Snooz Alarms

Alarms come in many forms, alarm clocks, tornado sirens, earthquake
warnings, fire alarms, seatbelt alarms, backup alarms on our vehicles; we
are surrounded by alarms in one form or another. Alarms are something that
we find very necessary, yet, we often hate it when we hear them.

Last night I had an alarm on my cell phone go off at three o'clock in the
morning. I had set it the week before to wake me up for a trip I was making
and forgot to turn it off. I was somewhat unhappy, when I woke up and
couldn't figure out where the noise was coming from. It stopped and I went
back to bed, but about one minute later it started going off again and I
discovered its source that time, (the purpose of the alarm in the first
place).

This week there have been fires raging around us and the authorities had
sent out warnings (alarms) to be ready to evacuate many homes. I was on an
airplane this week and they had various warning chimes (alarms) going off to
get your attention for one instruction or another.

That's the purpose of alarms isn't it, to get your attention! They often do
their job far better than we would like at they time the alarm is going off.
Because of that we problem solving humans have invented a device known as
the "snooze alarm button". If we really aren't ready for the event (such as
getting out of bed), we just push the snooze alarm button and it allows us
to snooze (sleep) a little longer.

The problem with that snooze alarm is that some folks rely heavily upon it
and not the real alarm. They do this so much that they tend to ignore alarms
completely and really believe that they will have extra time to snooze until
they are ready to react.

Sadly, I've known far too many people who base their relationship to God on
the snooze alarm system. They readily ignore the alarm or warning God has
given and when the time comes for action it will be too late. Proverbs
23:30-34 gives us this warning: "I walked by the field of a lazy person, the
vineyard of one with no common sense. I saw that it was overgrown with
nettles. It was covered with weeds, and its walls were broken down. Then, as
I looked and thought about it, I learned this lesson: A little extra sleep,
a little more slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest; then poverty
will pounce on you like a bandit; scarcity will attack you like an armed
robber." (NLT)

Poverty can be more than just a lack of money and things; it can also be
spiritual poverty. I know that many people believe they have lots of time to
prepare to meet God, but what if you don't? I've presided at funerals for
far too many people who thought they had more time. How many times to you
push the snooze alarm in your life before it's too late?

Notice what Peter writes in 2 Peter 3:9-10, "The Lord isn't really being
slow about his promise, (to come back in judgment, rl), as some people
think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be
destroyed, but wants everyone to repent. But the day of the Lord will come
as unexpectedly as a thief. Then the heavens will pass away with a terrible
noise, and the very elements themselves will disappear in fire, and the
earth and everything on it will be found to deserve judgment."

How many more times do you want to chance hitting the snooze alarm?

Russ Lawson