Life Throws Many Things At Us

2 Peter 3:14 – “So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him.”

Someone once said, “Proper prior planning prevents poor performance.” Planning is absolutely vital these days. How do you prepare for the future? Of course, that depends on what events are pending. Life can throw so many things at us.

Years ago, I played Little League Baseball. One of my early coaches gathered all the players on our team together and told us the obvious. “Guys, every time you take the field, ask yourself one question… ‘what if the ball comes to me?’” That is a good question for many aspects of life. What will you do if the ball comes to you?

Peter writes in his second letter to the church, “make every effort to be found spotless, blameless, and at peace” with our Lord. Those three efforts are a wonderful pattern for our lives. So many things come at us in this life. Change is all around us, unexpected events occur, and crises can overwhelm us. How do we handle it?

With prayer and the power of the Holy Spirit, we make every effort to live as one who is a child of God and disciple of Christ, spotless and blameless. And because Christ suffered, died, and rose again victorious over sin, we live in total peace with our Lord. We cannot do this by our own efforts. Christ Jesus makes us spotless, blameless, and gives us peace. Now we can face the future fearlessly.

Rev. Eric J. Erkkinen Chaplain, U.S. Army (ret.)