November 15

It was election day and I was driving home. Like a moth to a flame, I was listening to talk radio. Then, the local traffic guy came on and said there was a freeway closure because of a fatal accident.

These happen more often than non-commuters realize, but this one stuck with me.

I immediately reflected upon all the burdens the deceased was probably carrying that day. Is my candidate going to win the election? How long is Covid - and our reaction to it - going to dominate our nation? Is my job as secure as I hope it is? Not to mention all the concerns and worries a typical human carries without these added pressures.

None of them mattered.

This person’s time was up. Hopefully, the individual used their life to choose God.

Today’s second reading sums this up: “For you yourselves know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief at night. When people are saying, Peace and security, then disaster comes upon them, like labor pains upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. But you, brothers and sisters, are not in darkness, for that day to overtake you like a thief. For all of you are children of the light and children of the day. We are not of the night or of darkness. Therefor, let us not sleep as the rest do, but let us stay alert and sober.”

In thirty minutes, I’ll be heading to a memorial service for a young woman who used to attend one of my youth groups. My heart breaks for her family and her young children.

Please stop worrying about things you cannot control. Please quit being concerned with what people think of you. Please cease your hiding in the upper room. Recognize the Holy Spirit dwells within you. Go forth, shining His light to a world that desperately needs it. While you still have time.

Questions? Comments? Email David at dlins@oloj.org.