It’s Time

To some he was known as Harold.  To his buddies he was known as a great golfer.  To one amazing woman he was known as husband. To two lovely ladies he was known as dad.  To me he was known as grandpa. And to a church in Gresham, Oregon, he was known as Mr. Evangelism.

My grandpa died February 14, 2001, but recently I’ve been thinking about him, especially his evangelistic heart.  To this day you could ask many people in Gresham how they came to know Christ, and they would tell you it was because of my grandpa.  He was kind, gentle, loving and forgiving, but he was bold when it came to his passion for Jesus.

Yesterday I heard a song on the radio that reminded me of Grandpa.  I love Group 1 Crew.  If you’ve not heard this contemporary Christian band, you need to take a listen.  They are real.  Their lyrics are thoughtful.  Their message is crystal clear.  And I feel pretty hip in front of my 11 year-old that I know their music.

Lord though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death. 

I’m not scared cuz you’re holdin’ my breath. 

I only fear that I don’t have enough time left

to tell the world that there’s no time life.

Preach it!

I believe every word of that chorus to be true.  The problem is I take a passive approach to spreading that truth.  In other words, I don’t preach it.  Not often enough anyway.

Sometimes I wish we (Christ followers) could get a five second glimpse at hell.  Then maybe it would light some fire under us (no pun intended) to really spread the message of the cross.  To share our faith out loud, without hesitation.  To be like my grandpa and never back down from an opportunity to reach out to a pre-Christian.

Instead I tell myself that I live by example.  My gifting is not evangelism. There are great preachers and teachers out there who do a far better job than I ever could.  I pray, read my bible, attend church, and that’s enough.  Right?

Well, at least there’s one someone in my corner.  He’s actually my enemy. He’s cheering this thought process along.  He continues to whisper, yes, yes, Krista, you are doing plenty.  And this lie is easy to believe.

My grandpa was always ready to share the gospel message.  His kind eyes, warm smile and contagious laugh made people curious, and drew strangers in.  Then as the conversation would progress, Grandpa would pop the question.

If you were to die tonight, would you go to heaven?

Yep, that’s the boldness I’m talking about.  It’s a good question.  A really good question.  But sadly, I wonder if it would really fly in today’s culture.  To be honest, I wonder if we as Christ followers would be offended by such a question ourselves.

I think some of us are perfectly content not answering, and for that matter, not asking.  A question like that causes deep introspection.   And the answers, well, they could be scary.

Friends, our time is short here.  I believe Jesus return is near.  Not only do we have to get our own lives right with Christ, we have a huge assignment to share the good news with others as well.  It’s time to stop debating whether Christians should buy coffee here, or shop there, or support this cause or that cause.  For those answers, look to the Bible.  Seek the Holy Spirit’s guidance.  You will know.

It’s time to stop being passive.  There are precious souls that need us to speak truth into their lives and point them to the love and grace of Jesus.  There are people that need us to look them in the eye and ask them, if they were to die tonight, do they know what their spiritual future holds?

My heart is heavy for this world.  My heart is heavy for the church at large.  I feel this supernatural urgency that time is slipping away on this side of heaven.  No we don’t know the day or the hour Christ will return.  But that’s exactly the point; we don’t know the day or the hour, which is why we need to be ready.

“But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.  Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come.”  Mark 13:32-33