| Out of the Book and Into the Battle |
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Ever since I was little, I've been fascinated by the American Revolution. I always wanted to see Concord Bridge where it sort of all began. You know, the shot heard round the world? Unfortunately, my sons weren't interested in any of that. I tried to tell them the story - well, no progress, you know, this is vacation. Who cares about history? Right? Finally, I had one last idea. I got tri-corn hats for them, and we got some sticks for them to use as muskets, and I made them the Americans and I played the Red Coats. And when they were done, they said, "Let's do it again, Daddy." Of course - they won! They weren't interested until they had a part. In Matthew 20:6-7, Jesus is telling a story about a man who needs help at harvest time. He's gone off three times during the day to get more and more help, and finally, he goes out near the end of the working day. And it says this: "About the eleventh hour he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, 'Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?' 'Because no one has hired us,' they answered. He said to them, 'You also go and work in my vineyard.'" A lot of church folks are like my sons at Concord Bridge. You hear the facts about the battle. You hear stories of what other people have done to reach people, but you're not playing any active part yourself. There are boys and girls who need you to reach out to them. There are senior citizens who are lonely and need to have Christ in their latter years. There are teenagers maybe that you could connect with. You're urgently needed somewhere. Christianity is hollow, meaningless, and boring without a personal mission, and you are needed! So don't just listen to second hand facts about the battle. Do what my boys did. Grab a musket and run to the battle in Jesus' name. Share or Bookmark This Page       |
