only to leave early from the meeting because I had
volunteered to umpire an annual “Rally Cap” baseball game where participants
were special needs children. In between all of this activity. I found some time
to send out a few e-mails and call some senior saints whom I had not talked
within for too long. I fell into bed at 9:30 pm thinking, “Wow, it was just
another jam packed and productive day in the life of a busy pastor. It may have
been jam packed, but was it really productive?
This morning I woke up and in reflecting on yesterday’s busy and
“productive” day, I realized in all my frenetic activity, I had missed the most
important meeting of all-my time with the Lord.
Yes, it is easy to become so busy doing church work that we miss
the most important work of the church-time spent in the Word. Yes, for me “the
good had become the enemy of the best,” and yes, I confess I was BUSY, B-eing
U-nder S-atan’s C-ontrol for in all my “productive” busyness I had neglected my
most important work, spending time alone at His feet.”
The great man of God, George Mueller, after having read the Bible
through 100 times with increasing delight, made this statement: “I look upon it
as a lost day when I have not had a good time over the Word of God. Friends
often say, ‘I have so much to do, so many people to see, I cannot find time for
scripture study.’”
“Perhaps there are not many who have more to do than I. For more
than half a century, I have never known one day when I had not more business
than I could get through. For 4 years I have had annually about 30,000 letters,
and most of them have passed through my own hands. Then, as pastor of a church
with 1,200 believers, great has been my care. Besides, I have had charge of
five immense orphanages; also, at my publishing depot, the printing and
circulating of millions of tracts, books, and bibles; but I have always made it
the rule never to begin day until I've had a good season with God in his Word.
The blessing I have received has been wonderful.”
Ouch! I read those words and thought of Paul’s words to his good
friend in the faith, Timothy: “Work hard so God can say to you, well done. Be a
good workman, one who does not need to be ashamed when God examines your work.
Know what his Word says and means” (2 Timothy 2: 15).
Because God will examine what kind of workers we have been, we
must always be careful to build our lives on the foundation of the Word, so
that we can build his Word into our lives. It is in the Word that we find revealed
the lessons of life that God desires us to learn if we are to faithfully serve
him. If we ignore the regular reading of his Word, and we avoid any diligent
study of the Word, we are told that we will be ashamed at the judgment.
What believer would want that to happen? Consistent and
conscientious study of the word is vital, lest we be lulled into neglecting God
and our true purpose for living.
And not only will the reading of his Word save you from being
ashamed on that day when you stand before Him, but it will provide you the
resources to live life victoriously in this world of “here and now,” for as
Christian Johnson once wrote, “A Bible that is falling apart probably belong to
someone who isn't.”
Yours in faith and friendship,
Tom
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