Have you ever been late to school, a job meeting, an appointment, or another event? It is part of being human. Being late means we arrive at our destination after the time we were supposed to be there. We made it to where we were supposed to be but were not on time. We may enjoy sleeping in, and this could cause us to be late. Other factors such as traffic or children can make us late, or we use these things as excuses for our tardiness. We become irresponsible with the time we have. We may say, “Oh, I have enough time,” or “Who cares if I am a little late?”
As a former EMT, I previously worked out of an ambulance. Sometimes we were dispatched to help someone who was at the point of death. We would do all we could do for that patient, but our efforts fell short at times. In our minds, and in the minds of that person’s family, we were too late on those occasions. Just as we faced loss when we were too late, there are many who will face an even greater loss when they slip off into eternity without accepting Jesus as their Saviour; it will be too late for them to see Heaven.
The word late is mentioned only three times in the Bible. Conversely, the word early is mentioned more than eighty times in the Bible. Being early—spending time with God early and praying early—is important to God. As soon as the Holy Spirit convicts us, we need to respond early. We also need to share the Gospel early.
God is never late, and He never misses a meeting. He is never caught off guard because of the traffic or the children. He never misses His alarm clock and never hits the snooze button. The following are a few mentions of the word early that God included for us in His Word:
- Proverbs 8:17 says, …those that seek me early shall find me.
- Psalm 57:8 says, …I myself will awake early.
- Psalm 63:1 says, …early will I seek thee:…
- Hosea 5:15 says, …in their affliction they will seek me early.
- John 8:2 says, And early in the morning he came again into the temple,…
As Christians, we have a responsibility to be early. Being early is important because the Bible emphasizes it. We must not get stuck in the rut of being late. It does not need to be that way. If we take our time seriously and use it as God would have us to use it, we will be growing Christians. What if we were to set our alarms earlier than normal? Would we hit the snooze button twice as much, or would we get up and spend time in God’s Word? What if we were to leave the house earlier? What if we were to knock on more doors? What if we were to go into work early for more time to talk with our coworkers in order to invite them to church? What if we were to arrive at church earlier so we could fellowship? Would people be more encouraged? What would change in our lives if we were to get serious about being early?
God gives us all the same twenty-four hours in a day. It is never too late to get right with God. It is never too late to go to God in prayer. It is never too late to tell someone about Jesus. Our time on this earth is passing quickly. May we as Christians strive to be early so that we may use the time we are given to honor and glorify God.
by Mandy Harper
