Good Saturday morn on this, the 15th of March. Last week I wrote about how my plans were abruptly changed when about noon, I received word that our guest speaker, Dan Brown, was snowed in and would not be coming as planned. Because I have to rewrite my blog to reflect the change in plans, I was not able to make the usual printed copies available in the foyer of the church as I usually do. I did post the blog online but I had to post it in the afternoon instead of the morning, so I apologize for the inconvenience caused by the delay and lack of availibility of a hard copy. Isn't it interesting how one circumstance can change our plans for the day. In fact one circumstance can change our plays for a brief time, a longer time, or even our whole life. The Bible is replete with examples of incidents which altered plans and people's lives. Encounters with Christ completely altered people's lives such as Nicodemus (John 3), the woman at the well (John 4), and Zaccheus (Luke 19), to name just a few. Unexpected situations such as the numerous persecutations and arrests of the Apostle Paul (many passages in Acts and the Epistles), Moses encounter with the people dancing before the idolatrous golden calf (Exodus 32), or Balaam's experience with his talking beast of burden (Numbers 22), changed the trajectory of people's lives by altering plans and outcomes. Proverbs warns us to not boast about tomorrow because we do not know what a day may bring forth (Proverbs 27:1), and James addresses this issue when he advises us, Come now, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit"; whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. Instead you ought to say, "If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that" (James 4: 13-15). It is therefore always a good idea to make our plans subject to a "Lord willing" or we will experience many frustrations along the way.

Tomorrow's sermon is entitled, Powerful Pictures of the Christian Life.