January 1, 2015 (Thursday)
Here we are. A new year. A new month. A new day.
In April, 1968, I was in San Francisco. A group of pastors and singers from South Texas had been invited by the pastors of that area to conduct simultaneous revival meetings. On a beautiful, sunny afternoon, our host took Royce Ladewig and me on a little tour of the city. The Hippie movement was strong at that time and we were in the Haight-Ashbury district where many of them were on the streets. As I stopped at a crosswalk, a very young man, bearded with sunglasses, asked me for money “to celebrate the first day of the rest of my life.” It was a sad experience for me, because I knew that this person, hardly older than a child, was begging money for buying drugs. That was 47 years ago. I’ve often wondered about the “rest of his life” and those of the thousands of kids on those streets. He would be about 63 years old today. Is he alive? Is he living a meaningful life?
What about us? We have a new year, brimming with opportunities of all kinds. The boy was correct: this is “the first day of the rest of our lives.” What will we become?
Today some are struggling with the same question asked by the Roman governor, Pontius Pilate: “What shall I do with Jesus?” He stands today at your heart’s door, knocking and asking for admission into your life. Will you accept Him as your Savior?
Some Christians are struggling with the very same question, because they know that Jesus wants more from them than they have been willing to give. He wants us to allow Him to become the Lord of our lives.
As we ponder the future direction of our lives, we must ask, “What shall I do with Jesus?” Is He in the back seat, or is He driving? The old song says, “What will you do with Jesus? Neutral you cannot be. Some day your heart will be asking, ‘What will He do with me?'”
