I’ve been on a whirlwind speaking tour that began with a five hour drive to Vero Beach on Wednesday. My wife and Honey Lake Church Associate Pastor Kenny Munds accompanied me on the trip and Kenny opened for me by singing and playing his guitar each time I spoke.
When we arrived we were met by a buddy of mine and he immediately drove us over to a faith based kitchen feeding operation where I spoke to a homeless group. Then we went next door where I spoke to a church prayer group meeting which included an interesting combination of elderly blue haired folks and youngsters – (Man oh man how do you craft a talk for two entirely different generations in one setting).
The next morning we were picked up at the break of day and I spoke to civic leaders and pastors at a breakfast, followed by a talk to middle and high school students at a large Christian school, followed by a well-attended business person luncheon, followed by giving my testimony to inmates in a jail, followed by a Celebrate Recovery meeting at a church last night.
This morning I will be picked up at daylight and have a two hour radio interview, followed by a luncheon where I will speak to some wealthy folks at an exclusive yacht club. Then I have to quickly drive to Melbourne to catch a plane to Scottsdale AZ to attend a conference with key religious leaders, and while I’m there I’m to speak with a top Hollywood producer about possibly making my book into a movie.
Whew!
When my buddy Dale contacted me with this trip I immediately began to dread it. I have so much going on with the Renewal of America Founder’s Forum and of course the relentless responsibilities at our resort, and then there are the many other speaking engagements, and writing books, and Words for the day, teaching Bible study, and on and on, I’m kind of busy . . . So imagine how I felt when I received this letter:
Bob: At the risk of you never speaking to me again, here is your tentative itinerary for while you are in Vero Beach. As you can see, I have scheduled you to speak to nine different groups (forgive me, brother!) to maximize your time with us.
Because I am not a total despot, I have also scheduled some down time for you on Wednesday night, late Thursday afternoon, and mid-morning on Friday. You can choose to nap, tour Vero Beach (it really is a beautiful place), or just holler at me the whole time.
On a serious note, thanks for accepting my invitation to come and minister to the people of Vero Beach and Indian River County. Because of the relative affluence here, the spiritual need is very deep . . . perhaps greater than anyplace I’ve ever lived.
– In Christ, Dale
Our correspondence kind of dipped when I poignantly responded:
“God repays evil for evil . . .”
He replied – “Get your rest now, brother! John 9:4 – We must quickly carry out the tasks assigned us by the one who sent us. The night is coming, and then no one can work . . .”
I said, “Sigh . . . Dirty pool . . .”
And he responded, “Yeah, don’t you hate it when you can’t fight scripture?”
Bah!
Due to its intense nature and the fact that my wife told me I was supposed to speak 20 times, (what a memory), I’ve been dreading this trip for weeks, but now that it’s almost over I’m greatly gratified that we did it. Regardless of the diverse nature of our audiences, we seem to have been well received at every venue and at times the Spirit of the Lord was moving so fast we could almost hear the crackling of Him roaming the audiences and touching lives for Christ.
Dale worked extremely hard to setup all of the meetings in Vero and has been getting up very early in the morning to pick us up at daylight and take us home late that night. He has ferried us from one event to the next in his personal car and all of the way listened to the abuse, (I did indeed feel called to “holler at him” and complain at every opportunity for working me so hard). He insisted on paying for all of our meals, bought us a nice gift basket, and solicited donations for our ministry, and even invited us into his home to enjoy a home-cooked meal of spaghetti.
Many of my friends tell me I need to start telling others “No” and just take it easy, especially since turkey season is upon us. Sorry but John 9:4 haunts me, because I know all too well that times is short – We must quickly carry out the tasks assigned us by the one who sent us. The night is coming, and then no one can work . . .”
I often include in my testimony that I came so very close to dying on so many occasions in my early life it is mind numbing. Had I just slipped on over the edge and crossed that gulf, I would be in hell right now FOREVER! As I think about so many people that are in similar shape today, I shudder. I have an intense desire to do all I can while there is yet light.
I wish more had the same zeal. Unfortunately so many folks I know are so engaged in their careers, and pursuing personal interests that they miss the gravity of the situation.
It is frightening to me to read the warning that God makes to those in His church who are “lukewarm”. One day He will ask you what you did with the platform with which He has so graciously blessed you. Before you formalize your response in your mind, you might want to read the passage below and envision being “spit out” or welcomed to sit down on your “throne”.
Have a great weekend and go to Honey Lake Church, (or somewhere), this weekend . . .
Rev. 3:21
I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot. So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth. Because you say, “I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing,” and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked . . .
He who overcomes, I will grant to him to sit down with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.'”
February 28, 2014 – Click here to listen