Always on Point

My name is Andy Odom, pastor of Canyon Creek Presbyterian Church in Richardson, Texas. Joe Albright invited me to give the Dial Hope message for today. In Luke 12, Jesus is speaking with his disciples about being watchful, and he says this…

You must be ready; for the Son of man is coming at an unexpected hour. (Luke 12:40)

Our family dog is a Brittany named Emmie that I inherited from a pheasant group I used to hunt with each year. Brittanys are one of those rare breeds that are wonderful family pets as well as tenacious working dogs, and the family took to her right away. One of the things we learned about Emmie is that she is always on point. She seems to even sleep with one eye open. It can be the middle of the night when all of a sudden she jumps to full attention and runs outside (through the dog door) to corner, capture, or chase away a rabbit. Needless to say, rabbits have learned to stay out of our yard or suffer the consequences.

When she is not asleep, her regular daytime routine is to pace from the window to the front door to the back porch to the window to the front door to the back porch… over and over again, all day, almost without stopping. She is always on point. It wears me out just watching her endless energy and ability to stay alert, “Is there a rabbit here? Is there one there? How about over here? There? Here? What about there?”

When it comes to the Kingdom of God, Jesus charges us with the same kind of alertness. “You must be ready,” he says, “for you never know when the Son of man is coming.” In other words, you never know when or how the Kingdom of God will show up in your life. It comes when you least expect it, so stay alert, be on the lookout, “Is the Kingdom of God here? Is it there? How about over here?” With all the things in life that can wear us out, may you never tire of both searching for and being part of the Kingdom of God here on earth. Stay alert! Be ready!

Let us pray: Keep us alert, O Lord. Give us eyes to see your kingdom here on earth. Give us ears to hear your voice. Give us hands to be part of what you are up to in this world. Keep us alert with faithful energy that cannot be quenched. Amen.

Please feel free to share this message with friends and family!