Preparing for the Future

Pastors are told they should rarely (and hesitantly), use their family as illustrations in their sermons. It is very easy to embarrass your wife or make your kids feel like you’re singling them out, by telling the congregation about some mishap in the home. Regrettably, we preachers aren’t always good at following good advice! 

Often something happens within the family that seems more than simply coincidence, but was ordered by Divine providence. That God-ordained event “just so happens” to perfectly illustrate the point the preacher is trying to make in the Sunday sermon, so how could he not mention it?! 

In those cases, from the pastor’s perspective, it would almost be unjust not to use those that situation to demonstrate exactly what you’re trying to teach the congregation. One just hopes (and prays) his wife and kids will forgive them (again). 

I suppose that same advice should be followed about using your family as illustrations for newspaper articles, as well as sermons. However, I am going to ignore that sage counsel and pick on my daughters for just a moment to hopefully drive home the point I hope to make in this article. (And pray they forgive me). 

A few years ago, we began having a conversation with our adult children about planning for retirement. They are in their early 20s and “old age” seems so far away; In their young minds, why should they worry about that now? Needless to say, it was an uphill battle. In fact, we still haven’t completely convinced them they should be consistently pouring money into an IRA of some kind. 

It’s our fault, really. My wife and I should have begun this conversation when they were much younger, and even started a Roth for them … but we didn’t. Yet, those of you reading this who are “on up in years,” can attest to the importance of investing in the future. Wisely invested, a hundred dollars today equals thousands of dollars 40 years from now. 

While it might seem painful to a young person to deny themselves some luxuries now, so they can add dollars to a retirement fund, ultimately it will be for their good. The problem is convincing immature minds of just how important it is to plan ahead.  

I am publicly tormenting my girls (hoping they forgive me) for this reason … preachers and Bible teachers face this same difficulty. Every single Sunday pastors are prayerfully seeking to convince both believers and unbelievers they need to prepare for the future. The problem we all face is convincing spiritually immature (or unregenerate) minds of just how important it is to think about eternity and plan ahead. Like with my kids, it is nearly impossible to impress upon people how vital it is to invest in the future by preparing today. Sadly, over and over again, people focus on this life alone and fail to plan for life after this. 

Any mature adult will admit it is wise to make financial investments that will benefit you in the years to come. There is not one single older person reading this article that regrets saving and investing their financial resources for the (not so) golden years. And yet, some of these same people who have been wise about fiscally planning ahead, have not given a single thought to what happens when this life is over! It is a well-known fact that every single person who lives, also dies. Then comes eternity. What then? How foolish it is to prepare for retirement that only lasts a few years, and not prepare for eternity that is never ending! 

On the other hand, we Christians don’t always live out what we say we believe. Too readily do we dismiss the knowledge that one day we are going to stand before King Jesus and give an account for what we have done in service to Him (2 Corinthians 5:10). Rather than redeeming the time, we waste far too much time. I know I do. 

The believer should be a shrewd steward of the finances God has entrusted them with, but also rightly value the precious time He has given and use these short lives to bring due glory to His majestic Name. Every Christian will be judged for what they have done to serve the Lord, and He will reward His people accordingly. So, will you live now in such a way as to have treasure that endures when time ends? Are you working hard and planning for eternity? I certainly hope you are.  

Therefore, on the off chance my kids are reading this … forgive me for you using you again as an illustration. But, for goodness sake – please, listen to your parents and start planning for retirement! It will be here before you know it! 

And girls, (and all the rest of you reading this), yes, plan ahead … but not just for retirement … plan for eternity by putting your faith in the finished work of the Risen Messiah, Jesus of Nazareth and serving Him with your whole heart. Any faithful investment in Christ and His kingdom never fails to yield an abundant return.