Today is the day

Recently I was vacuuming under my small glass hutch when I noticed it crashing down towards me. I quickly put out a hand to catch it before it was completely face down on the floor, but there was still a racket as the contents all crashed to the front and the items perch on top fell to the ground. It was at that moment, stooped over with the cabinet, dogs anxiously watching, shattered glass from my favorite decoration strewn across the floor, etc., that I was filled with regret.
You see, I long knew that the front leg of my cabinet was completely disconnected and that it was only propped up. For months I had cringed every time my clumsy dogs would walk by it, and I had always taken great care when cleaning around it; because I knew that one wrong nudge would make it collapse. I knew the importance; I was filled with anxiety about it; yet I always put it off until later.
As a pastor I often see and hear the same type of thing regarding spiritual issues. How often I meet people that know the importance of church and who say, “I really should go more often.” It is regular that these same individuals have anxiety filled lives and guilty feelings concerning their faith and want to be more committed to getting up on Sunday mornings.
Yet, just as I did with my cabinet, it is all too often put off until later so that it never happens.
In the church there are some people we invite who never come. Others come only sporadically through the year. Still others are regular attenders but only in the main service. Finally, there are some who regularly come to most everything and are the servants who actually keep things going.
As I encounter these different groups I find that where they are different is not in their desire to be there or even their conviction that they should be there. Where they differ is simply in action; some are putting things off until later while others are taking action now.
Perhaps it isn’t church attendance with you, but is there something else that you know needs to be addressed yet is being put off? Maybe it is believing in Jesus for salvation that you are putting off. Or could it be committing to Him and serving Him as you know you should be doing but are putting off in order to live your life the way you want and for yourself?
If you find that you are one who has put off your spiritual development or one who has put off being fully committed at church or one who has put off growing in your relationship with God or one who has put off reading your Bible, etc., then I encourage you to take action now.
I want to reassure you that things don’t have to stay the same, and you can start doing these things now. Regret is not a pleasant or satisfying feeling, and it doesn’t have to be part of your life.
Don’t be like me with a glass hutch crashing down because you put off until later what should have been done today, for your spiritual life is much more important than a cabinet, and glass crashing down is insignificant compared to running out of time to become a Christian, to grow in that relationship, or to serve God as He deserves.
Today is the day for action!