Shakespeare and GCC

"It was William Shakespeare who wrote in Julius Caesar:

  'There is a tide in the affairs of men,
  Which taken at the flood, leads on to fortune;
  Omitted, all the voyage of their life
  Is bound in shallows and in miseries.
  On such a full sea are we now afloat;
  And we must take the current when it serves,
  Or lose our ventures.'

Shakespeare's character Brutus seems to be saying that fate sometimes offers opportunity that must be recognized and then embraced. To do so leads to glory. To fail to recognize the destined moment is to remain in the shallows, in the immobility of low tide, in the miserable contemplation of what might have been."

Stephen Mansfield wrote those words in his new book, The Faith of Barack Obama. When I read them I thought, "That's where we are at GCC. We're poised and ready. A rising tide of faith and courage is coming."

Hope floats.

We're determined to recognize, and embrace, the opportunity God has placed before us. To do so leads to glory. Not our glory but the glory of God.

There is a tide in the affairs of men.
The tide is rising.
God's current pulls into the deep.

Take it.

Fling your life into the flood.

Deuteronomy 30:15-20a  -  Look at what I've done for you today: I've placed in front of you Life and Good Death and Evil. And I command you today: Love God, your God. Walk in his ways. Keep his commandments, regulations, and rules so that you will live, really live, live exuberantly, blessed by God, your God, in the land you are about to enter and possess. But I warn you: If you have a change of heart, refuse to listen obediently, and willfully go off to serve and worship other gods, you will most certainly die. You won't last long in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess. I call Heaven and Earth to witness against you today: I place before you Life and Death, Blessing and Curse. Choose life so that you and your children will live. And love God, your God, listening obediently to him, firmly embracing him. Oh yes, he is life itself."

Comments

[Jim]

There is no doubt God is calling us all into the deep. Keep preaching as you did tonight. Have us bring our Bibles to church on the weekends. If it is the word of God, which it is, if it is a double edged sword, if it is everything the 35 said it is, then there is nothing wrong with letting "seekers" know where we get our strength. It is foundational. If the foundation is weak, the building will collapse. Keep asking us to do the right thing. People will not do more than you ask, and half will not do what you ask, but those who do will be stronger for it.