Good Intentions...

Every morning as I struggle to crawl out of bed I say to myself, "I'm going to bed earlier tonight." Then on the drive to work I keep looking at the clock and push harder on the gas and tell myself, "I'm going to start leaving for work earlier." Then, while working I think about what I can do to help a friend in need and think, "I'll go to lunch with him on my day off."

How about you? Are there things you would like to do, but for one reason or another you don't get them done? Unfortunetly, we do this in our spiritual lives as well. Maybe it's helping a single mother move, visiting someone in the hospital, or doing a good will check on the widow lady next door. We mean well, but for some reason, we just fail to get the things done we want to do.

Jesus' disciples had the best intentions. But they failed too. The Son of Man told them how they would respond when he was arrested and crucified. Peter boldly said, "Even if all fall away, I will not." He insisted, "Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you." All the others chimed in and said the same thing.

According to the story in chapter 14 of the gospel of Mark, a crowd was sent by the Sanhedrin. They came with swords and clubs to capture Jesus. Just as Jesus said, the disciples couldn't get out of there fast enough. They all fled. The disciples didn't mean to fail and you don't either.

A sister in the Lord at my work reminded me one day as my failures to do what I intended to do piled up, "the road to hell is paved with good intentions". That is correct, but "the gates of hell will not prevail." (Matthew 16:18) With the power of the Creator of the ends of the earth living in you, you can overcome.

Ask God, through his son Jesus, to allow the Holy Spirit to control you. The power that raised our Great Savior from the dead is available here on earth. Ask for strength to follow through on doing things. "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you." Matthew 7:7

Jesus said in John 14:12, "I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father."

Our Father is a superbeing with unlimited power. Get hooked up with God. Move over to the passenger seat and let him get behind the wheel. You can trust God for tomorrow, because he is already there waiting for you!

Rick Hawbaker
'Son of God'