Thought For The Day

The late country music singer Joe Diffie had a hit song back in 1993 entitled “Prop Me Up Beside the Jukebox (If I Die)”. The song expresses the sentiment of a good ole boy who, should he kick the bucket, have his lifeless body posed in the honky tonk that he dearly loves. Even though the song is tongue-in-cheek and supposed to [be] funny, it’s anything but humorous. One line in the chorus goes, “Lord I wanna go to Heaven, but I don’t wanna go tonight.” Sadly, this may very well express the true feelings of many Christians today.

A close examination of oneself may reveal that we love this present world too much and lack the spiritual maturity to truly desire and be looking forward to our heavenly home. The Scriptures warn us about placing too much affection in earthly things because it will dampen our longing for the spiritual. Jesus said we must lay up treasure in heaven, not on the earth (Matthew 6:19-21) because our heart will be where our treasure resides.

Christians may also feel this way about the second coming of Christ. We all say that we’re looking forward to His return, just as long as it’s not today, next week, or in our lifetime. Our Savior said, “Blessed are those servants whom the master, when he comes, will find watching.” (Luke 12:37) If we are not eagerly waiting for Christ to come again, then perhaps we’ve got some spiritual growth yet to do. Could it be that we are so richly blessed with family, friends and material wealth that we have no desire to be with the Lord?

Peter encourages us to be ready and enthusiastic about going to heaven. “Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things (the Day of the Lord), be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless; and consider that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation.” (2 Peter 3:14–15)

From Jay Launius, 2022, Maud coC, Maud, Texas