The Apostle Paul wrote, ‘All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness.’ (2Tim. 3:16). With this as a backdrop, how do we respond to the terse reminder from Scripture which spells out the reality in James 4:13b, ‘. . . . What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. . . . ’ (ESV)
It was Steve Job, who in his 2005 Sanford University’s Commencement Speech said, “When I was 17, I read a quote that went something like: ‘If you live each day as if it was your last, someday you’ll most certainly be right.’ It made an impression on me, and since then, for the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: ‘If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?’”
In the ‘Parable of the Rich Fool’ recorded in Luke 12, what went through the mind of this man was, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods.’ Congratulating himself, he said, ‘Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.’
However, what when on in his mind was so pathetically different from the reality he had to face. God said to him – ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’
In view of the reality of what is destined for us (Heb. 9:27), the challenge to lay off everything that hinders and the sin that easily entangles (Heb. 12:1) and the directive to lay up treasures in heaven (Mt. 6:19-21), what are some of the things we can focus on for the remaining three months of 2013? Here are some examples:
- Missions and Evangelism
Two months ago, we had our missions month where we were reminded with the theme, ‘Missions – Why Me?’ The numbers that we are faced with – more than 5 million in total population, out of which well over a million are foreigners, informs us on the need to do our part on missions and evangelism. How about praying that God will lead us to someone to share the gospel of life, which will make this year so special for them? This can include beginning to pray and then inviting them to our three planned evangelistic efforts through a Musical Concert spearheaded by our youths (21st), Baptismal Service (22nd) and Christmas Service (25th) – all in December, during the Christmas Season.
- God’s Word
2Tim.2:15 says, ‘Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.’ (ESV). How about setting your heart and mind to give added effort in the reading or studying of Scripture? One thing you can do is to enroll for the Bible Course, offered by the World Wide Bible Institute. Our church has successfully secured the rights to conduct this course. Don’t miss out on this guided and manageable study, learning Scripture at your own pace (more details in today’s announcement and newsline).
Elder Richard Lai