It Ain't Over 'til It's Over!

Aaaah, summer break! No more pencils; no more books; no more teachers' dirty looks! No more alarm clock! No more mystery meat in the school caf! No mo-- Brakes screech. Record scratch. We're at the beginning of July, and there are only eight weeks remaining! That's right, summer ain't forever. And for all of you 2026 graduates --I hate to be the bearer of bad news --neither is the wave you've been riding. There's college or career, interviews and bills and obligations and upgrades and... Well, it really never ends. That is, not until the fat lady sings. And while, in the rat race that is American society, that might be a discouraging word, in light of eternity, in light of one's opportunity to surrender to Jesus and serve Him in bringing glory to God, that is great news!

Take King Saul, the first king of Israel. Tall, handsome, and for a time, obedient to God. But once he got comfortable with his own authority, he began to show his true colors; once he defied God's orders, he became pretty good at it. For many years, God gave Samuel to Saul, a prophet to lead the king and correct him when he veered from the course of God's righteous way. Saul was given the shepherd, David, to soothe his spirit through the playing of music. Saul's son, Jonathan. was a faithful follower of God's commands. Saul had opportunity after opportunity; yet he rejected the Lord. In Samuel's final words to Saul (1 Samuel 28:16-19), Samuel asked the king, So why do you ask me, seeing the Lord has departed from you and has become your enemy? That was the choice Saul had made. Yet, God allowed Saul to hear these words when he sought counsel from a witch in Endor. I don't want to get too far off track with regard to the hows of Samuel's appearance to Saul, but suffice to say, this was the mercy of God. If Saul had repented right then and there, would his relationship have been restored? I tend to believe it would have been. Speaking solely from human experience, when one of our children has defied our wishes (or sound advice), when the child's heart is set on following after his/her own way, we stop speaking. Fool around, find out, as they say. You have been warned, and you have chosen. But God did not stop speaking to Saul. I'm not saying the consequences would have been removed: the kingdom had been ripped from Saul's hands and given to David. But I do believe God would have honored Saul's repentance just the same; Saul could have died unburdened by sin and at peace with his Creator, rather than in torment.   

God is no respecter of persons. We all have opportunity to repent; the first repentance, recognizing our inability to save ourselves from the condemnation we are due, and every repentance thereafter. As I look back through some of my old journals, I see God's mercy in speaking to me again and again about areas in which I struggle. I don't mean these are sins I regularly commit out of refusal to obey, but these are things toward which my old nature is inclined. I tend to be fiercely independent, standoffish, arrogant, annoyed, and stubborn; I can react poorly to disturbances in my plan. Is it as bad as it was ten years ago? No, but those things are not quite dead in me. Not yet. But God, in His mercy, has not given up on me. His promise to all His children is that He will not! What a great comfort that is! He will, by His Spirit living in us, transform us into the image of His Son, Jesus Christ; we will take on His character as we continue to walk with Him and cooperate with His will. Year after year, day by day, until the fat lady has sung and we are in His presence! Unlike summer break, it ain't over 'til it's over. God's goodness and mercy toward His children never end! That is music to my ears.