The Plumbline

How eager are you for the warm weather of summer? How much do you look forward to a special event like vacation or seeing friends you haven't visited with in a long while? What level of excitement does a promotion at work create within your heart? Does the birth of a newborn thrill your heart and make your day special? I wonder if we have the same 'eagerness' and 'excitement' about Christ's return to this earth a second time? We all know there were mixed emotions over his first coming, ranging from curiosity to unbelief. Will his second return be met with mixed emotions on our part, or anticipation of better things to come? Christ also died only once as a sacrifice. In this way, he took God's punishment for the sins of many people. Christ will return to earth a second time, but that will not be as a sacrifice for sins. That time, he will come to save those people who are waiting patiently for him.  (Hebrews 9:28) The purpose of his first coming - to offer hi...

In today's mad rush to find fame and fortune, we often miss out on the things in life that really give us the most satisfaction. I was talking with a friend one time about how one of her close friends was asked why she never had children. The answer was, "We just got so busy that we forgot to have them." Career, interests, making a living - each presented a distraction that kept the couple from realizing the passage of time. As time passed, it became just too late in life for her to safely consider carrying a child. Passage of time had barely been noticed until she realized the impact that passage actually had on her physical body. I wonder what it is we might miss down the road because we didn't take time today to recognize it, appreciate it, or use it as it was intended for us to use? God—you're my God! I can't get enough of you! I've worked up such hunger and thirst for God, traveling across dry and weary deserts. So here I am in the place of worship, e...