The only thing more entertaining than sipping coffee and watching people at the mall is what happens on our nations highways of which I get to travel often. Yesterday heading south on U.S. Route 23 toward Portsmouth Ohio I was taken by the sight of a northbound compact car with what appeared to be a mattress and boxed spring set tied, or somewhat tied to the top of their car. Now I’m not above pushing the limit when it comes to hauling things. I do well recall the site of my old Ford F-250 with a grain feeder and a New Idea manure spreader strapped tightly on the bed. This flashback is from back in the day when I wanted to be a farmer! Young, dumb, and full of ideas I found myself the object of interest to a few less than amused State patrolmen who after a bit of conversation they decided finally to escort me the last few miles to the farm. “Terri was so proud!” My Dad who saw me pulling into the driveway however did not fully appreciate my herculean agricultural efforts a bit! That’s my story now back to the flight of the afore mentioned Serta. I’m really not sure what brand fast moving bedding was, and I do say was because if what I thought would happen did happen, the mattress and boxed springs are probably now equipped with a tire tread or two if you know what I mean! My last glimpse of the impending “King Size” calamity was of the small car with the mattress and boxed spring standing straight up and loosely tied on with what appeared to me to be oversized kite string! I don’t know the rest of that story but I have seen the fallout of other less that properly planned pursuits.
Jesus spoke to a crowd one day about approaching their relationship with God for the right reason and with the right priorities, “And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple. For which of you, intending to build a tower, sixtieth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it? Lest haply, after he hath laid the foundation, and is not able to finish it, all that behold it begin to mock him, Saying, This man began to build, and was not able to finish. Or what king, going to make war against another king, sitteth not down first, and consulteth whether he be able with ten thousand to meet him that cometh against him with twenty thousand? Or else, while the other is yet a great way off, he sendeth an ambassage, and desireth conditions of peace. So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple.” To truly be all that God has designed us to be we must count the cost and be willing to surrender all to His will. The story is told of the military legend Alexander the Great, King of Macedonia (336-323) and conqueror of Asia Minor, Syria, Egypt, Babylonia, and Persia, almost all of the known world. One day on the warpath, Alexander and small company of soldiers approached a strongly fortified walled city and Alexander raised his voice and demanded to see the king. When the king arrived, Alexander ordered him to surrender the city and everyone inside. The king laughed, "Why should I surrender to you? You can't do us any harm!" But Alexander offered to give the king a demonstration. He ordered his men to line up single file and start marching. He marched them straight toward a cliff. The townspeople gathered on the wall and watched in shocked silence as, one by one, his soldiers marched without hesitation right off the cliff to their deaths! After 10 soldiers died, Alexander ordered the rest of the men to return to his side. The townspeople and the king immediately surrendered to Alexander the Great. They realized that if a few men were actually willing to die at the command of this leader, then nothing could stop his eventual victory. Dietrich Bonheoffer once said, "When Christ calls a man, He bids him come and die." I believe that hell trembles when it witnesses true Christ followers who are not shooting from the hip but totally committed to their Lord in every area of life.
Reporters and city officials gathered at a Chicago railroad station one afternoon in 1953. The person they were meeting was the 1952 Nobel Peace Prize winner. A few minutes after the train came to a stop, a giant of a man - six feet four inches with bushy hair and a large mustache stepped from the train. Cameras flashed. City officials approached him with hands outstretched. Various people began telling him how honored they were to meet him. The man politely thanked them and then, looking over their heads, asked if he could be excused for a moment. He quickly walked through the crowd until he reached the side of an elderly black woman who was struggling with two large suitcases. He picked up the bags and with a smile, escorted the woman to a bus. After helping her aboard, he wished her a safe journey. As he returned to the greeting party he apologized, "Sorry to have kept you waiting." The man was Dr. Albert Schweitzer, the famous missionary doctor who had spent his life helping the poor in Africa. In response to Schweitzer’s action, one member of the reception committee said with great admiration to the reporter standing next to him, "That’s the first time I ever saw a sermon walking." Our worship will be incomplete, our expression of love for God will inadequate. Without a “sermon that walks,” we have a dead religion.
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