The Call That You Don't Want to Miss

If you are like me, you receive a flood of phone calls each day from telemarketers, Robo calls and scammers. Some would say, "Don't answer the phone. Just ignore the calls. There is just one problem with that advice. I am a pastor and have been for 55 years. In the early days of my ministry calls came on land lines. Not every call pertained to a crisis. Some involved checking up on people or engaging in casual conversation. The scammers and schemers of today did not exist. Within the multitude of phone calls I have received over the years, some were too important to be missed. As the title of this blog indicates, it was the call that I didn't want to miss. A crisis or an urgent need was unfolding.

Early in my ministry as a pastor, I asked my wife to always answer the phone when it rang if I was not at home. As a retired pastor getting ready to begin serving on the first Sunday of October as the interim pastor of Black Creek Baptist Church, I still follow this practice today. I knew that inevitably there would be that call that I did not want to miss.

I am sharing a life principle.

Every telephone call, every situation and every choice in life are not equal. There is always the one that stands out above the rest. The scammers and schemers are trying to victimize us. The marketeers are trying to get our business or preferably our money. The politicians want our vote and will promote and discriminate any ideology or lie to get it. In the midst of this maze of life in which we find ourselves, we need to make sure we answer that one call we don't want to miss.

The Bible clearly teaches us that everything in life is not equal.

Specific values, opportunities and responsibilities are identified that merit our attention and our commitment. Consider two examples.

The first example comes from Luke 10. Jesus made a visit to the home of His dear friends Mary, Martha and Lazarus. Wanting to be a good host, Martha busied herself with preparing to serve Jesus while Mary sat at Jesus' feet and heard His words. Martha became very upset that her sister Mary was not helping her with the preparations to serve. She spoke to Jesus and said, "...Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore tell her to help me." The answer that Jesus gave to Martha supports the life principle that some things take precedent over others. There is the one call that you don't want to miss. Here is Jesus' answer.

"And Jesus answered and said to her, 'Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled over many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her'" (Luke 10:41,42).

The second biblical example of the singular thing that merit our consideration over all other things is found in the parables that Jesus expounded in Matthew 13. In one of the parables a merchant who buys and sells pearls finds one pearl of surpassing value. The singular value of this pearl compelled him to sell everything he had to gain the one pearl of great price.

"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls, who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it" (Matthew 13:45,46).

In life there is the good part that should have priority over all the other things that demand our time and energy. In life many pearls of the world are advertised that you must have, but there is only one pearl of great price that offers eternal value.

Don't neglect to answer the one call you don't want to miss. More importantly, don't miss out on the good part in life, and don't refuse the pearl of great price that has value for this life and eternity.

Ernest Winburn