Day 204, or July 23. Are you prepared for today?
Our thoughts today are from Isaiah chapter 38 verse 1.
In those days Hezekiah became ill, and was at the point of death. The prophet Isaiah,
son of Amoz, went to him and said, This is what the Lord says. Put your house in order,
because you are going to die. You will not recover.
First the big picture surrounding this verse. After 35 chapters Isaiah stops his prophetic
theme and recounts some of the main issues that King Hezekiah had to deal with when the
Assyrians were threatening to overrun Judah. As Hezekiah's prophet, Isaiah has a central
role in what happens. In human terms, there was no way that Judah could withstand an Assyrian
attack, but miraculously they did. It proved to be the beginning of the end for Assyria,
as they were later replaced by Babylonia, another pagan nation that God used to judge
His people.
And now today's action step. Whenever you buy anything these days, or so it seems, the
question of safeguarding your product for the next few years is inevitably raised. Extended
warranties and longer guarantees are the order of the day. We seem besotted with making the
future as certain and secure and as long as possible. That's how Hezekiah reacts when
Isaiah tells him he is going to die. Hezekiah's reaction could be summed up with these words.
It isn't fair. I need longer. It has been said that even those of us who want to go
to heaven don't want to die to get there. It really is a case of not today, maybe tomorrow.
So what about you? There are thousands of people alive today who will not be alive when
these recordings are completed. I could be one of them. Regularly I have to ask myself
if I'm putting off until tomorrow what should be done today. Don't delay and miss out on
something God has for you today. Some people make lists of things they want to do before
they die. Be sure your list and God's list are in sync.