Do you thank me for the prayers I answer? Do you ever thank me for the prayers I don’t answer? You pray for the things you want and expect answers. Yet have you ever looked back on  a prayer that I appeared not to answer, and realized from the perspective of more time and reflection that it would not have been good for you to have what you requested at the time? If your prayers are uninformed I may have to decide between giving you what you ask for and what is really best for you. Which of these would you prefer? Seek my will and pray according to it to make it easy for me to answer your prayers. 

My Great Commission to you was to preach the gospel to every creature. You may consider this a daunting task but I don’t expect you to do it alone. Do you want to see it fulfilled? Consider the stories I told about the laborers in the vineyard and the prodigal son. Those who labored all day didn’t think the late comers were worthy of a full day’s wages, and the elder brother didn’t think the younger brother’s return was worth celebrating. In both cases these positions did not agree with the true authority. Set aside for a moment the difficulty of the Great Commission and the details of the task. Is it your heart’s desire to see everyone in the Kingdom of God? 

Do you see any distinction between the church and the Kingdom of God? My church is meant to represent me, but this is done by people with human failings. Some people have had bad experiences at church and have walked away from me as a result. This compounds and amplifies a loss that could be limited. If your circumstances and experiences force you to distinguish between me and the people who represent me then make that distinction and move on from them without moving on from me. Even the best of my followers has human flaws, so you will face this dilemma at some time. Don’t let bad representatives keep you out of the Kingdom of God.

Do you schedule and plan your day to make the most effective use of your time? Does your day always go the way you expected? How do you plan and prepare for a day when you don’t know how it will turn out? I said not to worry about tomorrow, that sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof. Yet I know what you will face tomorrow even if you don’t. I may ask you to do things today that you don’t understand. Do them anyhow. Tomorrow you may see why these steps were necessary as advance preparation. You can’t obey today’s instructions tomorrow. Follow me and trust me to turn your sequence of todays into a life of destiny.