Good morning and happy Saturday.
Men – don’t forget that we have a cook-out at Shawnee Mission Park at 5:00 pm this evening. We will meet at shelter # 5. We will be cooking hamburgers and hotdogs on the grill. The church will be supplying all the food so there is no need to bring anything. We will have a devotional and some time in worship together. I hope that you can join us.
The other day, Michelle and I were driving along Johnson Drive headed to one of our favorite walking trails. We like it because it runs along the creek and there are often a lot of different animals to look at as we wander along aimlessly. Sadly, as we drove along, in the midst of a little bit of traffic, a squirrel darted out of no where and ran right in front of us. There was no time to swerve or stop in time. Just that dull thud sound mixed with a little crunching noise. I always hate when that happens since there isn’t anything you can really do to avoid it. I looked in the mirror for signs of life but was able to quickly assess that the squirrel was DRT. That stands for Dead Right There in case you didn’t know. And, just in case my initial assessment was not totally accurate, the next couple of cars made sure of it. It was kind of a bummer since we were actually hoping to enjoy a bit of nature and some wildlife. I will admit that I am not the biggest fan of squirrels. They are often a nuisance and are very much like rats with fluffy tails. Nevertheless, I don’t dislike them enough to run them over on purpose. Fortunately, we did make it to the trail and were able to see quite a few birds and animals scurrying about. All of which were still alive when we left the park.
As I thought about this, I was reminded once again about the brevity of life. I don’ think the squirrel had done any long-range planning but it was also probably unaware that trying to run across 4 lanes of traffic was going to be its last move either. In some ways, we can try to avoid stupid mistakes like that. We have the ability to think through most things. It is a gift that God has given us. Of course, that doesn’t mean we always chose to use it, but it is there, nonetheless. However, we can seek to live as safely as possible, but we often don’t know when the end will come. For those with chronic illnesses, they have indications of what is ahead. For many others though, it can come as a surprise. I don’t want to be a fatalist here, but death is a reality that we all face. Unless the rapture occurs, one day we will all take our last breath here on earth and go the way of those that preceded us. Instead of being fixated on the inevitable, perhaps it should remind us of the importance of living each day as best we can. For those that have trusted Christ, He leaves us here for a time to continue the work that He started. We are His and we live for Him. Does that mean we should lock ourselves in the church building and wait? No, probably not. What it does mean is that we should be mindful that we are just here for a while and then we will be with Him for all of eternity. Therefore, we should use the time we have wisely. We should seek His face each day and allow Him to guide our steps. Let us strive to live each day for His glory and honor.
5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding;
6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths. (Proverbs 3:5-6)
From our neighborhoods to the nations,
Pastor Larry
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