Rules of Engagement

32 “But concerning that day or that hour, no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 33  Be on guard, keep awake. For you do not know when the time will come. 34 It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his servants in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to stay awake. 35  Therefore stay awake—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or in the morning— 36 lest he come suddenly and find you asleep. 37 And what I say to you I say to all: Stay awake.”

Mark 13:32-37 (ESV)

I want you to be prepared; you may not believe this, but there is a day coming when Jesus will return for His people. I know that as a Christian you might have heard that claim all your life but today is not the day to say, "oh well he has not come yet." We are to be ready at all times. It should be something that in our hearts we ensure that we are ready. In reality He comes for people every day; we see death at every turn, and often it is unexpected. When it comes in the form of an accident we are not ready to deal with it. How much worse would it be if it was your turn? I only ask that question because I believe God desires that no one perish and that those who do it is because of their own choosing. We make choices in our lives and often we desire to avoid the consequences of those choices. Your choice about Jesus has eternal consequences. So be sure you are awake when He comes for you.

The difference between awake and asleep would seem to be straight forward but in our world today it is often misunderstood. As an example; when a sentry takes up their position at a guardhouse they are given a set of rules. These rules are called the rules of engagement. They sentry is instructed in how to deal with almost any situation that might arise to include when to shoot and when not to shoot. Having been in this position personally it is easy to lose focus in the middle of the night as to what you are supposed to be looking out for.  You might be physically awake but your mind might be on anyone of a thousand other things going on in your life. That is when a car horn blows or your relief walks up and scares the snot out of you. You weren’t asleep you just weren’t focused on the mission. The church and those who attend are often not focused on what we are told to do in God’s word. Than we turn around and have allowed a lot of stuff to slip by us and then we are left wondering how it got there. It is time we wake up and start watching what God has told us to. We need to get our bibles out and read the rules of engagement He has placed before us. I challenge you to take up your bible look what it says we are to do and walk in the light of His Word each day. Have a blessed day.