Storms of every variety pummel this planet, Earth, and we watch and listen to news reports, advisories, and updates waiting to learn where and when disaster may strike. It reminds us of the uncertainty of life on a fragile planet over which we have little control.

 

Whether it is a snowstorm, tornado, hurricane, typhoon, or earthquake, we are blessed if we have time to prepare and make a decision about what course of action we can or should take so we are safe. Each of us approach these opportunities a bit differently.

 

Some of us are bent or trained through organizations like Boy Scouts to be prepared. If you are with these people, you are likely to discover they have an extra case or two of water in their homes even if there is no impending storm on the horizon. They will likely also have extra batteries for flashlights, extra foodstuffs, and maybe even a generator. Some have a “go bag” with all the necessities in case they need to evacuate.

 

Others of us do not plan that far in advance and you may find us in long lines trying to buy up supplies in the hours before a storm is slated to hit. We will often be those trying to find gas to fill up our tank because we tend to not pay much attention to how much we have until a warning light says we are driving on fumes.

 

Then there are those of us who see the warnings, the news reports, and perhaps the warning to evacuate and yet we decide it really won’t be that bad and might even be fun to see what happens. After all, some forecasts never work out as predicted so why go to all that trouble? We stay where we are and may even venture outside to see what we can see even if the police are telling us to not do that.

 

These responses happen every time and we see the results as well. Some in this last group are those who are trying to get first responders to get them out in the middle of a storm when they recognize it really IS as bad as they said it would be. We NOW know we will not survive by staying where we are.

 

Those who try to get supplies at the last minute sometimes find the shelves bare and discover no one has gas for a 50-mile radius. We grab up whatever we can find and hurry home to see what things we can put together in case we need to get out of town.

 

That first group of organized folks who try to always be prepared are already boarding up windows and following their plan for the storm. They know that some times the storm goes another direction and misses them. All those supplies were not really necessary.  But these folks know that might not be the case next time so they stay with their action plan to be prepared.

 

As the world watched in horror as the monster category 5 hurricane foment the waves of the Atlantic Ocean recently, we saw these scenarios play out again with the additional tension of hearing this storm was possibly the most wicked ever to be born in the Atlantic. Day after day it slowly developed and became everything predicted and millions of people rushed to their mode of operation for what would come next.

 

But then it stalled.

 

Hour-upon-hour Hurricane Dorian sat on top of the Bahamas destroying nearlyeverything without moving. The expected move toward Florida and the east coast of the United States waited as the storm delayed. The longer the delay, the easier it was to set aside anxiety and start to discount the storm would ever arrive in the United States or even be as potent when it did. Police kept returning to beaches to tell people to leave and get to safer places. Despite the big surf tempting surfers, this storm was unpredictable and everyone was warned not to turn his or her back on it.

 

Delays like this can be costly. Instead of being alert, we can decide we are going to be fine and might even resume our routines or we simply stop watching. We have storm fatigue and cannot sustain vigilance for that many days, but vigilance is what is called for and the lack of it can extract a price.

 

The same thing can happen to those of us who believe in Christ.

 

We are told to be watchmen and to be vigilant because the Lord will return and yet it has been a long time (almost 2,000 years). It can be easy to doubt He will return and to stop watching and waiting in the midst of what appears to be a delay from our vantage point.

 

The Lord gives us a poignant picture of the risk of fatigue in the midst of delay in Matthew 25:1-13 in what is commonly known as “A Parable about Ten Virgins.” Five of these young women were foolish and ill prepared much like those of us today who never have the supplies needed when a storm is approaching. They apparently thought that since the Lord was delayed there would always be time to buy oil for their lamps. Five of the young women were wise and had a supply at hand. They had oil in their lamps and more besides.

 

While waiting for the Lord’s return, they all fell asleep and then heard a shout to let them know the Bridegroom had come. The prepared were ready with oil to spare as they waited expectantly for Him to burst through the door even though they didn’t know the exact minute. They did not fear. The lamps of the foolish ones had run out of oil and they needed to go buy more oil after the wise and prepared young women refused to give them some of their oil since they didn’t know the exact moment of the Bridegroom’s appearance at their door.

 

The foolish unprepared went out looking for oil (much like those who search for water and flashlights) and when they returned, they discovered their delay had cost them everything because the Bridegroom had already come and gone. Even when they pounded on his door, He told them He didn’t know them.

 

Delays can be costly (perhaps deadly) if we do not remain vigilant and prepare.

 

 

 

 

It was one of those days when I was out for an appointment and realized on my way home that I needed to pick up just two items from a grocery store. I can sometimes grumble when I recognize I need to do something like that after an appointment because all I want to do is go home.

 

But I was going to drive right past my favorite grocery store so picking up those  two items now made sense since I needed one of them to prepare dinner. I knew exactly where those items were located in the store so I could make this a very quick stop and when I drove into the parking lot it looked like it wouldn’t be too busy.

 

In no time at all I had both items in my hands and was rounding the corner of an aisle to head to the checkout aisle when I noticed a department manager unpacking some boxes. She had helped me in times past in making a selection, but I had never known her name. It was really by chance I noticed her since many times I am in the store and don’t see her.

 

As I got closer to where she was working, I felt nudged to stop and tell her how much I appreciated her and the help she offered me at other times. For less than a split second I almost continued speeding by, but then chose to stop to tell her since no other customers were nearby.

 

When I expressed my appreciation to her, her face registered surprise. She thanked me and went on to share that she often doesn’t feel appreciated by the management of the store for all that she does. As I stood listening without rushing on, she went on to share she was getting ready to leave because her blood pressure was spiking and she wanted to go home.

 

She shared that she would be leaving her position by the end of the year to retire as a result of some significant health issues that might be cancer. These issues were so stressful that it had resulted in very erratic blood pressure and more than a few trips to the emergency room because of that. She said she loved the customers she helped and was concerned the store management would not choose a replacement that would show that level of care for the people she helped.

 

As I continued to listen and noted her nametag, I began to silently pray for her. I thanked her for sharing this with me and told her I would check on her the next time I was in the store, but wouldn’t hold her up when she needed to leave.

 

A chance encounter became a purpose.

 

As I walked out of the store with my two items, I wondered how often I have missed noticing someone, stopping, and discovering why I felt nudged to do so. It reminded me of something I had just read in Lisa Wingate’s book, Larkspur Cove:

 

“Stop looking ahead. Stop looking back. Stop. Look around.”

 

No, I didn’t tell her I would pray for her nor feel nudged to do that. What I felt nudged to do was to allow her to know I heard her. That was the most immediate need for someone who seemed to feel unseen and perhaps unappreciated. I could have said it despite not knowing if she was a Christian, but I sensed that what she most needed was not to have me draw attention to my faith and focus on caring for her heart.

 

A few days later I was in the store and saw this woman again. I made a point to go speak to her and call her by name as I asked her how she was feeling. She seemed surprised to have a customer call her by name and noted she was feeling a bit better and would be finishing her shift soon. I told her I was thinking about her and would see her again soon.

 

I also went online to the store website and wrote a letter to the top management about what an outstanding job this woman does and how she has helped me many times. I expressed an awareness that she had some health issues and I hoped that if she ever needed to be replaced that they would look for someone just like her.

 

Today I received an email back from the main office thanking me for being in touch about this employee. The person who wrote it said my comments and commendations would be passed on to the store manager and noted they have a program to commend employees for outstanding customer service such as the woman I wrote about.

 

Am I, are you, so busy rushing through each day that we miss chance meetings that have a purpose we cannot begin to imagine?

 

³ Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, ⁴ not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.

Philippians 2:3-4 (NIV)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How often do any of us do something immediately?

In my life and likely in yours, that doesn’t happen with any regularity. We may try to do something “right away” or “quickly,” but the word immediately connotes an urgency of response.

The dictionary gives these definitions:

• At once; instantly
• Without any intervening time or space

I have been reading the Gospel of Mark again and noted this week how frequently the word immediately is used (in the ESV translation). In the first chapter of Mark alone the word appears six times and in the form “at once” brings the total to seven. But Mark continues to love that word or the one that is translated as such from its original text.

Much of the time the word is used to describe the actions of Jesus such as when He calls James and John to be his disciples. It is also used to demonstrate the time in which someone is healed after Jesus has pronounced healing on whatever condition or illness plagued a person. You’ll see these examples used in various contexts and find a few others as well.

The word struck me not only because of how often it was used, but because it implies a bold decisive decision, no wavering or uncertainty. If that implication has merit, does it also point to why we might do fewer things immediately?

One segment of the culture that seems to embody immediacy is that of those men and women who serve in the military services when they are on active duty. No matter what his or her rank, someone else is “over” him or her and has the greater authority to give the command for whatever action is required or desired. These men and women are taught to respond and act without a lot of questioning and certainly without questioning whether they actually want to do what has been ordered.

Perhaps beyond the training they receive, this is a characteristic because each of them is clear about their calling and duty. They also understand and respect authority and know what it means to work and serve as a team. The mission gets accomplished only when everyone works together as a team toward the objective or goal.

Jesus was clear on his calling and purpose from ages past to his arrival on earth and then to his ascension back to heaven. That clarity brought about a clear and decisive response. He also knew and respected the authority of the One (Father God) who had called Him and given Him the assignments He had signed on to do. Even in the Garden of Gethsemane with the cross hours away when Jesus sought God to see if there was any other option, it was never about Him refusing to respond immediately when the time came.

The question I ask myself and share with you is, “Am I really clear on the call I believe the Lord has placed on my life?” 

Some of you might not even think that He has a call on your life, but I would submit to you that if He chose you and you accepted Him then He has a purpose and a plan, a call, on your life designed just for you.

Have we asked Him and looked at how He has moved in our lives over time to point to that call?

It isn’t only pastors, missionaries, and worship leaders that receive a call from the Lord. Each and every one of us has a role to play both now on earth and in his Kingdom in heaven.

If we were clear on that, how would that change our sense over the authority given to the responsibility for us to carry out the objective, the goal, the plan?

Some calls apply to us all:

• Be light
• Be salt
• Love others as yourself
• Love God

But how and where we do that, what ways it is demonstrated in and through us will be fleshed out differently in different contexts. Sometimes we may know as a child; but for a great many of us, it will be a series of open and closed doors related to our gifts and skills, our personality and passion that guides us to a clearer awareness.

In my own life there are themes, passions, desires, etc. that run throughout my lifetime, but in me He patiently built one thing upon another to lead me. That was a perfect plan for me since I could never have believed or accepted all the ways He designed my path to take. The best part now is that I look forward with anticipation for what comes next.

As I watch our adult grandchildren beginning to launch out as a nurse, in medical school, in a business career, several to college, and another moving through high school, I am standing on tiptoes to see what God does and how He leads with what each of them senses right now and more so about where He takes them next.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
⁶ in all your ways submit to him,
and he will make your paths straight.”

Proverbs 3: 5-6 (NIV)