"A tiny country church, badly in need of repainting, had little more than $100 with which to have the job done. Old Joe (a well-known skinflint) was asked to do the work. He considered the matter, and came to the conclusion that, if he stretched the paint out as much as possible, he could maybe get by with just one gallon of white paint. Monday morning, he started to work. With about a third of the church painted, he'd already used up most of the paint, so he topped the can up with water, stirred well, and painted on. As he passed the three-quarter point, he realized he was, again, nearly out of paint, so he dilluted once more.
When he finished, he surveyed his work. "Not too bad." he thought.
Friday evening, though, a storm rolled in, and soaked everything.
Sunday morning, as he arrived for service, old Joe noticed the theme for the day's sermon on the church marque that read:
Repaint!
& Thin No More!
What does this have to do with us? How often do we tell God we are sorry for what we've done, then go back to our old ways? What does the Bible say?
Luke 13:5 "...except ye repent,ye shall all likewise perish."
Acts 8:22 "Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee."
Rev 2:5 "Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent,..."
Rev 3:19 "As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent." - all quotes kjv-
Often, we forget that repentance does not only mean saying we are sorry, it means doing something about our behavior to keep the offense from ever happening again.
Not stopping for red lights is a bad habit that could cost your driver's license, but your soul is worth a whole lot more than any document! If you tell the judge you're sorry, but then you see him again for the same offense, he'll be a bit skeptical of your repentance.
.
God spells it out clearly for all of us,
"...except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish."
Repent,
& sin no more!
See you in Paradise!
Mr Mike
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