My Vine is Time!!

What vine do you whine about? That is the question John talked about Sunday in his sermon on Jonah chapter 4. What is causing us to miss the opportunities that God is setting in front of us? I think the biggest is our time. John and I both have preached about the fact that we are given only so much time and we need to take advantage of it. I think all that we remember is that we only have so much time. It is easy to become selfish with that time and miss those opportunities. When is the last time you were driving down the road and saw a car with its flashers on? What is your gut reaction? It is usually "pull over and let's help." But then the selfishness and the worry and the comfort sets in. "We have somewhere to be", "what if they try to steal my car or hurt me", "But it's raining outside!!!". And we drive on past (notice the use of the word "WE") only to wonder later if we could have been a witness to that person that changed their lives forever.

My mom recently told me the story of how she got an email from someone that was from her college days. After several emails to make sure that it was the correct person, this gentleman went on to tell her about the several days that changed his life. Mom was on a summer traveling team from her school and spent several days at this man's church. He was having a hard time of things and contemplating ending his life. During those days Mom made this guy feel like he was worth something, by just including him in conversations and asking about his life. Some 35 years later she found out what a difference she had made. He said that he knew that Jesus was real after spending that time with her and her teammates and dedicated his life to serving Christ. Anyone that has worked in any type of summer ministry position can attest to the fact that after several weeks of running and working long hours and sleeping on floors and hard couches the hardest thing to do is act interested in the people around you. But because she took the time, this man's life was saved and his eternal life was secured.

I love my mom, but that is not the purpose of this story. The purpose is to make sure that the next time someone gives us an opportunity to act like Christ, we take them up on it!