Ready or Not
I was the last one to leave the church around 4 P.M. that day,
others having left much earlier. My car was parallel parked on
the street closest to the church. As I headed toward my car, I
noticed I had a flat tire. At the same time I heard a car speeding
down the street and waited on the sidewalk for the car to pass,
having no thoughts yet of what to do about the flat.
Immediately I heard the screeching of brakes and four car doors
swung open and four men jumped out of the car and said, "Lady in
Distress!!!. Lady in Distress!!. Open your trunk ma'am". You
would have thought they were the pit crew for the Indy 500
because before I could hardly take a breath, they had the car
jacked, the tire changed and ruined tire back in the trunk.
As the last person was shutting the door and the driver was
starting the engine, one man said, "what does that church
believe lady?". I had about thirty seconds to say this, "If your
heart is right with God, you will go to heaven, and if not, you will
go to hell". And with that they sped away.
Why did four men suddenly stop and spring out of the car? The
flat tire was closest to the curb and not likely to be seen. Yes,
they had been drinking as alcohol reeked from their bodies. Was I going to be the last person to give them a warning before they faced eternity? Had God sent unlikely angels to fix my flat?
All I know is the Bible tells us we must be ready to give an
account of the hope that is within us. He doesn't tell us that at
4:00 P.M. on such and such a day we need to have studied and
prepared for this encounter. No, He says be ready.
That's anytime, anyplace, anywhere.
A quick word, a supplied need. We have an amazing God. Trust
him.