A while ago, Lily and I had a function we needed to be dressed up for.  I worked around the house in the morning, and wasn’t ready to go anywhere.  Lily, on the other hand, had already been out a couple of times that morning.

At lunch we made a plan to get out the door in 20 minutes.  Lily said, “I’m ready.  I just have to get changed, and I know what I’m wearing.”  Me?  Well, I still had to shower, shave, and I hadn’t thought of what I was going to wear.

Getting up from the table we both got busy.  By the time I finished my shower and was on to shaving, I heard a disturbing announcement.  The words were “this outfit isn’t going to work”.

I ignored the comment and kept going; I had a deadline to meet.  When I finished in the bathroom, it appeared that Lily had already tried on and rejected a couple of outfits.  I went straight to the closet, looked in, saw my blue suit and made my choice.  Lily was still deciding what to wear.

Given how we started, how was she panicking and I was right on schedule?  I think I figured it out.  It’s our approach to clothes.

When I looked in the closet and saw my blue suit, the only decision I had to make was which shirt to wear with it.  I have three:  a white one which was in the wash, a blue one which was not really appropriate for the occasion, and a grey one which would work just fine. It was that simple for me.

However, when Lily goes to the closet she sees individual pieces of clothing.  She has to determine which pieces might go together and look the best, kind of like choosing to purchase a new outfit.  She’s had the same clothes in her closet for some time and used them in different combinations, yet still she doesn’t think of what has worked before.  It’s a brand new outfit she is looking for!

I think that’s why there are so many women’s clothing stores in shopping malls.  Women are so used to looking for brand new outfits at home, the store becomes an extension of their home closet.

My solution would be to make an outfit playbook, like they have in football.  You lay out the outfits on the bed or put them on and take pictures of all the combinations.  Then, print them out and put them on your wrist band for easy access in making the call.  You just pick the combo that looks best to you given how you feel and how the defense is shaping up.

In the end, Lily found a combination that worked well and we made it to the function on time.  (I can’t help but point out that, despite how we started, I was still waiting at the front door for her – not that unusual.)

Here’s the thing:  We’re going to get ready for God.  Some will get ready quickly and some will take some time to figure it out.  But we will all get ready to meet God one day. I want to be sure that I’m fully dressed when the time comes and not caught still deciding about Him.  That will be one function I don’t want to be unprepared for.

Until Next Time!

Pastor Paul

Question:  If you stood before God today, and He said to you, “Why should I let you into my heaven?”  What would you say?