Answer the call to help others with the good message of Jesus!

A month ago, the plan was to go to the pool the week after school got out. A week ago, the plan changed to going to the zoo on Monday. Last night, the plan had solidified to driving out to Fossil Rim. In life, plans will change. And when the plan changes there are a few different reactions. Some might say they did not care for the original plan in the first place. Others may be excited for the new plan eager to go wherever and talk with whoever and do whatever as long as they get to go. Still there are a few who claim the changed plan is not fair, not what was agreed to, does not fit with what is wanted or needed, and will not go well.

We adjust our plans all the time. We may not want to adjust our plans, but often there are circumstances beyond our control. One way to help with adjusting plans and dealing with unforeseen circumstances is something called The Eisenhower Matrix. This decision-making system was named after the 34th president of the United States. It functions on the basic premise that there are immediate and important things in life. This also means that there are not immediate and not important things in life. The Eisenhower Matrix organizes these four categories into a two-by-two grid with immediate and not immediate across the top, and important and not important down the left side. One example of using the grid would be parking my truck once I have arrived at my destination. Coming to a complete stop and putting my truck in ‘park’ fits into the immediate and important square because I need to exit safely, and so that my truck does not keep moving out of control with no driver. The not immediate and not important need is how far I am from each line, just as long as I am inside the lines.

When someone cries for help, plans change immediately. When someone needs help in an emergency, it occupies the immediate and the important square on the Eisenhower Matrix. In our reading today from Acts 16, Paul heard someone crying out for help as we read,

9 During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and begging him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.”

Before he received this vision, Paul and his companions had other plans. This was Paul’s second missionary journey, and he thought he might again stay in what is modern Turkey to share the good message of Jesus. But God had other plans. Twice, Paul was prevented from doing mission work in certain areas by God. Finally, the vision of the man of Macedonia clarified that their work was to be done in what is modern Greece. This being the case, they would be taking the gospel from the Middle East into Europe.

The good message of Jesus brings help to others. As Christians, God has opened our eyes to see our greatest needs are met by God. The vast and wonderful creation he made keeps us alive each day. Our sins, death, the devil and hell all of which overwhelm us, were overcome by Jesus our Savior. Assurance of our salvation and guidance for our time in this world are given by the Holy Spirit who lives in us. God is our helper who saved us when we were crying out with no idea what or who we needed. We needed God’s help, and we know he has, is and will always be our help, but many do not know he is their helper. And the most common way others find out and listen to what God has done for them is us. We bring Jesus to others to help them, unless we do not bring Jesus to others. Then, we do not help them. We may be afraid to change our plans when it means sharing the good message of Jesus with others. We also may be afraid that sharing Jesus is going to disrupt the plans of others, so we do not say anything. The truth is that without Jesus, no amount of planning will save a person from their sins, death and hell.

God’s plan was to help us with Jesus. Our important and immediate need is Jesus all the time. The good message is that God makes plans for you even when your plans do not include him or sharing him with others. God guided Paul and his companions to bring the good message of Jesus further than before, and from them through many others over the centuries we heard the good news of Jesus. The Holy Spirit has worked through believers throughout time to keep the message going and spreading. In Acts 16, we hear the power of God working through Paul to keep the message of Jesus spreading,

10 After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.

Paul and his companions moved quickly recognizing gospel work as emergency level work for souls. Jesus recognized how vital his work was for all of us, and the night before he died on the cross, he took the time to pray for you and me as we hear in our Gospel reading from John 17,

20 “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 21 that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 24 “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world.”

Jesus prayed for you and me that we believe God sent Jesus to sacrifice his life to save us from our sins, death and hell, and that we be united in faith and be with Jesus in heaven when our work here is done. We are included in the vision of heaven God gave to John in our New Testament reading from Revelation 22,

14 “Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city.”

We have been washed clean by the blood of Jesus shed on the cross. We have the right to enter eternal life in heaven through our Savior Jesus. This truth is our help even on days when we feel lost or that all our plans have changed for the worse is that God’s plan to save us happened. The good message of Jesus got to you because God wanted you to hear, believe and be saved. Your future is heaven.

Gospel proclaiming is meant for the immediate and important square of the Eisenhower Matrix, not good parking. We all want to better understand how to make good plans. We also want to grow in how we adapt when things do not go according to plan. The key to both is understanding that when plans stay the same and when plans change, we still get to share Jesus. All of us talk so often about how our plans and lives have changed and did not turn out how we wanted or expected. Paul’s life was like that too. For the first half of his life, he planned on being a Pharisee who made his living making tents and zealously fighting against the followers of Jesus. For the second half of his life, God called Paul to faith in Jesus opening his eyes to the Scriptures to see Jesus as the promised Messiah and to be zealous to spread the good message of Jesus throughout the Mediterranean, and he still made tents. Tents were part of Paul’s life, but if you asked him, he would not have put tents in the immediate and important square. Whatever skill, vocation, trade, role, etc. you are in still allows for Jesus to be in the immediate and important square.

You and I get to have a positive outlook on life even when plans change because we know Jesus. When Jesus was in the world, he was known for wanting to be with people; he wanted to be with young, old, single, married, divorced, rich, poor, educated, uneducated, blue collar, white collar, sick, healthy, lonely, popular, depressed, proud, etc. Jesus knows all people need help, and the help they need is to hear the good message of his love, sacrifice, forgiveness, eternal life in heaven and purpose to serve him. When we answer the call to share Jesus with others, we are living out our purpose and future as pictured in our New Testament reading from Revelation 22,

17 The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let the one who hears say, “Come!” Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life.

When we answer the call like Paul to share the gospel, we offer those who are thirsty the free gift of the water of life through the Savior Jesus.

A month ago, the plan was to go to the pool, a week ago the plan was to go to the zoo and last night the plan finally became a trip out to Fossil Rim. In life, plans will change, and we can have all kinds of reactions. Paul and his companions on his second missionary journey were prevented from going places they planned to go and were called to go farther to help bring the good message of Jesus to the area of modern Greece. They went right away ready to share Jesus. Our plans change, but the call to help others with Jesus remains. Jesus has helped us with our greatest needs giving us forgiveness, life and heaven, and we are called to go share this good news wherever we may go. Answer the call to help others with the good message of Jesus. Amen.